The joy of the Lord: Our strength!
Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength ~ Nehemiah 8:10.
Introduction:
It is my irrefragable conclusion that anytime the devil sees a window of opportunity to attack a person's destiny or progress in life, the first thing he strikes at is joy in the person's heart. Why? He knows pretty well that the joy of the Lord is our strength.
Today, the world is full of adversities on so many fronts. Albeit, you must not allow your joy to be taken away from you. If there is no joy in your heart, making efforts or striving to win is pointless because you lost the battle already. Thus, anything that you allow for whatever reason to steal your joy equally loots your strength, and once strength is gone, the rest is history of arrested development!
The wisest King, Solomon, warned, “If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small” (Proverbs 24:10). In other words, if you easily give way in the day of trouble, it is a tell-tale sign that your strength (or joy) is diminished. This is an important fact so many people miss today, which results into the big mess they experience in their lives.
By way of refreshing your true identity as a child of God in Christ Jesus, please remember that you were made to live the dominion life in full, not to fall to pieces in any moment of crisis (Genesis 1:26-28). You were fearfully constructed, and made erect. You are a peculiar creature, an epitome of God’s creation and predetermined to be a success story (Psalm 139:13-16).
In fact, there is more to you than ordinary eyes can see. Lying under, within you, far beyond the resolution of any eyes and held in reserve for you are heavy treasures of abundant life, capable of changing the world (John 10:9-10). For that much, you must not allow any person, situation or thing to demean your strength or underrate your status.
As a child of God, you are a creature of wonder, purposely designed to be somebody. The fact that you were born and then born-again is more important than how or where you were born. You have no reason at all to fret. Your past has passed away, your present is a guarded moment, and your future is secured. Indeed, your tomorrow was God’s yesterday (1 Peter 5:7).
However, this treasure of abundant life within you will remain valueless until it is discovered and given a vent of joy in the Holy Ghost to bless your world. Therefore, if the wind of adversity blows, don’t go the way of the wild, worldly and low-level contemplations: weeping, murmuring, self-hatred, depression, thoughts of suicide, etc. Rather, choose grace to tap into the deep well of supernatural strength, which is “joy in the Holy Ghost”! That’s how the kingdom life is intended to be lived (Romans 14:17).
In whatever situation you find yourself, catch fire, be excited, be cheerful and be joyful. Excitement is a miracle pill for breakthroughs and supernatural interventions, allowing the greater workings of God’s Spirit inside you.
When you are cheerless, your destiny withers in the mournful atmosphere you perpetually create (Joel 1:12). If you are not joyful, discouragement and despondency could easily stagnate your progress or delay your journey of destiny. Be encouraged. Be grateful and rejoice always.
Give thanks to God for the privileges of your life, your assignments and current positions in life. Unknown to you, there are many people out there who are eyeing your place and space. Praise God for what you have become, and rejoice with joy in the Holy Ghost in whatever you are going through presently. Your better days will soon manifest!
The Essentiality of Real Joy
As pointed out in the last edition on this column, joy is that calmness that dispels the gloom. It is that inner force, strength, power and excitement that drives you to do whatever you must do.
The strength for success in everything we do is in the joy we have in doing it. Thus, the foundation of every success on earth, and the strength to sail through uncrushed in the scary and harrowing space between the hammer and the hard place lies in the joy of the Holy Ghost.
No man can access or enjoy the best of life without joy. Even the Word of God, powerful and life-transforming as it is, cannot benefit those who choose to live without joy (Luke 8:13). Please, rejoice always with joy in the Holy Ghost!
Moreover, whatever we do without joy has no reward. Without joy in our hearts, our sacrifices, our offerings, and our services in the Kingdom of God become a burden. You cannot serve God acceptably with your feelings, but with all joy and gladness of heart in the Holy Ghost.
In fact, some people, not minding that God commanded us not to forsake the assembly of saints, have stopped going to Church today because their joy in serving God is dead. Certainly, David knew better when he said: “I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth” (Psalms 34:1).
It is lack of joy that makes some people pick offenses and keep grudges, even in the house of God. It is the absence of joy that makes some to complain, grumble, murmur and become bitter against God and their fellow men. May you never be robbed of joy, in Jesus name. Amen.
Whenever the Holy Ghost finds real expression in any human heart, it excites it with fullness of joy and great laughter (Acts 13:52). And, when His joy fills you up, your ashes turn to beauty, your mourning is replaced with the oil of joy, and a garment of praise replaces your spirit of heaviness, so that the Lord might be truly glorified (Isaiah 61:3).
Friends and brethren, let’s give it all it takes to receive and to retain the joy of the Holy Spirit in our hearts; it is the only valid, secure and durable source of strength available to man. With Holy Ghost joy, you easily find sweet access to God’s covenant promises, and all your mockers will have no choice but to bow to your Maker.
With the hallow of His joy, God girds your loins, and gives you supernatural strength and speed to outrun men on horses. With joy in your heart, even when you walk, you walk into your on-time blessings. Beloved, may you never lack joy in the Holy Ghost. Please receive this great rain of God’s blessings, in Jesus Name. Amen. Happy Sunday!
Rhema Christian Church,
Otta, Ogun State, Nigeria.
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