Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Joyful Spirit


 
“The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust Him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.” (Psalm 28:7 NLT)

 
Isn’t it incredible to be around someone who finds joy and thankfulness in the smallest of things; who on any given day, in any situation, can find countless opportunities to be joyful? But for many of us, joy can be a funny thing. When it's taken from us, it's gone unless we use all the strength that God gives us to hold on to it. Many of us fall into this trap; we allow the enemy to rob us of our gladness and peace and steal our joy. and we become so focused on this world and the hardships and internal struggles it can bring. It seems that every day there are opportunities in life to get upset and lose our joy and peace, and we can lose our joy for today by worrying about what may happen tomorrow. However, it is our choice as to whether or not we allow circumstances to ruin our day, and we can’t allow ourselves to ever become defeated by losing our joyful spirit.
 

There are many things Christians need to be on guard against:
 

…Letting our circumstances dictate our joy…

…Not being content with what we have, where we live, or how we look…

…Allowing others to steal our joy…

…Temporarily forgetting that God is on control…

…Not going to the Lord in prayer and thanking Him for everything…


“May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy.” (Colossians 1:11 ESV)
  

Even when we feel like our lives are crumbling around us, we can find joy in our eternal relationship with our Creator! Our joy is one of the most powerful weapons we have against the enemy; it’s a great source of strength that God has given us. And even though we certainly can’t ignore the difficulties in our lives, we need to live with joy regardless of what the world may demand, and choose not to let obstacles, frustrations, or complications get us down. If we make it a point to delight in every little thing, all the small moments of joy and happiness will add up, and keep us moving down the path to the fruit of the spirit.



 

 
 
 
There are many things we can focus on for joyful living:

…Count all of our blessings and be thankful and optimistic…

…Rely on God as our ultimate source of joy…

…Set aside time each day to simply relax and clear our minds, and let God’s love dwell in our hearts…

…Learn from our mistakes and others and have a forgiving heart…

…Do something to make others happy and put a smile on their face…
 

Satan’s desire is to kill, steal, and destroy our joy, but joy and peace of mind are the results of making right decisions; the war is real but we don’t have to be defeated! When we open our hearts and keep our eyes on Jesus, we can keep smiling on the outside and keep a genuine joy on the inside regardless of the joy stealers who may cross our paths. We can be happy right where we are! Even in difficult situations, places, and/or crowds, God has armed us with strength for every battle, and we can have joy in the midst of that adversity if we have the right approach. Joy is a gift from God and we should never let the gift of His joy be wasted!
 






“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him , so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the holy spirit.” (Romans 15:13 NIV)
 
 
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20 comments:

  1. Love the 1st Joy with the daisy! Joy is one of those blessings that you don't realize how precious it is until it has been taken from you. May we learn to guard that which God has given to us. Thank you for sharing this today. I was your neighbor at Unite this morning :)
    Have a joyful Tuesday,
    Joanne

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    1. Thanks for visiting Joanne; it is always a joyful blessing!:)

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  2. I so needed this encouragement Denise. Blessings.

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    1. Joy and love to you my dear friend; blessings to you too! :)

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  3. Denise - I must confess....I was not exactly joyFULL when I read this post! Again, at the exact needed time, your words convicted me toward truth! Yes, our joy in not in our circumstances, or in other people! Thank you for this reminder & the reality check I so needed today! UNITED in Him ~ Jen

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    1. Sometimes we just need a reminder from HIM to stay full of His amazing grace and joy; HE is the joy in our lives that others witness! :) Blessings sweet sister! :)

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  4. This reminds me of my pastor's message he delivered a few weeks ago about joy being the x-factor in our lives. Hope your week overflows with joy Denise.

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    1. So true Wanda~love that! Wishing you joy this week too dear friend!:)

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  5. This is so true ... after reading One Thousand Gifts, I began to keep a gratitude journal. How focusing on the things I'm thankful for has shifted my entire focus from finding what's wrong, to finding the many, many more things that are right. So thankful to the Lord for His gifts. Saw your link at Prowess and Pearls, thanks for sharing with us.

    Hugs ~ Mary

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    1. I kept the journal as well, and yes! It's amazing how I notice and feel everyday blessings so much more now. His gifts are joyful and such a blessing! Thanks for visiting!

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  6. WOW! What a beautiful and inspirational post here Denise!!! I love the scripture you chose... very convicting and fulfilling at the same time. SO glad I stopped by! :) (From Doing You Well)

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    1. Thanks for stopping by Chris; wishing you a week of His joyful amazing grace!

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  7. Words spoken so true my friend! As Believers, just knowing that He gave His life so that we could live in eternity, is enough in itself to bring us great joy! Having a heart of gratitude and thankfulness allows joy to come in. Thanks so much Denise and thanks for linking up today! Blessings my friend!:-)

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    1. Blessings to you too my friend! Always a blessing to hear from you, and my pleasure to link up! :)

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  8. That's a good post on joy. I went for a long portion of my life feeling no joy. Now God has shown me how to find joy in His Presence and in the simple things of life, sunsets, birds, butterflies, etc. Being in the ordinary moments of life has been a great lesson for me to learn.

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    1. Thanks Peggy; love all those simple everyday blessings that bring joy to my life! :)

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  9. Thanks Denise. Your are such a great writer!

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  10. Dear Denise
    Please allow me to add another thing we need to do to experience the fruit of love, peace and joy! We need to abide in Jesus so that His joy can always fill our hearts. I don't think I would have been able to carry the burden of Fm/CFS without abiding moment by moment in our Pappa's Loving Embrace.
    Blessings and much JOY!
    Mia

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  11. Denise, this makes me remember a song by Bryan Duncan: "Joy Is A Singable Thing." Our joy, even in challenging circumstances, is amplified as we sing "psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs" in thanksgiving to God for His goodness. Love this post!

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  12. Denise, we are thinking along the same lines. I really haven't been doing a feature post but I featured you for tomorrow's linkup with WholeHearted Wednesday!!

    Thanks for sharing with me!!

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