Rejoicing Sound!

Nehemiah 12 says And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.

When’s the last time the sound of rejoicing coming from your home was heard far away?  Did you share your good news with family, friends across the country, workers in your office?

God gives us joy, and we need to include our entire families in the rejoicing.  We mentioned a few days ago about perhaps taking the family to a park to wave branches, as we rejoice together.

What about gathering the family to share with each other their good news and then to rejoice together, and perhaps invite friends over to share the good news!

This is what we do well, when our kids graduate from high school, when a family member hits a mile marker birthday year, or even when we finally land a job we’ve been hoping for.  We invite the friends over, and we rejoice together.

This pleases the Lord and makes him happy when we celebrate his goodness in our lives.  And we must always remember to boast in His goodness, not in what our own hands have achieved. 

It is because of the mercy and love of our Savior that we achieve anything in this life, and it is to him we present applause, glory, and honor for his great love poured out on us and those we love.