When Exhausted - Check Your JOY Meter!

These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and your joy may be made full.”  (John 15:11)

Hey Gang:  I find myself craving even a tiny tidbit o good news in this day-of-darkness across the world. If the Sunday School teacher of my younger years, were still around, she would say, “Darkness is an attitude and God gave us the antidote to overcome it.  If you really want joy in your heart, place Jesus first, Others second and You last -which adds up the word JOY.

Question: Would you call Paul a joy-filled man?  Even after you read Romans and the letters to the Corinthians?   In Romans seven he wrote: “For what I am doing, I doing I do not understand: for I am practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate.” (7:15).  He goes on: “For the good that I want, I do not do but I practice the very evil that I do not want” (v. 19).  He capped this off with these words: “Wretched man that I am!  Who will set me free from the body of this death?’

Does that sound like a joy-filled man?  But let’s dig a little deeper.  Many refer to the Epistle he wrote to the church at Philippi, while chained to a wall in the basement prison of someone’s house. Here we have a totally different picture of Paul. 

He begins by saying, “I thank my God in remembrance of you, For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (v. 6).

Throughout the epistle we find Paul referring to joy in no less than nine different situations.   He says, “There is joy in offering prayer for you all” (1:4).   In verse 1:18 he says, “Where Christ is proclaimed, I rejoice”.   In verse 25 he says, “There is joy in the faith” and in 2:2 “There is joy in unity of the body and our fellowship with believers.” 

We might take Paul a wee bit to task with his next reference to joy when he says, “Even when I am being poured out as a drink offering, I rejoice and share my joy with you all” (2:17).  In verse 28 he tells us we should, “Rejoice when we receive good news.” And  “Our hearts should be filled with joy when we cross paths with a brother or sister in Christ” (v.29), and “There is the joy of remembering and being with saints of God” (4:1).

What powerful words we find in verses 4:4 and 5, “Rejoice in the Lord and, again, I say rejoice. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”    And, finally, he says, “Rejoice when someone comes to your aid in times of need” (v.10)

So, my young friends, always, always, always remember that when the rubber-begins-to-sag and you find your back against the wall, “God is your strength” and you can do all things through Him who strengthens you”; and “He will provide for all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (4:19).  Wow, you can take that to the bank!!!

Blessings,  

Gramps

PS We are practicing Paul’s Joy challenge and know that it is God who strengthens us.  Gramps has a back issue – probably pinched nerve- but had to change our travel plans and are returning home from Colorado, instead of traveling on to AZ.  God is good.  We will be home Sunday before you receive this.