Today's passage is Nehemiah 12:27-47.
The wall is dedicated. All the Levites are brought in as well as all the singers.
The Leivites, priests, people, walls and gates are purified.
Nehemiah makes two choirs and sends them along with the leaders and the people in opposite directions on the wall.
When they meet, they go to the temple. The joyful sound was heard far away.
Men were appointed to be in charge of the storerooms for the tithes and firstfruits and all of Israel contributed to the daily portions for the Levites, priests, singers and gatekeepers.
Do I make a joyful sound when I talk about the Lord? When I talk of my sins, I know I'm not joyful because I'm talking about my going wrong, which is sad.
But how joyful am I when I talk about Jesus' life-giving death? How excited am I when I talk about living in God's love forever?
Yesterday I went to my school to give QTin to the office people and the librarians.
It was a joyful task and I smiled and said I looked forward to the day when there would be an English QTin so they could read even more sharing about people's lives in God.
There was joy in our faces when we saw one another again after two weeks.
We share a common purpose and we can all talk about incidents relating to our roles, just as Nehemiah did in today's passage.
But deepening our understanding of God and his word is more important than our work.
Today's passage made me see that my joy in delivering God's message could be greater than it is. God sent me to my school to be a principal, to train me and to share my joy in the Lord. I didn't deliver the joy yesterday.
On the other hand, I did deliver the joy of the Lord to my friend in Canada. We went to high school together.
For the first time he said he was an atheist, which I said wasn't true because everyone worships something, everyone makes a god of something.
I said I worshipped Jesus Christ because he guaranteed my place in heaven.
I said I hoped I would see my friend there because there was still time for him to change his mind. I was full of joy at the thought.
I like the singers at our church because they make a big, joyful noise.
I especially like Wednesday worship because there is more singing than on Sunday.
Hweemoon chapel really rocks then, and nobody can be sad in all that joy! I wish we could open the roof and let the joyful sound be heard far away.
During my trip to Canada, a far away place, I heard joyful news from my sister.
We had a long sharing about our belief in Jesus, and then she said she would start going to church again.
For many years she has not gone to church, which is so important to our faith.
I pray every day that she will return and recover her worship.
And she said she would!
