Have you ever found yourself having to say the same thing to someone, over and over again? I’m sure parents and teachers can relate to this, with children often needing to be asked or instructed more than once to do a particular thing.

But repetition is not necessarily a bad thing. As a pianist, I know the importance of repetition when learning a piece of music. It is also vital in passing on knowledge to others. Rachel has taught our daughter Phoebe to memorise a few Bible verses (it’s never too early to start!), and naturally this involved a great deal of repetition.

Both of this week’s Bible readings contain words or phrases that are repeated to emphasise a key thought or point. 

In Psalm 42, we hear the following words in both verses 5 and 11: “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Saviour and my God.”

And Philippians 4:4-7 begins with this sentence: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: rejoice!”

Why did the Holy Spirit inspire the Sons of Korah and the apostle Paul respectively, to repeat these particular things in their writings? Perhaps because when trouble strikes, our natural human tendency is to be downcast and self-absorbed. So often, we see the brokenness of this world and our own lives, and despair. At times we are tempted to look to earthly pleasures to distract us, or human wisdom to guide us. So we need constant reminding that nothing compares to the joy and hope we have in God. Believers can rejoice in the Lord for His goodness, love, and the eternal salvation we have in Christ. We also have unshakeable hope in Him, because of His track record of faithfulness. You can never repeat the Bible’s teaching too many times. As we store up and treasure God’s Word in our hearts, may true hope and joy be ours through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.