Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee, ELW 836
1 Joyful, joyful we adore thee,
God of glory, Lord of love!
Hearts unfold like flow'rs before thee,
praising thee, their sun above.
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness,
drive the gloom of doubt away.
Giver of immortal gladness,
fill us with the light of day.
2 All thy works with joy surround thee,
earth and heav'n reflect thy rays,
stars and angels sing around thee,
center of unbroken praise.
Field and forest, vale and mountain,
flow'ry meadow, flashing sea,
chanting bird, and flowing fountain
call us to rejoice in thee.
3 Thou art giving and forgiving,
ever blessing, ever blest,
wellspring of the joy of living,
ocean-depth of happy rest!
Thou our Father, Christ our brother,
all who live in love are thine;
teach us how to love each other,
lift us to the joy divine!
Devotion
As our four children came in need of comfort from a fall or a rock-a-bye, I would rock them and sing the words of this wonderful hymn, Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee. Some of the words always helped my thinking and inspired my spirit, words such as “Melt the clouds of sin and sadness, drive the gloom of doubt away. Giver of immortal gladness; fill us with the light of day.” The Lord is our “Well-spring of the joy of living, Ocean-depth of happy rest!” And so in the final phrase, we sing, “Lift us to the joy divine!”
When he was a professor, Henry van Dyke had breakfast with the President of Williams College and handed him a poem which he said could be sung to Beethoven’s Hymn of Joy. Thank you again, Pastor Henry van Dyke for penning this verse. Our children always slept well.
Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, bless our families with love and joy. In the name of Jesus, Amen.