Full of Joy!
I will be on vacation through Sunday 11/25, so my next post after today will be Monday 11/26. You can click on this link for the daily readings. http://www.moravian.org/faith-a-congregations/moravian-daily-texts.html
Reflection: Today’s theme is one of joy! The psalmist talks about the “songs of joy” the Israelites sang as the ascended to the Jerusalem to praise God in the temple. He even states that those who sow in tears will reap in joy. As we focus on what God has done for us we can claim “joy” no matter what our circumstances.
We see the joy in Solomon’s life at the height of his reign. Visiting Queen Sheba discovers that Solomon’s wisdom is even much more than she expected. She notes how his servants are (happy/joyful) by serving in the light of the wisdom God has given him. As God gives us wisdom and we act on it, it leads to joy because we see how great our God is.
Finally in the Gospel, Jesus teaches the disciples that His joy will be complete in them as they abide in Him and love like He did. Jesus wants the disciples to experience to the full the joy He experiences as He hears from the Father and acts on it. And of course this is all based in love. As we love others fully as Jesus has loved us it will give us a joy that no earthly possession can give us. Importantly hear this Jesus wants His joy to be in us and for us to have it to the full. Jesus doesn’t want his followers to go around “joyless” or “half full”.
What is your joy quotient today? Notice we don’t create our own joy it comes in being relationship with Jesus and worshipping Him and living according to His promises. I see many Christians walking around without a sense of joy, and quite frankly I feel that way sometimes. But as I was reminded at a conference this past week, God and Jesus want their joy to flow out of me like Living Water, refreshing me and others around me! Claim His joy today, the joy of the Lord is Your Strength!!!!
Psalm 126
A song of ascents.
1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of[a] Zion,
we were like those who dreamed.[b]
2 Our mouths were filled with laughter,
our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us,
and we are filled with joy.
4 Restore our fortunes,[c] Lord,
like streams in the Negev.
5 Those who sow with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
6 Those who go out weeping,
carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
carrying sheaves with them.
1 Kings 10:1-10:29
The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon
10 When the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon and his relationship to the Lord, she came to test Solomon with hard questions. 2 Arriving at Jerusalem with a very great caravan—with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones—she came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had on her mind. 3 Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built, 5 the food on his table, the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at[d] the temple of the Lord, she was overwhelmed. 6 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. 7 But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard. 8 How happy your people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! 9 Praise be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king to maintain justice and righteousness.” 10 And she gave the king 120 talents[e] of gold, large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 (Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir; and from there they brought great cargoes of almugwood[f] and precious stones. 12 The king used the almugwood to make supports[g] for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. So much almugwood has never been imported or seen since that day.) 13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for, besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.
Solomon’s Splendor
14 The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents,[h] 15 not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the territories. 16 King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels[i] of gold went into each shield. 17 He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three minas[j] of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 Then the king made a great throne covered with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. 20 Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s days. 22 The king had a fleet of trading ships[k] at sea along with the ships of Hiram. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons. 23 King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth. 24 The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. 25 Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift—articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules. 26 Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses,[l] which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills. 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue[m]—the royal merchants purchased them from Kue at the current price. 29 They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty.[n] They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and of the Arameans.
John 15:9-17
9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.
It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me. Daniel 4:2 (NIV)
He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ Then I went and washed and received my sight.” John 9:11
Giver of grace, how amazing it is that you love us so much to give us as we ask — through miracles in our everyday lives. Don’t let us take your presence for granted. We wish to see the role you play in our lives and tell others that they may see you at work too. Amen.
Reflection: Today’s theme is one of joy! The psalmist talks about the “songs of joy” the Israelites sang as the ascended to the Jerusalem to praise God in the temple. He even states that those who sow in tears will reap in joy. As we focus on what God has done for us we can claim “joy” no matter what our circumstances.
We see the joy in Solomon’s life at the height of his reign. Visiting Queen Sheba discovers that Solomon’s wisdom is even much more than she expected. She notes how his servants are (happy/joyful) by serving in the light of the wisdom God has given him. As God gives us wisdom and we act on it, it leads to joy because we see how great our God is.
Finally in the Gospel, Jesus teaches the disciples that His joy will be complete in them as they abide in Him and love like He did. Jesus wants the disciples to experience to the full the joy He experiences as He hears from the Father and acts on it. And of course this is all based in love. As we love others fully as Jesus has loved us it will give us a joy that no earthly possession can give us. Importantly hear this Jesus wants His joy to be in us and for us to have it to the full. Jesus doesn’t want his followers to go around “joyless” or “half full”.
What is your joy quotient today? Notice we don’t create our own joy it comes in being relationship with Jesus and worshipping Him and living according to His promises. I see many Christians walking around without a sense of joy, and quite frankly I feel that way sometimes. But as I was reminded at a conference this past week, God and Jesus want their joy to flow out of me like Living Water, refreshing me and others around me! Claim His joy today, the joy of the Lord is Your Strength!!!!
Psalm 126
A song of ascents.
1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of[a] Zion,
we were like those who dreamed.[b]
2 Our mouths were filled with laughter,
our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us,
and we are filled with joy.
4 Restore our fortunes,[c] Lord,
like streams in the Negev.
5 Those who sow with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
6 Those who go out weeping,
carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
carrying sheaves with them.
1 Kings 10:1-10:29
The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon
10 When the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon and his relationship to the Lord, she came to test Solomon with hard questions. 2 Arriving at Jerusalem with a very great caravan—with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones—she came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had on her mind. 3 Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built, 5 the food on his table, the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at[d] the temple of the Lord, she was overwhelmed. 6 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. 7 But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard. 8 How happy your people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! 9 Praise be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king to maintain justice and righteousness.” 10 And she gave the king 120 talents[e] of gold, large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 (Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir; and from there they brought great cargoes of almugwood[f] and precious stones. 12 The king used the almugwood to make supports[g] for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. So much almugwood has never been imported or seen since that day.) 13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for, besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.
Solomon’s Splendor
14 The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents,[h] 15 not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the territories. 16 King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels[i] of gold went into each shield. 17 He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three minas[j] of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 Then the king made a great throne covered with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. 20 Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s days. 22 The king had a fleet of trading ships[k] at sea along with the ships of Hiram. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons. 23 King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth. 24 The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. 25 Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift—articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules. 26 Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses,[l] which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills. 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue[m]—the royal merchants purchased them from Kue at the current price. 29 They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty.[n] They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and of the Arameans.
John 15:9-17
9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.
It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me. Daniel 4:2 (NIV)
He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ Then I went and washed and received my sight.” John 9:11
Giver of grace, how amazing it is that you love us so much to give us as we ask — through miracles in our everyday lives. Don’t let us take your presence for granted. We wish to see the role you play in our lives and tell others that they may see you at work too. Amen.
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