Sunday, April 14, 2024  

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Today's Hymn
“Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee”

Mortals, join the happy chorus
which the morning stars began.
Love divine is reigning o’er us,
joining all in heaven’s plan.
Ever singing, march we onward,
victors in the midst of strife.
Joyful music leads us sunward
in the triumph song of life.

by Henry van Dyke
Hymn 611, Glory to God
verse 3



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Reflection

The wonders of God’s creation are many and varied and offered to inspire and remind us of God’s majesty, power, and love for us. Think about it. Any of God’s singular acts — the blooming of flowers in the spring, sunrises and sunsets over the oceans, the vistas from a mountaintop, a smile or kind word from a stranger — are enough to remind most of us of our place in the universe. We are the beloved creation. We are not the exalted creator.

But God doesn’t only offer God’s gifts as singular acts. God’s gifts are shared with us in an infinite variety of combinations, including time and place, height and depth, black and white, hot and cold, whisper and shout. Crocuses blooming in the moist soil of spring are a wonder in themselves. Crocuses pushing up through the last snowfall of winter is a soul-stirring reminder that spring is almost here and that we’ve made it through another long, dark — and beautiful in its own right — winter.

When the talents that God shares with us are used to God’s glory, the result is often a transcendent experience of sight, sound, and inspiration designed and freely given to encourage a lifetime of praise and service.

I confess that among God’s gifts, music is a particular favorite of mine, and the combination of Henry van Dyke’s poetry and the melody of Beethoven’s Ode to Joy from his Ninth Symphony has been inspiring and reminding generations of believers and seekers of at least two critical truths: that “Love divine is reigning o’er us” and that as long as we keep singing and marching onward, we will be “victors in the midst of strife.”

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Prayer
Lord, thank you for your blessings of life, beauty, and inspiration too numerous to count. Open our hearts to desire, seek, and share only your good and perfect gifts. In your Son’s precious name, we pray. Amen.

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Written by John Marr, Member of Fourth Presbyterian Church

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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