Weeping With Joy...

Weeping with Joy

I'm not one to believe in coincidences or accidents. I believe everything, EVERYTHING, has a reason or a purpose behind it. So this morning when I was reading and looked up a Bible verse, I read the verse and began to think about the context. I reread the question and there was a disconnect. The question did not fit the verse. So I looked at the question again, and I was on the wrong verse. Immediately many people would go to the right verse and move on. Not me! That's where my brain began to wonder what God had for me in that verse. What do I need to learn from those scriptures?

As a side note, I like to be prepared for everything. I don't want to fly by the seat of my pants on anything. However, the real meaning of that phrase is to use your instincts in the situation instead of following a prescribed plan. I'm learning to do this and for an OCD person, this is difficult. It means you can't always have a plan, or you have to roll with it when the plan is disrupted. When I realized I was on the wrong verse, I reread the verse that I had mistakenly gone to and began to ponder. You see, our Women's Class is studying the book of Haggai. Those two short chapters look into how the temple in Jerusalem was rebuilt. Among other things, there is glory to God in rebuilding the temple, a look at procrastination, failures and overcoming, and priorities. I always want to be prepared for our Bible Study. Although I prepare, God is in charge, and I love that part the most. We meet and sometimes the trajectory of the lesson changes during the discussion as God directs our paths.

I was supposed to go to Ezra 3:2 where Jeshua and Zerubbabel, along with priests, built the altar. Instead, I read Ezra 3:12, "But many of the older priests and Levites and family heads, who had seen the former temple, wept aloud when they saw the foundation of this temple being laid, while many others shouted for joy." As always, I started thinking and asking the Lord to help me understand the lesson in this. I began to see two perspectives. Sadness and joy. Remembrance and anticipation. Looking back and looking forward. Weeping and Joy.

When we begin to remember how things used to be and then how they change with time, we naturally compare the two. When there is a restoration in us or a concrete object, there are myriads of emotion. I think this can also be in our relationship with God and people, as well as, the connections we have with both. We experience overwhelming emotions. We have remembrance of what was, as the elders did. They were present when the temple was in its former state. They have sadness for what was, what happened, and the destruction. They also have anticipation for what is to come and experience the understanding that the temple Glorifies God. They knew the time that was in the past and the time wasted in not following God's direction. Many may have felt the temple would never have been rebuilt. They also see what happens when people turn to God and submit to his direction.

We also experience joy in what is now. Those weeping with joy knew the temple would be "better than the one before". They looked at the foundation and were overcome with the emotions. I can only think that many were so overwhelmed with Joy that they also wept tears. I believe they were shouting praises. They looked ahead at what was being built and could see the Glory of God being re-established before them. Probably many of these men were present before the temple was destroyed, but they shouted with joy at the future. What was being done in the present and was to come as the temple was rebuilt.

The next verse, Ezra 3:13, refers to the indistinguishable sounds of joy and of weeping. "No one could distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping, because the people made so much noise. And the sound was heard far away." You see, the two perspectives of how we look at situations. One perspective is what God has done and the other is what He is doing now and what He will do in the future. Joy for what is and is to come. As people, we can look back at what was and long for that. We remember how things and people were and wish we could go back. We have regrets about what was missed. But the beauty is that with God's grace, we have anticipation for what is to come. We can appreciate the journey and what we learned, and look toward the present and the future. We can be grateful for what God is doing right now in our lives and the blessings He has for us in the future. We see God's glory in the present situations. We see God with glory and anticipation.