Turn on the Joy
I was talking to a friend who had gotten more and more discouraged about some difficult family matters, to the point that I could see her health was being jeopardized by the anxiety and stress. When I went to encourage her toward joy, I reminded her that when God brought the Israelites out from their oppressive captivity in Babylon that He promised they would “go out in joy and be led forth in peace” (Isaiah 55:12). He was showing us that if we’re going to come out of dark places like she was in, we have to come out with joy and walk in peace. We have to use joy to deliver us from anxious thoughts, defeat, and discouragement. Joy is the key, and it’s inside us.
You may be in a difficult situation today. Perhaps you’ve lost a loved one or your child has got off course, and you feel sorrow. The key to staying strong in God is through partaking in His joy every day. When Nehemiah was encouraging the people in the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem under extremely difficult circumstances, he said, “Go home and celebrate with a feast…for the joy of Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). He knew that only the joy of the Lord could sustain them and help them overcome their discouragement and anxieties.
The beauty of the joy that Jesus gives us is that it is not dependent on what is going on around us. Jesus prayed that His joy would “remain in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11). His joy is in us. When you said yes to Jesus, nothing changed on the outside, but He gave you a new heart on the inside and filled it with His joy. He’s saying, “I’ve given you exactly what you need to defeat the power of the enemy and stay strong in this life.”
His joy is inside you, but you must cultivate it. It’s a bit like my lemon tree. When I planted it, there were no lemons on it. But I made sure the soil was right, and I watered it and fed it nutrients. I cultivated it, and eventually the lemons that were in the tree came out for me to use. In a similar way, you have to tap into His joy. You have to develop it and practice it. The apostle Paul said it this way: “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice” (Philippians 4:4). To rejoice means “to brighten.”
There’s a light of Jesus’ joy inside you. You just have to turn it on.
You may be in a difficult situation today. Perhaps you’ve lost a loved one or your child has got off course, and you feel sorrow. The key to staying strong in God is through partaking in His joy every day. When Nehemiah was encouraging the people in the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem under extremely difficult circumstances, he said, “Go home and celebrate with a feast…for the joy of Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). He knew that only the joy of the Lord could sustain them and help them overcome their discouragement and anxieties.
The beauty of the joy that Jesus gives us is that it is not dependent on what is going on around us. Jesus prayed that His joy would “remain in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11). His joy is in us. When you said yes to Jesus, nothing changed on the outside, but He gave you a new heart on the inside and filled it with His joy. He’s saying, “I’ve given you exactly what you need to defeat the power of the enemy and stay strong in this life.”
His joy is inside you, but you must cultivate it. It’s a bit like my lemon tree. When I planted it, there were no lemons on it. But I made sure the soil was right, and I watered it and fed it nutrients. I cultivated it, and eventually the lemons that were in the tree came out for me to use. In a similar way, you have to tap into His joy. You have to develop it and practice it. The apostle Paul said it this way: “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice” (Philippians 4:4). To rejoice means “to brighten.”
There’s a light of Jesus’ joy inside you. You just have to turn it on.