“Bless the Lord, O, my soul” (Ps. ciii. 1).
Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me be stirred up to
magnify His holy name. “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His
benefits; who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy
diseases; who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with
lovingkindness and tender mercies; who satisfieth thy mouth with good
things, so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Who so well can
sing this thanksgiving song as we, rejoicing as most of us do, we trust,
in this full salvation, and praising God for the glorious health of a
risen Lord and a continual youth?
This psalm and its opening verses is in the very center of the Scriptures
by an exact count of letters and verses. So let it stand in our lives, as
we look backward and forward and upward in grateful thanksgiving as we
sing in its closing strains, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is
within me, bless His holy name.” Lord, center my heart in Thee and in the
spirit of love and praise.