I do the church bulletin every week for my church and I have to come up with a little something from the bible to put in it. Wow, sometimes it takes a lot of effort for the amount of people that read it, but even if it edifies just one person, then it is worth it. Since I already have the work done, I thought if it is alright, that I would go ahead and post my articles in here once a week also.
[align=center]"Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice."
Philippians 4:4 [align=left] In Philippians 4:4 the Apostle Paul admonishes us to rejoice always. And then, to make a double impact he repeats "again I say, Rejoice." You may wonder how it is possible to rejoice always. One of the first mistakes most people make is to confuse joy with happiness but there is definitely a difference between the two. Happiness is a feeling dependent upon circumstances. A person with good health, an adequate income, a nice house, or things simply going their own way might make it easier for a person to feel happy. Joy, however, is not dependent on circumstances, but overcomes them. It is not a feeling but a choice. Joy is not a luxury but a vital, life-giving necessity. It is a condition of being, not only independent of circumstances, but all the more profound despite circumstances, especially the adverse kind.
[/align] [align=left] James 1:2 says "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations." You may wonder, "How can it be possible to have joy when I am surrounded by problems?" Having joy in times of adversity is something you can learn to have when you start to see that all has been working out for our good, and that God"s will is perfect. He has made no mistakes. He knows all of the "what ifs" in your life. When you finally recognize this, even during the trials, it"s possible to have joy, deep down joy. When Paul and Silas were imprisoned they knew what it was to have joy. And because they knew, they did not wallow in self-pity. Instead they prayed and sang hymns! They were able to sing in the midst of their adversity because they knew that for every wound they would receive an eternal reward. They realized what Nehemiah 8:10 declares ""neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength." They took their eyes off their situation and did as Habakkuk did. Habakkuk exclaimed that even though the fig tree wouldn"t blossom, there was no fruit on the vines, the labor of olive may fall, the fields yield no food, the flock is cut off the fold, and there were no herds in the stalls " "Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my Salvation." (Hab. 3:17-18) Notice that the word joy in this passage is not a noun, but a verb. Something Habakkuk purposed to do.
[/align] [align=left] The joy of the Lord is not only our strength, but it also can be our deliverance and our freedom in conditions that would seem otherwise hopeless. How many of us now find it so easy to fall into a condition of despondency and depression? And what happens when we come to that? We get weak and we even get sick. During these times when depression tries to get its grip on us, we need to remember that the joy of the Lord is our strength, our health, power, enablement and even deliverance. The joy of the Lord will set us free from depression, self-pity, fear and many other things that cripple and bind us more than being in a literal prison can.
[/align] [align=left] Several years ago, when I was going through some trying times, I purposed to change my attitude. (I know you"ve heard me say sometimes that I need an "attitude adjustment.") I purposed to wake up every morning and believe that God would give me exactly what I needed for each day " physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Psalm 30:15 tells us that "weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning." Psalm 126:5 says that "those who sow in tears shall reap in joy." And so, every morning, especially if I thought my day might be challenging to my spirit, I spoke Psalm 118:24 " "This is the day that the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it." I told myself that the Lord is the one who made this day. And because He made it, I will rejoice in it regardless of my situations!
[/align] [align=left] The key to receiving joy is to keep our eyes off of ourselves and our situations, and to focus our eyes on the Lord and His word. The following scriptures show us where we can find joy and why we should rejoice.[/align] [/align] We should rejoice because: We do not want to lose our blessing" Deut. 28:47 We love Christ, and believe Him" I Peter 1:8 "Whom having not seen, ye love; though now ye see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory." Because of Salvation " Isaiah 12:3 "Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation." Isaiah 61:10 "I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He hath clothed me with garments of salvation"" I Samuel 2:1 "I smile at my enemies because I rejoice in Your salvation." Because our names are written in heaven " Luke 10:20 Because He defends us " Psalm 5:11,12 [align=left]Where we can find joy:
[/align] [align=left] [align=left] In God"s presence" Psalm 16:11 "In Your presence is fullness of joy."
[/align] [/align] [align=left] [align=left] In God"s Word " Jer. 15:16 "Thy word was unto me joy and rejoicing." John 15:11 "I have spoken these things to you so that My joy might remain in you and your joy may be full." (also see John 17:3)
[/align] [/align] [align=left] [align=left] In the Holy Ghost " Rom. 14:17 "for the Kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost."
[/align] [/align] In His Name" Psalm 89:16 "In the name shall they rejoice."
If you feel that worry and stress and fear are trying to steal your joy, remind yourself early in the morning and during the day that God is at work, in control, and knows what is happening. He was there at the beginning, and will bring everything that occurs to a conclusion that will result in His greater glory in the end. Once you have reminded yourself of this and have given your worries over to God, relax! It is in God"s hands. Without your permission, nothing can rob you of your hold on grace, your claim on peace, or your confidence in God. Choose joy!
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"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28
Well, I'd like to thank all of you for your input on the article. I wasn't sure I would be up to the task when I was asked back in May to take over the church bulletins, especially when I found out that I would also be responsible for the articles. I had just told the Lord a month or two before that I was willing to be used by Him in any way He saw fit so when my pastor's wife approached me I decided to plunge ahead, although very apprehensively. I was worried that I wouldn't have many ideas but after I took on the bulletin they just started coming, one after the other. My only goal with the articles is to edify somebody in some way and to be a blessing in some way.
God Bless you all!
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"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28
Excellent post! Thanks for sharing that.You pointed out an important truth in contrasting the difference between being happy, as being conditional on external circumstances, as opposed to having true lasting joy, that comes from having an abiding relationship with the Lord that endures and grows no matter what life's circumstances bring. For one is temporal based on outward conditions that are constantly fluctuating with results that are likewise (happiness). While the other is eternal based on a Love that is eternal and unchanging! -and its results are likewise (joy).
And while there is absolutely nothing at all wrong with being happy in and of itself, but if what happiness is based on is all we have, it will not last.
Liz, I recommended a book to your a hubby a little while back that goes hand in hand with what you wrote. It's called "Desiring God" by John Piper. He's actually one of my favorite authors. I really recommend it to you and everyone else here. Two thumbs up!!
I believe having true genuine joy in the Lord is an essential and indespensible part of true saving faith in Christ. For without it, we are just going through the motions in an indifferent routine manner:
"This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me" Matthew 15:8
"And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." Mark 12:30
And when we serve God like this, with whole hearted devotion, as opposed to just doing the outward actions, then we will have this genuine joy in spite of life's circumstances.
Paul decribed what he'd been through in these words:
"Five times I recieved at the hands of the Jews forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from the Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches." -2 Corinthians 11:24-28
To which he could say regarding all his life's circumstance "as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything." (2 Cor. 6:10)
How is such a rock solid joy possible? Only through Christ!
This joy is only possible through the One who promised:
"Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4
I've heard it well said that, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." Ponder that for a while. There's such a marvelous truth to that statement!!
God takes great joy in doing good to us, for He says:
"I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them... I will rejoice in doing them good... with all my heart and all my soul." -Jeremiah 32:40-41
God truly rejoices in doing good to those who fear Him. So the only appropriate response on our part is joy. Rejoicing in the One who takes great pleasure in doing good to us.
Joy
