Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee

Those who sow in tears shall reap with songs of joy.

He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow

will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.

The Lord has done great things for us

And we are filled with joy.

Psalm 126

I was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona – a city baking in heat and surrounded by desert.  Although many people throughout my life have waxed eloquently about how beautiful the desert is, I personally have never found that to be so. 

Every June, however, we would travel up to Prescott and attend a week of campmeeting in the beautiful pines of Northern Arizona.  I would sit on the porch of our cabin and listen to the wind whispering through the tall trees.  Even as a kid, I felt peace, contentment and joy.

In 1907, Henry Van Dyke was visiting Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts, surrounded by the beauty of the Berkshire Mountains.  Early one morning, staring out the window at the beauties of nature, Van Dyke grabbed a pen and wrote the words of Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee, giving directions that it was to be sung to Ode to Joy from Beethovan’s 9^th Symphony.

Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee (Ode to Joy)

Valdosta United Methodist Church