There is something unique about crossing the Mason Dixon Line and venturing south. With it comes a uniquely comforting culture that offers a warm greeting, a welcoming atmosphere, and generous helpings of food. They don’t call it “southern hospitality” for nothing! The slow pace and southern drawl that adds syllables to words and addresses strangers with “honey” or “sweetheart”, seems foreign to many of us northerners. Yet, for some reason, one of the phrases that has migrated northward and made an occasional appearance is the exclamation, “Bless your heart!” Excuse me?! I must admit, I have no idea what it means and am not even sure that we are using it correctly. Yet the biblical phrase, “Bless the Lord!”, should be used often and with great joy. To bless someone means to express adoration or speak well of them. The Hebrew word carries with it the physical act of bending the knee in reverence. So, to “bless the Lord” is to call oneself or others to worship, exalt, or praise God.

Psalm 103 opens and closes with the following glorious exclamation: “Bless the Lord, O my soul!” (Ps 103:1-2, 22). King David centers his song on God’s unchanging character, with praise and worship as its bookends. Moreover, his worship springs forth from the depths of his being - his soul. David is fully convinced of God’s worth and goodness. As a matter of fact, David extols His unchanging character culminating in a simile that compares God’s care to that of a compassionate father. In verses 6-14 David writes:

The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.

David considers God to be the compassionate Father of all creation, specifically, of His chosen people. He is perfectly good in every way. The text assumes that a good earthly father is a godly man who faithfully demonstrates grace and mercy to his children. King David points out that the Lord, embodies all of the benevolent character traits of an earthly father in glorious unchanging perfection. As the hymn writer, Thomas O. Chisholm, so accurately put it: “Great is thy faithfulness, O God, my Father; There is no shadow of turning with thee. Thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not; As thou hast been, thou forever wilt be.” Our Heavenly Father loves us, corrects us, forgives us, leads us, and provides for us. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg! With that in mind, we return once more to David’s call to bless the Lord with our inmost being. While there are many means by which to rejoice and revel in the Lord, here are three practical suggestions that we can draw from the text.

First, bless the Lord through worship. The psalmist summons himself to bless the Lord with “all that is within me” (Ps 103:1). Worship and praise originate from an inward posture of the soul. Adoration and exaltation is less about physical posture than it is about our heart, soul, and mind (Matt 22:37). Every morning, we must take time to confess our need for Him and surrender our will.

Second, bless the Lord through remembrance. King David is determined not to forget all the Lord has done. He reminds himself of the Father’s attributes and actions (Ps 103:3-19). It is reassuring to be reminded that while we make an effort to remember the unchanging compassion of God, He remembers our frailty and need (Ps 103:14).

Third, bless the Lord through obedience. The psalm concludes with a call to the angelic hosts “who do His will” (Ps 103:21) and all of creation that is under His dominion (Ps 103:22). Are you seeking to obey your Heavenly Father by obeying His will? Do your prayers echo the words of Jesus’ model prayer for His disciples? Is your plea: “... Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt 6:9-10)? 

Take time, right now, to praise the Lord! Recount the benefits of having a compassionate Heavenly Father. Take a minute to write a few of His benefits in your Bible. Reflect on His goodness, mercy, and love demonstrated through the sacrificial gift of His Son. Finally, pray for the courage to obey His will. May your desire and determination “bless His heart”!

Titus 3:4-7 (ESV) - “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”