“O Lord my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendor and majesty” (Psalm 104:1, NIV).

“I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness…” (Isaiah 61:10a, NIV).

I like to buy one new garment when I go on a vacation. On an inside seam, with ballpoint pen, I note the date and place of purchase. Then I have a pleasant and practical memento of my vacation.

When shopping in Vancouver, my attention was caught by a flared cotton skirt in a tropical print sporting big pink petals, blended palm leaves, and even the head of a hidden bird peeking through here and there. The skirt fit, and I wore it.

In Vancouver my sister-in-law admired it; and my brother, who rarely comments on my clothes, said he liked it. Then, when I arrived back home with it on, my backyard neighbor exclaimed, “I always said you should wear something brighter!”

My spirits were lifted. The garment was giving me joy.

In time I may no longer wear my skirt, but the Spirit of the Sovereign Lord wants me to have the on-going, multi-faceted joy that Isaiah expresses in his outburst:

“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn and provide for those who grieve in Zion- to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair” (Isaiah 61:1-3a, NIV).

Being involved in the dynamic mission for which he was anointed by the Lord was the source of joy for Isaiah– for Isaiah, who knew that his joy did not stop with himself, but also redounded to all those who accepted his message.

Jesus details us in how to share in this on-going extension of joy: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” He adds, “And surely I am with you always to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:19, 20, NIV). There can be no greater on-going joy for us than in being involved in making disciples for Jesus under Jesus’ own guiding presence. Jesus further assures us that the joys of sharing in his mission extend even to heaven: “I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Luke 15:10b, NIV).

“Who will go for me?” Our Lord asks. Can we respond? “Here I am, send me. Yes, send me to the addicts, to the ill, and to lonely, neglected children– to all who are in need of your lasting and eternal joy.”

Eventually, we will hear our Lord’s, “Well done, good and faithful servant … Enter into the joy of your master” (Matthew 25:21, NKJV).

Prayer: Lord, please, with your anointing of your Spirit, show us how to pass on your joy to our neighbors and friends near and far – to reach them with the proclamation of your favor– so they too will wear the “garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair,” and will pass on their joy in experiencing that “you are very great and are clothed in splendor and Majesty.” In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Isabel Allison Roland, Manitoba, Canada