Incredible Joy

Have you ever wondered if God knows what He's doing?  The situation is so painful that you wonder if God even knows how you feel? Let me reassure you that no matter what you are enduring, God knows how you feel and He's going to get you through it!  

My first week of Basic Training made me wonder why I ever thought enlisting was a good idea.  However, when our Chaplain came around to talk with us (which he did weekly) he reminded us of one thing: You can endure pretty much anything when you keep in mind that "this, too, shall pass."  Let me tell you something, each morning I woke up was time I thanked God for another day.  Every morning when we were sweating as we endured physical training (rain or shine), I thanked God for the inspiration to have that time to think while I ached in ways I never imagined.  Celebrating each achievement brought joy. 

When the day came to graduate from Basic Training, the joy was incredible!  

Whatever you are going through, don't give up! The joy that God gives us is SO awesome!  And I guarantee, the pain now may be deep and seem to never end, but turn it over to Him every single time you feel it, as long as you feel it, and there WILL come a day when you will feel joy again.

Who Licked The Red Off Your Candy?

⁹ This is my prayer for you: that your love will grow more and more; that you will have knowledge and understanding with your love; ¹⁰ that you will see the difference between good and bad and will choose the good; that you will be pure and without wrong for the coming of Christ; ¹¹ that you will be filled with the good things produced in your life by Christ to bring glory and praise to God.
Philippians 1:9-11

I've mentioned before that I like people watching, especially if there's coffee involved.  I've also mentioned before that somewhere along our journey on this big blue marble, we seem to have lost the love of laughter.  Our sense of humor seems to have dried up or become so dark that it's unrecognizable. Why is that?

I love it when my pastors have "Children's Church" moment during the service when all the children come to the front to hear a lesson.  They aren't afraid to laugh!  They aren't afraid to be happy!  They are most certainly not afraid to be expressive.  So when did we learn to be so afraid? Or when did we CHOOSE to become unhappy, tense, frustrated, stressed, anxious, or just stuck in a place of sorrow?

I've been re-reading Chuck Swindoll's Book "Laugh Again" in which he teaches that laughter is an expression of JOY!  

In fact, he points out that "We begin to laugh again when we rest out full confidence in God: That full confidence brings joy when we fix our attention on the things for which we are thankful; when we let God be God."

"It doesn't matter, really, how great the pressure is; it only matters where the pressure lies. See that it never comes BETWEEN you and God because then the greater the pressure the more it will press you into the loving arms of your Father" - Hudson Taylor

You see, happiness and joy are choices!  The single most important choice we can make, as Christians, is our attitude!  Only YOU can decide YOUR attitude!

"Firm confidence in God means that it is in His hands. He who started something will bear the pressure of it and will bring the results exactly as He planned for His greater glory." - Chuck Swindoll.

You see, when we truly stop and think about it, God has a plan for each of us (yes, I've said this over and over) and it is NOT OUR JOB to get us there!  Our job is to focus on God and accept that it is HIS job to get us to the fulfillment of His plan for us!  WE tend to get in the way when we lose our joy and stop being thankful and grateful for all He has done, is doing, and will be doing in our lives!

God's Joy

 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. “So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great joy to give you the Kingdom."
Luke 12:31-32

I can't tell you how many times I have looked at my bank account then looked at the bills to be paid and began to worry about how I was going to be able to pay them.  I had done everything I could think of to be frugal, but the bills always seemed to outweigh my paycheck.  Finally, I go a bit of a windfall only to have the car battery die, which chewed up the windfall plus some.  To be honest, I was more than a bit irritated with God and told Him so!

I let Him know what I thought about this little game He was playing by allowing me to get half a step ahead only to be knocked backwards 3 steps.  To my amazement, God revealed to me that it has never been His plan for me to be wealthy.  Why?  Because then I would begin to worship the wealth instead of Him. I'd begin to rely on my wealth instead of Him.  He knew my weakness and made provision for it.

I was reminded that every single bill was paid, when I am frugal, and there is always food on the table, clothes on my back, not to mention the innumerable other ways He has blessed me.  He has blessed me with a Bride who loves me in spite of myself.  He has given me a pet who is not only my buddy but one of the best therapists ever.  And so much more.

AND I was reminded that all my worrying, all my anxiety, all my fussing and cussing (yes I did), and all the fuming did absolutely nothing to extend my life or increase my joy.  In fact, it stole my joy and contributes to some health issues.

Take a moment and think about all that God has provided for you.  Thank Him for them.  Write them down so you won't forget them.  Learn gratitude.  Accept that we don't need trophies or awards to prove God has blessed us.  God will show that Himself!!!

It Ain't Over Yet!

So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while.

1 Peter 1:6 

 

There's Good News and then there's Not So Good News.  Ever notice that Good News almost always seems to come with a catch?  

 

The Good News is that WONDERFUL JOY is ahead for believers. That's God's promise to us.

 

The Not So Good News is we will have to endure many trials for a bit before we get to the Joy.

 

I hear the groans and moans every Monday morning.  For some, I hear the moans and groans about having a quiet shift.  For some, I hear moans and groans about everything.

 

But God is telling us, through Peter, that we are to be glad because once we have endured (yes you WILL endure, so don't quit) you will receive God's promised joy!

 

Whatever you are enduring now, just remember that God has promised that it's not going forever, but His promised joy is forever! 

Where Is God?

 “I am a God who is near,” says the Lord.
    “I am also a God who is far away.

No one can hide
    where I cannot see him,” says the Lord.
    “I fill all of heaven and earth,” says the Lord.

Jeremiah 23:23-24 

 

Have you ever felt like maybe God just wasn't there?  Or have you ever felt as if God was someplace far far away looking down on you with detached detachment?  Have you ever wondered if God was anywhere at all?

 

I know such questions make some people uncomfortable, and that's part of the reason I ask them.  If we don't wonder, then we tend to take things for granted.  How many times has a storm knocked out the power, but you still flip the light switch when you enter a room?  How many times have you turned on the faucet and wondered if this will be the time you get coffee instead of water?

 

God gives us a mind, so that we can think and wonder and contemplate and dream and KNOW!  God tells us that He is near!  God also tells us that He is far away!  God tells us that NO ONE can hide from Him!  God tells us that He fills every nook and cranny of the universe and the earth!  Not only that, but Jesus reminded us that God knows everything to know about us (even the stuff we don't know, the stuff we wished He didn't know, and the stuff we don't even think should be known).

 

You see, this is the indication that God's GPS is so much better than mine every time.  My GPS system tends to be that electronic voice that will tick me off and I will argue with (ask my bride).  My GPS tends to be shaky, at best, and completely wrong more times than not.  But God's GPS (God's Provision Services) are always, Always, ALWAYS right on time and just what we need. 

 

There's nothing we can hide from God.  Absolutely nothing.  We may try and we may even believe that, since God didn't send lightning to zap us, God didn't notice.  Nothing escapes His notice.  Everything has a purpose.  Every event is part of God's plan for our good and His glory. 

 

Also know that, since God is everywhere and knows everything, He also feels everything we feel and knows our hurts and holds us as we mourn and cry; He knows our joys and victories and celebrates them with us.  He knows when we do something completely idiotic (and probably chuckles).  If we try to limit God and say He doesn't know how we feel or what we are going through....we don't truly know God and might be time to start talking with Him.