One of my favorite psalms, Psalm 100, begins with the words: “Call out to the Lord, all the earth!” The word for “call out” is a word all can recognize: “hariyu,” which is related to the word “truah”—the same word we use for the alarm sound when we blow the shofar on Rosh Hashanah.

So when we say this psalm, we should keep in mind that we are making a proclamation about the worship of G-d. And, in fact, there is a tradition that we should say this psalm louder than the other psalms in pesukei d’zimrah. With our words, we become like a shofar in the world.

That’s interesting enough. But what makes it even more interesting is the exact content of our proclamation. When we “Call out to the Lord, all the earth!” what exactly should we call out? “Serve the Lord with joy!”

One could imagine many different things to proclaim about G-d. And even if we narrow the topic to how we should serve G-d, there are many different options: serve G-d with…solemnity, intensity, piety, …everything from ardor to zeal.

But the psalm tells us to serve G-d with joy. Why is that so essential? Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk, home of my maternal grandmother, offers the following causes for joy:

  1. Be joyful that you have an opportunity to sing unto G-d.
  2. Be joyful that you are a Jew.
  3. Be joyful that you are able to pray, to study, and to perform G-d’s will.
  4. Be joyful that in the presence of the infinitude of G-d, the highest saint and the lowliest commoner are equal.
  5. Be joyful about all that you have achieved in both your spiritual and material quests
  6. Be joyful that you don’t have to doubt yourself, but instead can bask in the light of the Lord.

Those are all food for thought. But let me add a few more. A few days ago, we celebrated the bat mitzvah of Emma Cohen. Here are some reasons to be joyful that I witnessed there: a beautiful young lady coming of age; parents with tears of joy; friends joining together to bemoan that kids grow up too fast; a father-daughter dance; a wife gently placing her hand on her husband’s shoulder as they dance. Not to mention enough Classical Caterer food to feed Nigeria.

Psalm 100 seems like a prayer that is meant to make G-d feel good. Surprisingly, it actually serves as a reminder to us of how good we should feel. Maybe that’s why the psalm continues ”He has made us, and we are His, His people and the flock of His pasture.”