Joy, Joy , Joy!

Let’s talk about joy today! What kind of things give you joy? First time you see a child smile, a puppy, waves crashing on the beach, business success, growth of a stock you’ve purchased, perhaps the simplicity of a flower blooming or the scent of spring on a late winter breeze. For me it is assorted simple things. I do love to be victorious and feel accomplishment, but true joy is a combination of emotions, I think. I call home in the Ohio Valley, so winter lasts long enough here, though not nearly as long as some of you may experience. I was chatting with my mother, who lives in Charlotte, NC, and she shared with me how beautiful her daffodils are right now. I was excited that I had discovered my bulbs just starting to poke their heads up through the crust of snow! My heart jumped for joy as I bent down to get a closer view of the essence of spring! The definition of joy is “an emotion evoked by well-being, success or good fortune; gladness or delight;”
Nehemiah 8 has a verse that we hear very often. Take a moment and read this whole chapter. The preceding history is that, in short, Nehemiah, who was an exile of Jerusalem, heard what condition the city was in after the war and prayed and asked God for direction and to clear a path for him. So, as a cupbearer for the King Artaxerxes, which was not the most glamorous of jobs, he begged the king to let him go back to rebuild his city of Jerusalem. What a testimony he gave to this king! So the king sent him off to accomplish this and Nehemiah gathered together the people, who had not only a broken city but their lives were shattered, and began with worship and the reading of the Word before they began rebuilding the city itself. Phew! So from this chunk of history we pull one line – Like from Martin Luther Kings’ speech we pull “I have a dream….”

Nehemiah 8:10 "The people were weeping from hearing God’s word read to them and Nehemiah said “God is happy today. This is a great day! Don’t mourn, for the joy of the Lord is our strength.” Have you ever really thought about what that verse is saying? The actual joy of the Lord is our strength. His joy in us is what powers us and gives us the force to sustain and grow and make a difference. Like a child who seeks to find the joy in their parents’ eyes, we should be seeking to find pleasure in our Lord’s eyes. And the strength that He gives us through His joy will be a strength that grows our faith into faith that can move mountains.

The pure joy He has in us shows such unconditional love for us that we should never doubt our capabilities through Christ. He will never fail us but will always lift us up for His glory.