It's 34 degrees now but it's gonna be a beautiful day in Conway, SC. Every day can be beautiful if we realize, and remember, how blessed we are. First of all, we're blessed to have Jesus as our Savior. We are more than blessed to have life, to have any shelter from the cold, to be dry, to have anything to eat and drink. We are blessed if we have a coat, clothes, and shoes. Not to mention good health, or if not so good, to have life. We are richly blessed if we have two arms, two legs, a decent brain, and can hear, see, and talk. What does it matter about some things? We can make adjustments on a lot of things.
It's the things that we do have that we need to be thankful for. Have you ever thought about being thankful for the time God has given you? When I was sick for such a long while, I lost a few years of my life (or so it seemed). Now that I'm healed there's so much I want to make up for. Can I? No, of course not but I don't want to waste any time that God has given back to me and my husband. Time is precious. Make the most of it with the people you love. Put God first and I believe He will work the rest of the knots in life out.
DEVOTION - True Joy
Webster’s definition of joy -
1. A feeling of happiness that comes from success; good fortune; a sense of well-being
2. A source of happiness, bliss, delight, pleasure. Joy - to rejoice, joyful --- showing joy; causing joy; experiencing joy
Now, what the Word of God says about True Joy:
There is so much I want to give you this week that God is teaching me about. Joy and more joy even in the midst of our battles. We can still have true joy because there is an eternal hope and His name is Jesus Christ, the Savior of this world, God's only son. He was sent from heaven to earth to live among us 100% God and 100% man. This was so He would experience everything we might experience, pain, loneliness, hunger, sleeplessness. He felt everything and more than each of us will ever feel. The desperation we feel at times, anything we go through, Jesus felt it just as we do.
In body, here on earth, he really was physically no different than us. Like the song the group Eleventh Hour wrote, "Adam's Fall". When Jesus was on the cross he could have called 10,000 angels to rescue Him but He didn't!!! He stayed there for you and me. That is love - and I believe (except for the brief separation from God) He did so with joy. True joy out of love for us and for His Father, God.
When Jesus left us and went back to heaven and took is rightful seat by our Father in heaven, He left us with the Holy Spirit. Wow! What a HOLY SPIRIT - our TEACHER, COMFORTER, and GUIDE. He left us so much. Jesus said that we would be able to do more AFTER He went away because of the Holy Spirit He was leaving to us.
True joy is just one of the benefits of the Holy Spirit. It's one of the fruits of the Spirit. When you don't see joy in Christians, at least some of the time there must be a lack of the Holy Spirit in their life I believe. Because where He is, He will (at least occasionally) make His presence known don't you think! To me that's a given, common sense, a no-brainer (sort of like living with someone-every once in a while they show up for something to eat or change clothes). I believe you get the point!
Joy comes from with-in. It can't be bought - I've tried. I've tried to dress it up the best I could with what I had to work with. I've masked it, joking about it in all kinds of ways. I sought to find true joy but never did I really find any true joy, peace, contentment, rest, fulfillment, hope, and again true joy until I completely surrendered my life totally to Jesus Christ and He became everything to me. He became #1 to me - first and foremost in my life. I became a radical, a rebel, not the norm, non-traditionalist, and non-conformist.
I actually started becoming who God created me to be, just me, whatever the day brought or whatever God saw fit for me. I told Mr. P (my husband) if he wanted to stick it out with me for the rest of our lives it would be a wild roller coaster ride with its ups and downs. But never down long at a time with God's help and Him guiding us we would make it and have fun doing it.
True joy would be restored back in our lives, new in every way for us again. In love anew, in ministry better than ever, in every way because we turned it over to God completely. On Mount Calvary, Jesus won the battle for all of us that accepts Him as Savior. We are blood bought and we are redeemed. Praise God! We all should be SO full of joy. Look around and see all the things you can find to be joyful about. There are so many reasons.
For some biblical scripture on joy, I am going to refer to Nehemiah 8. Ezra renews the covenant of God.
Verse 8: So they read in the book in the Law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.
9: And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the Lord your God: mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.
10: Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.
11. So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved.
12. And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.
13, And on the second day were gathered together the chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to understand the words of the law.
It is important to note the Ezra is a layman here. He was a religious leader, not a religious establishment or a prophet. He was merely motivated by his love and his relationship with God. He was devoted to serving God and doing God's will for his life. Wow! What about that concept!! What about us Christians today? How can we apply this principle to today's life to bring this joy that gives us the strength that each of us need now for this day? No matter what your work or role in life is, view it as God's special calling to serve Him.
It's very important when we hear the Word of God or when we read the Word that it speaks to us. Through His Word our role in life is revealed. How we are to do what God wants us to do - His will for our lives. So many people search search all their lives looking for the will of God when it's right in front of their eyes. Open the book, open your eyes, open your HEART TO JESUS. Again, I say He has the answers. We make it so hard. We fight and stumble through the dark just as the Israelite's did looking for a Messiah, looking for a Deliverer.
We have found Him. In these scriptures, Ezra tells these people about a new covenant and he brings them to tears. Words are so important. We all have misused them. I know I Have. May God forgive me and my sharp tongue! I repent over it daily. It's the worst of all of us. But here God's word was so strong and so true to these people. They needed it. The people wept openly when they heard God's law and realized how far they were from obeying it. But Ezra told them they should be filled with joy because the day was holy. It was time to celebrate and to give gifts to those in need.
Celebration is not to be self-centered. Ezra connected celebration with giving. This gave those in need an opportunity to celebrate with giving as well (some people will "celebrate" and give when they really don't want to). Even this giving can strengthen spiritually and wind up filling with joy. Enter into this Christmas season with a spirit of celebration and a joyful giving spirit that honors God and allows Him to fill with His true joy every day. Remember-smile and the world smiles with you! When you see someone without a smile, give them one!
Read the rest of Ezra's story. Be reminded of where God brought you from and where He can lead you to. He wants to be, and can be, your joy and your strength.Open your heart and ask Jesus to come in and to forgive you of your sin, to start you over again, to make you new!
Through Jesus, your name can be entered in the Lamb's Book of Life. Ask Him to cleanse you of all unrighteousness and for the Holy Spirit to saturate your life and help you commit your life to Jesus for the rest of your days. Thank Jesus for salvation and start living for Him now. Gain a new life and hope for your today.
If you need a bible, please contact me at wapmsjune@gmail.com.
Trying to Look Through the Eyes of Jesus,
Ms June & Mr. P.
PRAYER REQUESTS
Roger and Sherryllynn
Our Grandsons, Mickey and Jesse
Deborah Anderson
Wayne Grady
Many of our family and friends
Conway Manor residents and staff
Agape Senior residents and staff
Our President and all our government leaders
Our military
Our local churches
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