Hello joyful ones!
Most people want to experience JOY and some people spend their entire lives pursuing it.
The world’s definition of JOY can be defined as an emotional state of being or a feeling of elation, but many people miss the mark when searching exclusively for it. This definition of JOY is incomplete and impartial because this definition can change at any time. To learn the truth about how to have TRUE JOY, we must search through the Bible.
The world says we can find happiness when we buy a new car, go shopping at a particular store, earn a certain salary, or socialize with the right crowd. The problem with this way of thinking is that what the world says is important becomes meaningless and temporary when compared to the Scriptures which are unchangeable truths.
When we study the Bible, we learn that God’s plan includes TRUE JOY in HIM! In John 16:24 (NIV) Jesus said,
- Until now, you have not asked for anything in My Name. Ask and you will receive and your JOY will be COMPLETE.
Jesus spoke these words to His disciples to teach them that TRUE and LASTING JOY only comes from God.
When we refocus our mindset from looking for happiness with worldly things to realizing that it is actually a blessing from heaven, our whole perspective begins to change.
The world tells us we have to work hard to find any degree of happiness, fleeting though it may be. Jesus reveals to us that we cannot find TRUE JOY through our own efforts – it is only through HIM. Philippians 4:4, 6-7 (NKJV) says,
- Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say rejoice! Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God which passes all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
God’s blessings are found in peaceful children, happy marriages, stable finances, and success and prosperity in everything we do. Accepting God’s Word as truth and believing it strongly enough to apply it to our life allows Him to pour out those blessings on us. We are suddenly caught by surprise when we realize that the deep sense of peace and JOY that flows through us comes from His thoughts towards us.
Jeremiah 29:11 says,
- For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace an not of evil, to give you an expected end.
God’s TRUE JOY goes deeper than just a sense of elation or exhilaration. When we believe His promises to us, even in situations when we do not feel happy at the moment, we still have a supernatural sense of JOYFUL peace. It is higher, deeper, and wider than anything we can image, and it comes from knowing Him. 1 Thessalonians 5:16, 18 (NKJV) says,
- Rejoice always; in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
God wants us to know that the kind of TRUE JOY greater than we could ever imagine is only found through Him.
I love Psalm 4:6-8 from the Message Bible. The theme of thanksgiving is mentioned repeatedly in these Scriptures because when we encounter His love, we cannot help but give thanks for the TRUE JOY we discover. TRUE JOY originates from God, not from the world. Psalm 4:6-8 says,
- “Why is everyone hungry for more? ‘More more’, they say. ‘More more.’ I have God’s more-than-enough, more JOY in one ordinary day than they get in all their shopping sprees. At day’s end, I’m ready for sound sleep. For You God have put my life back together.” He makes me whole again.
Praise God, because TRUE JOY comes from Him alone!
Joyfully yours,
Lisa Gordon
Jesus City Church