Oooh, don’t you love that word? Joy! What does it make you think of? It usually comes with thoughts of laughter and fun, with carefree twirls in the grass, like when you were little. Twirling so fast, round and round, till you fell over and your head spun. Joy! It feels good!
God, the Author of joy, desires to teach his children the facts. He pours joy out in places of laughter and fun. He also pours joy out in the hard places of life. It’s true. Joy is more than a feeling. Joy is a fact!
Do you believe God? He knows how to bring beauty out of ashes. He knows how to make a rose bloom from the difficult times in your life. He specializes in this, and He desires for us to learn that joy is a fact. Joy is real and it goes way past the feeling of happiness that’s inside. It’s deeper than happiness, more clear than laughter. I see it as warmth inside the soul, surrounded by beautiful music. Happiness is bright, but joy is gleaming. That’s how I see it. You may see it a different way.
Joy is hard to explain. If you’ve experienced it, then you know what I’m saying. It’s sweet, it’s holy, it gets inside the bones.
The point is that joy is a gift from God. Like all of His gifts to us, we have to be willing to receive it. He gives, but we have to stretch our arms forward, with our hands open, to receive what He offers. Up or down, manic or depressed, God offers joy. The joy of The Spirit! Right now. Right here. April of 2017. Will you take this gift of joy in every circumstance? Will you allow God to penetrate every cell of your body, even in the hardest times, and allow Him to sparkle through you? Others will see Christ in the joy and be drawn to God’s Light within you.
Pure joy is spelled J-E-S-U-S!
This blog post comes with a bit of homework for anyone who is interested in going into the deep end of the pool of Living Water. It’s for those who want more than Sunday “church.” Are you being called into a deeper walk with Christ? The Spirit always calls us. Some not only hear His Voice but listen to what He is saying. Are you listening to The Spirit today?
Take some time to be with Christ today. Sit down in a quiet place, close your eyes, and be still. Listen. Allow God time to speak to your heart and remember, it may take a little while, and this may take a few sittings. Make a list of everything that’s happening in your life right now, both good and bad. Hold the list up to heaven and ask God to show you the joy. Just those four words: “Show me the joy.” And He will show you the joy…watch and see.
In time you’ll understand why it’s hard to define or describe. It goes past feeling into fact! Praise God from whom all blessings flow…
Scripture to ponder: Psalm 16
Today’s weapon: “You turned my wailing into dancing, you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy…” Psalm 30:11