Joy!

No one can take away our joy in Christ.  Some people would like to steal our joy, but not even the devil can steal it, unless we let him.  People might cause us terrible pain, but we can still have joy. And while some think God destroys our joy when he allows pain in our lives, he is not taking our joy either.  Satan tries to take our joy when he causes bad things to happen to us.  But Satan can only do as much as God gives him permission to do (example in Job chapters one and two.)  Our true joy in Christ comes from choosing contentment in Him, no matter what happens.  Joy is not the same as happiness, which comes from good happenings.  Joy lasts, even when troubles come (John 16:22b, “I will see you again, and you will rejoice and no one can take away your joy.)

Let’s explore ways the Scripture reassures us of joy.  Luke 19:6 says, “Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy.”  As a notorious swindler, Zacchaeus could not enjoy fellowship with the godly people of Israel.  He had betrayed them as a tax collector who cheated and stole.  But when Jesus asked Zacchaeus to come down from the tree so Jesus could come into Zacchaeus’s house, he responded with joy.  This swindler did more than accept Jesus into his home. He welcomed Jesus’ message and Jesus himself into his heart.  This joy comes from the gift of salvation.  This joy at salvation came to the Macedonian jailer when Paul answered the man’s question, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30b.)  We read, “…he and his entire household rejoiced because they all believed in God,” (Acts 16:34b.)

This same joy occurred when the Ethiopian Eunuch accepted Christ, and then Philip baptized him in Acts 8:39, “When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away. The eunuch never saw him again but went on his way rejoicing.”  This verse is especially amazing, because Philip never got to spend more time with the Eunuch, yet he still rejoiced, not because of Philip’s friendship (since he was gone) but purely because of joy in finding the Lord.

This is the miracle of joy in Christ.  We have this joy in our hearts, even though our hearts are “…the most deceitful of all things and desperately wicked,” (Jer.17:9b.)  We can only have this joy if we do as the Eunuch and Zacchaeus did and repent of our sins.  Then Jesus comes to live in our newly changed hearts, “And it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit,” (Romans 2:29b.)  After that, we can enjoy God, even when we know we are sinners, as David said in Psalm 16:11, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forever more.”  David was happy just to be in God’s presence.

Word "Joy" written with Christmas decorations on two cards
True Joy is more beautiful than these Christmas cards!

God promises us joy when we pray, “Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask and you will receive and your joy may be full,” (John 16:24.)  The petitioner receives what she needs, but her joy comes from the Lord himself.  Some people would insist that the one asking is only glad she received the gifts, but Scripture shows a person can have joy even when she does not receive anything but bad things.

In these situations, even during trouble, we can still find joy in the Lord, as James 1:2 says, “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.”  According to Acts 5:41, “The apostles left the high council rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus.”  I confess this kind of rejoicing is hard for me, and as a result, I have memorized many of the verses about rejoicing in trouble, such as 1 Peter 1:6 “So be truly glad, there is wonderful joy ahead, although you must endure many trials for a little while.”  This is not a joy that I carelessly fall into. I have to claim God’s joy and then meditate on how good he is to me.

There are so many ways that we find joy as Christians. Simply knowing the Holy Spirit brings us joy, as we see in Luke 10:21b “Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit.” I have memorized numerous Bible verses about God finding joy in us and our finding joy in God as we obey him and consider how much he loves us. Then we can rejoice as we give thanks to him for his generosity.

blond woman in pink shirt on trampoline
I find joy memorizing my Bible verses on the trampoline.

Remember that no people, not even Satan can take away our joy, unless we let them.  How do we let others steal our joy?  We might give in to our flesh’s bad emotions (unrighteous anger, envy, self pity, excessive worry, etc.)  We might become prideful too.  We might forget how good and powerful God is.  Then we might think we are stronger than we really are and try to live life on our own.  Our frail minds and bodies eventually fail, and unless we understand this frailty, we will fall.  Look at Psalm 73:26, “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever.” The Psalmist knew God was his strength. 

Not everyone recognizes their weakness and God’s strength.  Look at Judges 16:20b-21a, “When he woke up, he thought, ‘I will do as before and shake myself free.’ But he didn’t realize the Lord had left him. So the Philistines captured him and gouged out his eyes.”  Samson thought he still had his extraordinary strength, but he relied only on that strength and disobeyed God, and God left him. 

While Samson’s horrible tragedy is extreme, we might still suffer when we think we can live life on our own and neglect asking God for his help.  We need to pray throughout the day for God’s guidance. He is always eager and ready to help us, as he told David in Psalm 91:14-15, “Because he loves me,’ says the Lord, ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him.”  I have wasted far too much time searching for things on the internet (an essential item at a lower price, or an answer to a gardening problem, etc.) and I did not ask God for help.  Yet when I have asked God to guide me, I have sensed his direction and found answers quickly. 

Time-wasting struggles are much milder than Samson’s loss, but the result is the same: I miss out on God’s guidance and joy. So I need to let God guide me, through his Holy Spirit, so I can find that joy and peace.  For example, one morning I noticed time had elapsed, and an office, I needed to call, was now open.  My worries urged me to call and deal with my serious problem.  But I had not yet read my Bible, and I remembered the verse, Matt. 6:33, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”  I sensed that I should read my Bible and prayer-journal first, and only afterwards make the call.  By God’s grace, I did the right thing. The call went well, and the lady at the office was able to finish resolving the problem by the afternoon, even though I had not called that office, first thing in the morning.  I felt both relief and joy, because I had directly obeyed one of God’s commands from the Bible.

The day I first wrote this post, I accidentally woke up at 3:45am, and I did not want to write a post about anything too serious.  Despite how tired and loopy I felt that day, I could tell the Lord would be blessed if I wrote about his joy, even while my eyes and shoulders were drooping.  I knew that I could write the post, because God promises his joy to us, even when we are not at our best.  I thought, “How better to show God’s joy than when I am ridiculously tired.”

There are many other examples of how God brings us joy, and of how we miss that joy when we disobey. But I pray my simple stories can encourage you to continue to seek God’s guidance, and to continually worship him and rejoice in Him, even when you are hurting.  God promises his joy to us, no matter how hard our life is.  May God bless you this week with this encouraging news!