Page 4 - 22 November 2024

PAGE 4 · THE REPORTER 22 NOVEMBER 2024

restore its former glory.
A prayer to make
God, I thank You for the way
You have restored me,
rescued me from the sin
death. I find it humbling and
a bit intimidating that You
My seventy-five-year-old her out, washing and sorting want me to join You in Your
mum is an antique dealer. crystals, carefully piecing work of restoration, but I
Weekends with her are back together chandeliers to trust that You are the master
done in your life and receive hilarious. On Friday night, restore their former glory. craftsman and will show me
the Lord's joy as you find she scans the paper looking The Scriptures show us that what to do. Amen.
H i m a m i d s t y o u r for garage and car boot God is as excited about Further Study:
circumstances. sales. She plots her course restoration as my mum. In Psalm 14:7 Oh, that
A prayer to make to maximize effectiveness. various instances, He salvation for Israel would
0 Lord, thank You for And Saturday morning, at promises His people that He come out of Zion! When the
exchanging my ashes for a the crack of dawn, we're off! will restore land (2 Samuel LORD restores His people,
Lebanese poet Khalil Gibran While the Holy Spirit can fill crown of beauty. Help me to It's a race, you see - all the 9:7), leaders (Isaiah 1:26), let Jacob rejoice and Israel
cities and towns (Isaiah
describes the role of sorrow us with this joy, we also have receive it and to wear my other antique dealers in the 44:26), health (Jeremiah be glad!
in his poem On Joy and agency to cultivate it garment of praise each day. area are on the same quest 30:17), fortunes (many Isaiah 1:25-27: 'I will turn
Sorrow* as the force that t h r o u g h p r a i s e a n d Amen. as well. They are friendly verses in Jeremiah), and us my hand against you; I will
creates the internal space thanksgiving. As we shift our Further Reading: competitors, chatting with (Jeremiah 15:19)! thoroughly purge away your
which will one day hold our f o c u s f r o m o u r each other as they quickly dross and remove all your
joy. The greater the hole circumstances to the risen Psalm 150: Praise the scan the wares that have The beauty of this passage in impurities. I will restore your
caused by sorrow, the Christ, we equip ourselves to LORD. Praise God in His been laid out for sale, Isaiah 61 is the clear leaders as in days of old,
greater our capacity for joy. see the hope beyond our sanctuary; praise Him in His looking for treasures. invitation for God's people to your rulers as at the
Herein we find the beauty in current situation - the eternal mighty heavens. Praise Him Behind her house is what join God in the work of beginning. Afterwards you
seasons of suffering. In the hope of Christ. In John for His acts of power; praise was formerly a garage but restoration. God is the will be called the City of
Old Testament, mourners 20:20, the disciples were Him for His surpassing now serves as her work- master craftsman, but Righteousness, the Faithful
covered themselves with grieving when Jesus greatness. Praise Him with room. There she pain- happy for us to learn His City.' Zion will be delivered
a s h e s a s a s i g n o f appeared to them. When the sounding of the trumpet, stakingly sands down trade and work alongside with justice, her penitent
bereavement. The replacing they realised that He had praise Him with the harp and antique furniture and re- Him. Making all things old ones with righteousness.
of ashes with a crown of risen, they were filled with lyre, praise Him with upholsters the cushions with look and work like new Acts 3:19-21: Repent, then,
beauty is the promise that gladness and praise. Can we tambourine and dancing, fabric she finds on trips again, carefully piecing and turn to God, so that your
from our grief the Lord can train ourselves to keep our praise Him with the strings abroad. Her favourites are things back together to sins may be wiped out, that
bring forth beauty, and part eyes on Jesus so that we and pipe, praise Him with chandeliers. They often sell restore their former glory. times of refreshing may
of that beauty is the oil of joy. may wear the garment of the clash of cymbals, praise for a pittance, missing An action to take come from the Lord, and
T h e r e i s s o m e t h i n g praise instead of a spirit of Him with resounding crystals or with faulty wiring. Is there something around that he may send the
incredibly powerful about joy despair? In the Psalms, we cymbals. Let everything that She's learned how to restore my house that needs Messiah, who has been
that is different from see this exemplified through has breath praise the LORD. them with skill and care, and restoration? If so, I take time appointed for you - even
happiness. poems of thanksgiving Praise the LORD. delights in making all things to work on it so that it can Jesus. Heaven must receive
alongside words of great Psalm 147 him until the time comes for
Happiness is a feeling old look and work like new look and work like new and,
derived from external anguish. One of the ways our 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 again. There have been as I do it, I imagine God God to restore everything, as
circumstances. Joy is a community practices this is Rejoice always, pray times on our visits that my doing it with me, carefully he promised long ago
feeling despite them. This by writing thankfulness lists continually, give thanks in all daughter and I have helped piecing it back together to through his holy prophets.
means we can experience during daily devotions. We circumstances; for this is
deep joy at the same time as train ourselves to find the God's will for you in Christ
deep joy at the same time as goodness of God each day Jesus.
deep pain. This is the beauty despite what we are facing, 1 Corinthians 15:56-58
of the scripture 'the joy of the which cultivates joy and
Lord is your strength' makes us strong. The sting of death is sin, and
(Nehemiah 8:10). In *Gibran, Kahlil, The Prophet the power of sin is the law.
moments of great suffering, (New York: Knopf, 1995). But thanks be to God! He
we can be filled with a joy An Action to take: gives us the victory through
which makes us strong our Lord Jesus Christ.
enough to withstand Write a list of things you are Therefore, my dear brothers
whatever we face. thankful for that the Lord has and sisters, stand firm. Let
nothing move you. Always
give yourselves fully to the
work of the Lord, because
you know that your labour in
the Lord is not in vain.