Category Archives: Joy

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September 21, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, God's Grace & Love, Joy, Peace of God

MY DAY OF REST

On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation. [Genesis 2:2-3 (NLT)]

You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. [Exodus 20:9a (NLT)]

The words “frazzled”, “rushed”, and “stressed” have been creeping into my vocabulary all too frequently. “Busy” seemed to be a recurring theme in my recent writing and “rest” seemed to be a recurrent theme in my daily Bible reading and prayers. Could God be telling me something? Today’s Bible study took me to the above verses from Genesis and Exodus. I don’t think God could have made it much clearer than that! Even He took a day of rest after a busy week and, from now on, I will too. My messages will continue to be posted, but only six days a week. Sundays will be my day of rest and restoration.

Today, be sure to enjoy your day of rest. Listen to your pastor’s message; worship with joy and thanksgiving. Read the Bible. Write your own prayer or meditation. Take a break; God did! Spend the day in prayer, love, and laughter and, above all, rest quietly in God’s loving arms.

Rest time is not waste time. It is economy to gather fresh strength… It is wisdom to take occasional furlough. In the long run, we shall do more by sometimes doing less. [Charles Spurgeon]

Let my soul be at rest again, for the Lord has been good to me. [Psalm 116:7 (NLT)]

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September 9, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, Joy, Thanks & Praise

IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES

Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NLT)]

We arrived at our cottage, anticipating a relaxing afternoon. The power had gone out in one refrigerator, however, and the clean-up was a long, smelly and unpleasant task. Once done, I hoped to enjoy the last of the afternoon reading in the sunroom. The locked door into the room, however, refused to unlock and could not be opened! Short of breaking the door, I wasn’t going to be reading in there that day. At least, there was hope of a nice hot shower, until I discovered we had no hot water; the pilot light on the water heater had gone out. A warm stinky fridge, a broken lock and no hot water were not the best way to start a holiday weekend.

Yet, when it came time for grace that evening, after asking God to forgive my afternoon’s litany of complaints, we thanked him for the blessings of the day. We thanked him for the blessing of two refrigerators and for discovering the dead one before it had gotten any worse. We thanked him for the handyman who responded so promptly to our call and not only repaired the door lock but also a broken light. We thanked God for the blessing of a vacation home, especially when so many have lost their only home. I added special thanks for having a husband who knows how to light a pilot light.

Blessings and gratitude go hand in hand, but not necessarily in that order. For many people, the better life is, the more thankful they become. Their good fortune determines their thankfulness. Outer circumstances, however, shouldn’t determine the joy we have in our lives. We need to learn to be thankful for everything that comes our way. The more appreciation and gratitude we have, the more happiness and contentment we’ll experience, even in less than stellar conditions. Granted, it’s not always easy to see the positive in all things, but we need to be thankful anyway. Without a doubt, we all have more than we deserve!

Father in heaven, remind us to count our blessings, not our troubles or grief, and most certainly not our minor aggravations and petty annoyances. Only then will we experience the serenity and joy you have promised us. Fill our hearts with gratitude in all circumstances and keep our lips from complaint.

Life’s under no obligation to give us what we expect. We take what we can get and are thankful it’s no worse than it is. [Margaret Mitchell]

This is the Lord’s doing, and it is wonderful to see. This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. [Psalm 118:23-24 (NLT)]

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September 7, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, Challenges & Difficulty, Joy, Peace of God

DON’T WORRY; BE HAPPY!

Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again – rejoice! … Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. [Philippians 4:4,6-7 (NLT)]

“Rejoice!” Paul wrote to the church at Philippi. He wrote these joyful words while awaiting trial in a Roman prison. Rather than feeling defeated during his captivity, Paul used his imprisonment as an opportunity to continue to preach the gospel and spread the joy of God’s word. Instead of being depressed by his situation, he knew how to be satisfied regardless of his situation. In fact, Paul thanked God for his difficult circumstances.

We don’t need to be in prison to be depressed, angry or resentful. There are many times in our lives when things go terribly wrong: a child becomes addicted, a parent suffers a debilitating disease, a friend gets cancer, a job is lost, a business goes bankrupt, the stock market crashes, a marriage fails, or a lawsuit is filed. We need to learn from Paul to “always be full of joy in the Lord” regardless of our circumstances.

Where the soul is full of peace and joy, outward surrounding and circumstances are of comparatively little account. [Hannah Whitall Smith]

Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious – the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. [Philippians 4:8 (MSG)]

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August 16, 2014

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Family, Friends & Fellowship, Joy, Thanks & Praise

FAMILY REUNIONS

great migration 10
Weeping with joy, he embraced Benjamin, and Benjamin did the same. Then Joseph kissed each of his brothers and wept over them, and after that they began talking freely with him. [Genesis 45:14-15 (NLT)]

My husband and I cautiously found our way through the minefield of blocks and toys on the floor, retreated to our bedroom, and closed the door. Simultaneously, we both said, “It’s so loud!” Being “empty nesters,” we’re accustomed to our routines and a clean quiet house. I admit it: we’re old folks and “set in our ways!” You see, we had been blessed by a family visit; four families and three generations had gathered under our roof!

