Dedication and Joy

James River Assembly / South Campus
[Nehemiah 8:10]
Then he said to them, "Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength."

[Psalm 4:7]
You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound.

Joy. Joy is mentioned 119 times in the Old Testament and over 60 times the New Testament speaks of joy.

[John 15:11]
These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

1st Joy comes by remembering the people who have helped you. In Nehemiah 12:1-26 we have a list of people in 2 Groups.
1st Group: Neh. 12:1-11, a list of the people who came back from the exile 75 years before the time of Nehemiah.

2nd Group: Neh.12:12-21, 24-25, a list of the next generation were serving and working at the time of Ezra and Nehemiah.

[Philippians 1:3-5]
I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.

A key to maintaining your Christian joy. To be able to recall the best in someone, look past the glitches in life and to recapture the wonderful times.

2nd Joy is the result of whole heartedly worshiping the Lord.

[Nehemiah 12:27]
And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with gladness, with thanksgivings and with singing, with cymbals, harps, and lyres.

[Nehemiah 12:28-32]
And the sons of the singers gathered together from the district surrounding Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netophathites; also from Beth-gilgal and from the region of Geba and Azmaveth, for the singers had built for themselves villages around Jerusalem. And the priests and the Levites purified themselves, and they purified the people and the gates and the wall. Then I brought the leaders of Judah up onto the wall and appointed two great choirs that gave thanks. One went to the south on the wall to the Dung Gate. And after them went Hoshaiah and half of the leaders of Judah,

[Nehemiah 12:36]
and his relatives, Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God. And Ezra the scribe went before them.

[Nehemiah 12:38]
The other choir of those who gave thanks went to the north, and I followed them with half of the people, on the wall, above the Tower of the Ovens, to the Broad Wall,

[Nehemiah 12:40]
So both choirs of those who gave thanks stood in the house of God, and I and half of the officials with me;

[Nehemiah 12:43]
And they offered great sacrifices that day and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and children also rejoiced. And the joy of Jerusalem was heard far away.

3rd Joy is result of getting involved in serving The Lord

[Nehemiah 12:44]
On that day men were appointed over the storerooms, the contributions, the firstfruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions required by the Law for the priests and for the Levites according to the fields of the towns, for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who ministered.

[Mark 8:34-35]
And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it.

4th Joy is the result of giving your resources to the Lord.

[Nehemiah 12:43]
And they offered great sacrifices that day and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and children also rejoiced. And the joy of Jerusalem was heard far away.

[Nehemiah 12:44a]
On that day men were appointed over the storerooms, the contributions, the firstfruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions required by the Law for the priests and for the Levites according to the fields of the towns, for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who ministered.

[Nehemiah 12:47]
And all Israel in the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah gave the daily portions for the singers and the gatekeepers; and they set apart that which was for the Levites; and the Levites set apart that which was for the sons of Aaron.

[Proverbs 11:24]
The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller.

[Proverbs 11:24-25]
There is one who scatters, yet increases more; And there is one who withholds more than is right, But it leads to poverty. The generous soul will be made rich, And he who waters will also be watered himself.

[2 Corinthians 9:7b-8]
I want each of you to take plenty of time to think it over, and make up your own mind what you will give. That will protect you against sob stories and arm-twisting. God loves it when the giver delights in the giving. God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you're ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done. As one psalmist puts it, He throws caution to the winds, giving to the needy in reckless abandon. His right-living, right-giving ways never run out, never wear out. This most generous God who gives seed to the farmer that becomes bread for your meals is more than extravagant with you. He gives you something you can then give away, which grows into full-formed lives, robust in God, wealthy in every way, so that you can be generous in every way, producing with us great praise to God.

[Malachi 3:10-12]
Bring your full tithe to the Temple treasury so there will be ample provisions in my Temple. Test me in this and see if I don't open up heaven itself to you and pour out blessings beyond your wildest dreams. For my part, I will defend you against marauders, protect your wheat fields and vegetable gardens against plunderers." The Message of God-of-the-Angel-Armies. "You'll be voted 'Happiest Nation.' You'll experience what it's like to be a country of grace." God-of-the-Angel-Armies says so.

How do you get joy? 1. Remember the people who have helped you 2. Whole heartedly worship the Lord 3. Get involved in using your time to serve the Lord 4. Give your resources to the Lord.

Learning point.

Hey.
It's been awhile, I know. Sorry about that. I've been living a very insane life lately.
I have a ton of new friends, reconnected with some old ones, and have held to my good ones as well.

I've been living, though. Truly living.

I'm not sure how to explain it, except just by saying I am experiencing things for the first time. It's not necessarily that I'm just now trying these specific things, but rather, I am finally allowing myself to soak it in.

I have no idea what I want. I have no idea who I am. I am however, learning.
I'm learning to fall in love without thinking. I'm learning how to be confident and daring and excitable. I'm learning how to be level-headed without overthinking all the little things.
Best of all, I'm smiling a thousand times more than I did six months ago.

I'm going to allow someone to love me. And I intend on loving him right back.
I'm going to try more sushi, make random friends, and jump into life head first.
Wanna know why?
...I'm growing.

That's all. I'm finally growing up.
I have made literally hundreds of mistakes, I've hurt myself and others, and I've ruined many wonderful things. But I don't regret any of it. I'm becoming who I was made to be. If it takes my heart getting destroyed again, then that's gonna happen. If I have to let go of someone or something in order to be happy, I'm willing to do so.


This is it.


I've finally figured out who I wanna be. And now I just have to get there. Here's to the many mistakes to come, and the many lessons to learn.

PS - Nothing good happens after 9pm. Ever.

Now.

Here's the deal--I have a good life. Good family. Good friends. Good home. And a very good God.
However....
my life is not perfect. I have struggles just like everyone else. I wake up each morning, and I make a decision to be happy. I choose to love life, despite whatever obstacles may or may not come my way. I stress out, I break down, and then I start again. There's no particular routine that makes life better or simpler. Rather, I'm learning to look ahead. I know there are many incredible things in store--for myself, my church, and for every person involved in my life.

I hold to the promise in Isaiah 66:9. It says, "In the same way I will not cause pain without allowing something new to be born," says the Lord."(NCV) I know I am taken care of.

That being said, I've decided that I want to be real. I'm so sick of mediocre relationships that are only on the surface. My goal for the next year is to be a legitimate lover. I don't mean that in the wordly sense, mind you. I'm saying that I want to be someone that is strong and vulnerable at the same time. I'll be a person who looks past herself and sees others for who they were created to be.

I'm a selfish person. I wear my feelings on my sleeve and get hurt far too easily. Instead of focusing on me, I wanna focus on pouring into others. I want my friendships to be strong. I want to lift up the God that brought those friendships together. I want to work hard for what I get. In order for all of these things to happen, I must become the woman of God that I've been created to be.
(This is where you come in!)
I'm gonna start with the Word. I've got some scriptures that I like by, and I want you all to know them, so that you can hold me accountable to fulfill them.

First things first, in my daily life I want to implement 1 Corinthians 16:13-14, "Keep your eyes open, hold tight to your convictions. Give it all you've got; be resolute. Love without stopping."

That's my challenge right now, and I have faith that I'll be able to follow through. This is gonna be a wild ride, but I'm excited to see what will happen.