with a song. I will magnify him with thanksgiving. This will please the Lord more than an

ox or a bull with horns and hoofs.

That second verse, verse 31, says that when we praise the name of God and when we magnify him with Thanksgiving, he is happy.

He is pleased.

And I've talked to enough people recently, even today, to know the kinds of backgrounds

out of which more and more people are coming,

in which the concept of anybody being pleased by what they do,

not to mention God Almighty infinite in holiness is incomprehensible and

emotionally almost impossible and those people come to worship on Sunday morning and they hear me summon everyone to worship.

And the miracle that I believe needs to take place is the miracle of believing that God is smiling.

He's really happy with what's going on here.

Because I don't think we will ever worship in the spirit

that God means for us to worship, unless when we look up on Sunday morning,

or with our eyes closed and our minds' eyes set on the throne of the universe, we see a father who is absolutely delighted with the efforts of these children.

And any of you who are parents or who have a niece or a nephew or something who's ever done a little piano concert or a little skit at school or little speech in kindergarten,

will know it really doesn't take much to please you. It really doesn't take much.

My kids have all It really doesn't take much.

My kids have all gone through CE nights at Calvin Christian School.

That's Creative Expression Night, I think.

And they have to memorize a poem or read something or do something.

And we're blessed to have a school in which there are hundreds of good parents and you can just

watch the parents lavish their delights upon these absolutely

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