Joy. Such a small word; yet, so wanted.
Tonight, my family and I decided to put up our Christmas tree and as I was finishing hanging the ornaments I realized that there was one that was left at the bottom of the box. I reached and pulled it out and as I hung it on the tree I noticed what it said. JOY. I smiled as it fit perfectly along with the rest of the ornaments, I took a step back and simultaneously felt that joy in my heart as I looked around the room.
I stepped into the kitchen and began to pick up what had been left out from dinner and out of no where a very real and vivid image came to my mind. A couple weeks ago, there I was standing in the pew behind a sweet, little brown headed small framed girl about 8 years old. I stood completely frozen just admiring her worship. I just could not get my eyes away from her except when I turned to my husband and asked him to look her way. Now, I know I shouldn't have been distracted, but I was so intrigued in this child's outter expression of the joy she held inside. It was simply, beautiful. With every word that was displayed on the screen for the congergation to sing along, she would so gracefully use her arms and body to create an expression of every word...
So there I was dazzed, standing with the refrigerator door opened asking the Lord to speak to my heart the purpose of that image...a few moments later and half the kitchen cleaned He said that every adult could have that same kind of joy, not just on Sunday through Tuesday, BUT always. The beauty of small children is that they have no worry in the world other than what new barbie or video game they want next, but as adults there are so many things in our daily lives that affect, hinder, and potentially kill the joy we hold within. That should not be so. But-hectic schedules, too many tasks, overwhelming amounts of work, and all the needs of our family that fall on our shoulders=where's the joy, always? Yes, I totally know stretching thin, right? We can all breathe.
1 Peter 1:8-9 says that "Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy..."
Now, I remember the exact day this happened, truly. 19 years old October 19th, there I stood in freezing cold water up to my waist proclaiming "Jesus, with my whole heart and everything I am I LOVE YOU. Forgive me. I have not seen You, but I can feel you, living inside me I believe in you and I'm busting at the seams with this God given joy that's unexplainable!
Or so I thought...
"I will be filled with joy because of you... Psalm 9:2
"But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me." Psalm 13:5
"You have shown me the way of life, and you will fill me with the joy of your presence." Acts 2:28
So what's my point? Jesus IS joy and He lives IN us; therefore, He or joy will never leaves us and I guess He was reminding me of that joy I felt the day I gave my life to Him and how I can always have that.You remember that day you opened your heart to the Lord? Just thinking about it, I bet you can't help but to feel that overwhelming joy in your heart to remember and KNOW a savior lives within you...
You see, it really is just the simple...when life gets hectic and joy seems so far, all we need to do is remember the day
Joy
came
to
stay.
"I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!" John 15:11
