Joy ~ Theresa Del Rio
Welcome and come in! Imagine with me if you will that I’ve invited you over to my home and we are sitting comfy at my table with warm drinks just chatting friend to friend.
I would like to reflect on a word that gets used a lot this time of year. Whether it’s on a Christmas card, a store window or being sung by a pop star. Peace, Love Joy. Joy to the world. Holly Jolly. Etc.….
As we know, true Joy is not seasonal or situational. It doesn’t arrive with the lighting of the tree or Amazon Prime and then somehow disappears like the last Christmas cookie.
Let’s examine a few truths God gives us about Joy.
The Bible says in Isaiah 61:10 “I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation….”
As I read this verse I hear I am to over and over and over again be full of JOY in the Lord for the Salvation He has given me. Are you saved? If so, are you still full of Joy over it? Or do you need to be refreshed in that Joy? Maybe you are reading this and there has never been a time you have accepted this free gift of Salvation…let today be the day for that!
Psalm 16:11 says “Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in they presence is fulness of JOY; at they right hand there are pleasures for evermore.”
There is fullness of JOY in his presence. How much time do we actually spend in the presence of the Lord? To think we have been given full access to the throne of Grace where we can find mercy and fullness of JOY! I must ask myself, am I fully embracing that privilege or is it being squandered? What does my time in the Word and prayer with Him look like? What about my attendance to Church?
In Habakkuk 3:17-18 it tells me that true Joy can be had even in the darkest of times. I think I can say if we are of any age, we can all say we’ve had a time or many that were dark and uncertain. Maybe you are in the middle of a dark time even now. Access that joy that was mentioned in Psalm 16:11. Here are a couple more verses for Joy during a tough time:
John 16:24 and 2Cor 12:10
Based off of what Galatians 5:22-23 tells us, Joy is a fruit of the spirit or by-product of salvation. Are you baring the fruit of Joy? Do others see or hear joy when they are around you? Do you speak Joy (Proverbs 15:23) When your “cup” is bumped, what spills out?
The last verse I’ll share is Nehemiah 8:10 which tells us that the Joy of the Lord is our strength which encourages us believers to get our strength through the Joy that comes from a relationship with God, and not from worldly circumstances. Do you find that you are only happy after a new purchase or while on a vacation? Or only if everything is going just as planned? That would be a good indication that your joy is situational and not the Joy we get from the Lord.
I’ve referenced a few verses on what true joy is and where we get it from, but lasty I want to share a quote and a thought on how we allow our Joy to be robbed or diminished.
Theodore Roosevelt said, “Comparison is the thief of Joy.” Although true deep-seated joy cannot be robbed, it can be diminished or destroyed. And the interesting thing is, we are that robber who robs ourselves or others of this Joy! Do you find yourself comparing yourself to others? This could be their vehicles, their house, their vacations, their Christianity, their marriage, their spouse, their size, their kids, their health etc.…OR are you comparing those near and dear to you to others…”why can’t you be more like so and so” are such damaging words. I have heard parents say these words and I have been told these words. Not only does it diminish the child’s joy and cause a hurt heart and spirit to think that their sibling is clearly better than them, but it also plants a seed of disdain from one child to another. So dangerous and damaging! Maybe as a wife these damaging words have been used to cut down your husband? Comparing him to Mrs. Suzy Haz-a-lot, will not make your man love you more, but it will also plant seeds of disdain in his heart towards you. Satan is doing all he can to tear apart marriages and homes, as wives and mommas let’s not let Satan use us to do his job!
Not something I’ve mastered, but definitely something the Lord has been speaking to my heart about. Thank you for sharing this time with me. Praying our JOY be full (John 15:11) and overflowing (2 Cor 7:4) this Christmas and every day.