Sometimes our blessings come with noise; they leave toys on the floor and dirty dishes in the sink. Sometimes our blessings cry, as babies do, or spill, as three-years old do. Sometimes our blessings never seem to run out of energy, like the older cousins, or stay up late talking, like the siblings who are usually separated by thousands of miles. Sometimes our blessings watch TV until all hours, talk all at once, or forget to put on a new roll of toilet paper. Sometimes our blessings leave wet towels on the floor and sometimes they argue with one another. Sometimes our blessings leave an empty gas tank, break a dish or eat the brownies hidden in the freezer for other guests. Do I have any complaints? Not a one. Did I heave a sigh of relief when the last departed? Yes! Am I looking forward to next year? You betcha! Why? Because, every minute spent with family is a moment to be cherished.

Although the venue will be different and no two families are alike, I imagine your family gatherings are not all that dissimilar from ours! There’s a little stress, a few tears, plenty of noise and disorder, but lots of love and joy!

Thank you, God, for the blessings of family and family reunions. Thank you for the chaos, confusion and happiness that come when we all gather together. Every family is made up of imperfect, quirky, disparate people and none of us are easy to get along with all of the time. Thank you for your gifts of patience, love and laughter that make it all possible.

Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him. [Psalm 127:3 (NLT)]

For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation. [Psalm 100:5 (NLT)]

 

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June 24, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, Fear & Doubt, Joy, Today: Make it Count, Worry

JOY TO YOU

This day is holy to God. Don’t feel bad. The joy of God is your strength! [Nehemiah 8:10b (MSG)]

From the moment we’re born, we’re already dying. Our task is to live life to the fullest until we die: to live while dying. I had a friend who recently passed away. I miss her, but my greatest sorrow is that, while she was alive, she was simply dying while living. Her mindset would have made Eyore in “Winnie the Pooh” look like an optimist. Instead of savoring each day as the gift it was, she could always find something about which to complain. Misery was her favorite color.

We can face each day with fear and dread, anger and disappointment, regret and resentment or we can face it with confidence and hope, love and joy, anticipation and excitement. The choice is ours and ours alone. Let God fill your heart with His love and peace. May the joy of the Lord be your strength this and every day.

There’s a decision we all have to make, and it seems perfectly captured in the Winnie-the-Pooh characters created by A.A. Milne. Each of us must decide: Am I a fun loving Tigger or am I a sad-sack Eeyore? Pick a camp. [Randy Pausch, from “The Last Lecture”]

Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies. [Philippians 4:8-9 (MSG)]

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June 20, 2014

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Fear & Doubt, Forgiveness, Joy, Prayer, Temptation & Sin

IT’S GARBAGE DAY

When I kept things to myself, I felt weak deep inside me. I moaned all day long. … Then I confessed my sins to you and didn’t hide my guilt. I said, “I will confess my sins to the Lord,” and you forgave my guilt. [Psalm 32:3, 5 (NCV)]

Most of us aren’t good at admitting when we’ve sinned or even misbehaved. In fact, some of us are pretty good at denying it altogether. When my children were small, the guilty party in our household always seemed to be someone named “Not me” or “I don’t know.” One child always said, “The fox did it!” Is it the fear of punishment or the fear of not being forgiven that so often prevents us from acknowledging our sins?

As a girl, whenever I was caught misbehaving or admitted to disobedience, I knew I could expect yelling, tears, humiliation, disgrace and punishment. Forgiveness wasn’t guaranteed and wrongs were often rehashed again and again. I knew I deserved the punishment, but it was forgiveness that I craved. So, like many people, I did my best to hide my problems, failures and transgressions. Hiding sins, however, is like hiding garbage; as the guilt and shame accumulate, sooner or later things are going to stink!

Our Heavenly Father  gives us a guarantee our earthly parents didn’t: unconditional forgiveness. It’s amazing how easy it is to confess one’s sins when assured of forgiveness. Today, if there is any guilt or shame stinking up your life, confess your sins to God and be restored. There’s no secret so shameful and no sin so vile that He won’t forgive. Toss the disgusting garbage of past transgressions and start fresh today.

Father, help us acknowledge our wrongs and accept responsibility for our transgressions. Listen to our litany of offenses as we offer our confessions to you. Empty our lives of guilt and shame; fill us with joy at your merciful love and promised forgiveness.

When God forgives us and purifies us of our sin, He also forgets it. Forgiveness results in God dropping the charges against us. [Billy Graham]

If we say we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves, and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, he will forgive our sins, because we can trust God to do what is right. He will cleanse us from all the wrongs we have done. [1 John 1:8-9 (NCV)]