When all the work Solomon had done for the temple of the LORD was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated—the silver and gold and all the furnishings—and he placed them in the treasuries of God's temple. – 2 Chronicles 5:1

Today's Scripture Reading (October 22, 2022): 2 Chronicles 5

There is a plastic bag in my home office, and inside the bag is a treasure, although it is likely only valuable to me. The bag contains some paper that has yellowed with age, and on the paper are handwritten notes. The writing is a little hard to read, but that doesn't really matter. I like to puzzle through them anyways. The paper contains many of the sermons preached by my great-grandfather, Hallett Mullen. I didn't get to meet Hallett; he and my great-grandmother passed away a few years before I was born. Elizabeth (Dyer) Mullen passed away in a car accident, driving with her youngest son Paul and his family. A year later, according to family lore, Hallett died of a broken heart. A year after that, my parents got married, and eleven months after their marriage, I was born. But I have heard the Hallett Mullen stories, which lead me to believe he was a bit excitable when he was preaching, and I mourn not being able to meet him. And so, his sermons are my treasure. I also possess an audio recording of Hallett and Elizabeth singing with their sons, DeVerne and Paul. Apparently, during his ministry, Hallett Mullen was known as "The Singing Mullen," a tradition that his descendants have tried to uphold to the best of their ability.

Whether Solomon realized it or not, his father David had left him a treasure and a legacy. David had not only dreamed and planned the temple, but he had started creating articles that would be used in the temple and had dedicated some of the furniture that would be placed in the temple. So, as Solomon finishes the task he has spent the last seven years on, he returns to storage to get the articles his father had created for the temple. Some remembering probably went on as the articles David made for the temple were placed in the Temple that Solomon had built. These articles would have been placed alongside some of the pieces that Solomon had created for the temple.

I wonder if there was a moment when Solomon looked at the completed temple and saw the items his father had made that the son whispered to the father, "It is finally done. Your dream has been fulfilled. And Dad, I really wish you were here to see it with me." David may not have seen the beginning of the temple's construction, let alone viewed the finished project, and yet every aspect of the temple was filled with either King David's plans for the temple or articles he had created for the temple. And that probably made the temple just a little more special to Solomon, just like my great-grandfather's sermons, packed away in a plastic bag, are precious to me.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 2 Chronicles 6