Give me a word, Lord: JOY

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

1 Peter 1:8-9 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Habakkuk 3:18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.

Psalm 118:24 The Lord has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad.

I love the song, “This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it.” The words are from Psalm 118. Some days, we wake up, and we don’t really feel like jumping around with glee. We may feel overwhelmed with stress. We may feel sad or unhappy. We may feel tired and worn out. BUT there is always joy to be found within us. Happiness and joy are two very different things. You see, happiness is dependent upon how good life is at the moment. Happiness moves up and down on a scale based on how we are doing in life. Happiness depends upon our circumstances. Whereas joy does not. Joy comes from the remaining presence of Jesus. Once you receive Christ as your Lord and Savior, the Holy Spirit fills your heart. So if your heart is full of the Holy Spirit, you are ultimately full of joy! How could we not be?

Paul thought is was important enough to make the point twice. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! We must rejoice in our Lord always! We become joyful in all circumstances because even though we may struggle through trials and tribulations, we still have joy within us because we know that we are not going through those trials alone. Joy comes from truly knowing Christ and having a relationship with Him. The closer we become in our relationship with Christ, the more joyful we are. We become able to see past our current circumstances and recognize that “God’s got this.” I don’t know how He is going to work things out, but because I have faith in Him, I know He will work everything out for my good and His glory! I believe that with my whole being. This is the day that the Lord has made! Let is rejoice and be glad in it! Be joyful, today and everyday!!