DEVOTION / The gift of joy
Are you a joyful person?
Ecclesiastes 11:8 says, However many years anyone may live, let them enjoy them all.
Are you a joyful person? Do those around you enjoy having you in their presence? Do you wake with a smile on your face and keep it there until you go to bed at night? Or does your joy go up and down like an emotional roller coaster? Joy is a special gift from God. Our joy is so important that we find the word joy, joyous, or joyful nearly 250 times in the Bible. And that doesn’t count all the similar words like cheer, delight, glee, gladness, jubilance, happiness, mirth, or rejoicing.
Hannah was filled with joy when she was given the baby Samuel. The wise men were overjoyed when they saw the star. When Mary heard she would be the mother of Jesus, her soul rejoiced. The man Philip baptized went away rejoicing. The Bible tells us that the angel said to the shepherds: Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all people (Luke 2:10). After the shepherds left the stable, they returned rejoicing.
Of all people, God’s children should be the most joyful. When Paul listed the seven fruits that should hang on the Christian’s tree, joy was number two. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness” (Galatians 5:22). God wants us to be joyful and to rejoice every day.
Yet God also knows we suffer greatly under the curse of sin. Even great men like Moses, Elijah, and Job at one time wished they had never been born. Their days were often filled with sorrow and hopelessness. But God remembered them as he does us.
God’s special gift
Joy is a gift from God. In his perfect creation of the Garden of Eden, the Lord fashioned everything to bring joy to the hearts of Adam and Eve. The Lord still loves to bring joy into our lives. Psalm 16:11 tells us, You will fill me with joy in your presence.
How do we find God’s joy? We need to take our focus off our own troubles and hardships. When Moses, David, and Elijah were at their lowest, their focus was on themselves. When we turn our eyes to Jesus, we begin to experience a joy that covers over our problems. Psalm 94:19 says, When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy. Jesus wants to place his joy into our hearts. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete (John 15:11). That is a lasting joy that rises above all our daily problems!
By Reynold R. Kremer