“Who wants ice cream?!”
These four words are sure to inspire pure joy in the hearts of kids everywhere (except for those who are lactose-intolerant.) When I was a kid, my brother and I would be pumped if my dad offered an ice cream run on Friday night after dinner.
Because of our love for ice cream, we paid close attention when he later used our favorite treat in a sermon illustration. My dad was teaching about the difference between justice, mercy, and grace. He said, “When you do something wrong, justice is getting what you deserve. Mercy, on the other hand, is not getting what you deserve. Grace? When you do something wrong, grace is getting a bowl of ice cream. Because of what Jesus did for you on the cross, instead of getting what you deserve, you receive God’s grace.”
When I listened to TobyMac’s song, “Oh My Soul,” featuring his amazing collaborator, CeCe Winans, I thought of my dad’s illustration of how God gives us what we don’t deserve. TobyMac praises God throughout this song, and Winans’ vocals stir hearts as they share what happens when we grasp all that God has done for us! As soon as “Oh My Soul” was over, I was ready to listen to it again.
The song opens with TobyMac singing a full-throated praise to God. “Praise the Lord, my soul - And all that is within me - Bless His holy name.” These lyrics echo the opening verse of Psalm 103. “Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.”
Remarking on Psalm 103, TobyMac shared more about the song on his Facebook page. “The Psalm says in the first verse, “all my inmost being praise His holy name”. If one person chooses to do that, this song is an answered prayer. So grateful to get to be a part of this one with my co-writers Bryan Fowler, Micah Kuiper and Shawn Newby. To God be the glory.”
Written by David, Psalm 103 is full of David’s praise to God for His countless acts of mercy and grace. David recounts both the events of his personal life with God as well as the people of Israel’s history with God dating back to Moses and their deliverance from Egypt.
But, David doesn’t stop there! He moves from the actions of God to the character of God. My favorite section of Psalm 103 is verses 8-11. I share these words multiple times each week with people in my church or those I’m serving online. Let these words sink in, as you consider the weight of who God is.
“The Lord is compassionate and merciful,
slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
He will not constantly accuse us,
nor remain angry forever.
He does not punish us for all our sins;
He does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.
For His unfailing love toward those who fear Him
is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.”
If you meditate on the character of God and how He is better than we deserve, you’d praise God with all that was within you, too. It’s no wonder that TobyMac noted the speed of writing this song in an Instagram post. “This song ‘Oh my soul’ was birthed after sitting in Psalm 103…We wrote it so fast cause we couldn’t wait to lift his name….it was just flowing out!!!!’
I wonder when the last time was you considered what God has done for you and what you have in your life that you don’t deserve. What does that “ice cream” look like in your life - the gift of God in the place where you fell short and made mistakes? I encourage you to consider one way you can keep God’s goodness and kindness in your mind. Whether you make a gratitude post every day on social media or pause to give thanks before each meal, there are many ways we can meditate on who God is and what He’s done for us.
When we cultivate an ongoing awareness of God’s goodness and kindness to us, it is easy to find that praise “just flowing out” as TobyMac says. The next time you see a bowl of ice cream or someone offers some amazing dessert to you, pause and think about how good our God is. He’s been so kind to us and our best response is to “bless His name.”
Scott Savage is a pastor, author, and speaker with the best last name in the world. Scott’s writing helps people transform difficult circumstances into places where they can thrive. He leads Cornerstone Church in Prescott, Arizona, and loves watching movies with his wife and three kids. You can begin Scott’s life-changing project, The 21 Day Gratitude Challenge, today.
