Today’s Reading: Ezra 3:10-13
Ezra 3:13 — The people could not distinguish the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping, because the people were making so much noise. And the sound was heard from afar.
God promises hope and joy in sadness. The exiles who returned to Judah celebrated the laying of the foundation of a new temple. For many who had been born in Babylonian exile, this was a joyous occasion since they had never seen the first temple. But to the old folks who had returned to Jerusalem after surviving seventy years in exile, the laying of the foundation brought back memories of the former temple, and they wept.
These tears were a mixture of joy and sadness: joy because the Lord’s house was finally being rebuilt; sadness because the glory of the first temple was forever gone. We call this emotion “bittersweet” since it is a mixture of sweet joy and the sadness of bitter loss. Christians often experience this feeling when a fellow believer dies and goes to heaven. We have joy for their promotion to glory but grief for the personal loss of a loved one.
Whether joy or sadness, gain or loss, sweetness or bitterness, God’s people can always have a true and certain hope. God promises that sadness, loss, and bitterness will all pass away one day; these things will not last forever. Sadness, loss, and bitterness serve a purpose in the believer’s life — to cause him to run into the Father’s arms and dwell in the Father’s house as a son (Luke 15:11-24).
The hope of our salvation, Jesus Christ, who is working for us, in us, and through us to complete our sanctification, makes us optimistic people. The three Hebrew boys told Nebuchadnezzar, “Go ahead and throw us into the fiery furnace. God will either let us die and take us to heaven, or He will bring heaven to us in the fire and deliver us.” They were positive that God had a perfect solution to their situation.
Have some godly optimism today as you face your life. You, too, can find hope and joy in unhappy circumstances!
…07/22/2024
Devotional
“God will either let us die and take us to heaven, or He will bring heaven to us in the fire and deliver us.” They were positive that God had a perfect solution to their situation.”
No matter how much I think about it for days and days, I just can't come up with an answer. But God knows the clearest answer to this situation.
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.”
Philippians 4:6 NLT
Thank you,Jesus!
...2024년 7월 22일 묵상
“하나님은 우리를 죽게 하여 천국으로 데려가시든지, 아니면 불로 천국으로 인도하여 구원하실 것입니다.” 그들은 하나님께서 자신들의 상황에 대한 완벽한 해결책을 갖고 계시다고 확신했습니다.”
며칠…