Joy Is Finding and Pursuing God

You truly have every reason to be joyful and walk daily in His inexpressible and glorious joy. So why aren’t you?

March’s Awakening, Day 16

The religion of Christ is the religion of joy. Christ came to take away our sins, to roll off our curse, to unbind our chains, to open our prison house, to cancel our debt; in a word, to give us the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Is not this joy? Where can we find a joy so real, so deep, so pure, so lasting? There is every element of joy—deep, ecstatic, satisfying, sanctifying joy—in the gospel of Christ. The believer in Jesus is essentially a happy man. The child of God is, from necessity, a joyful man. His sins are forgiven, his soul is justified, his person is adopted, his trials are blessings, his conflicts are victories, his death is immortality, his future is a heaven of inconceivable, unthought-of, untold, and endless blessedness. With such a God, such a Savior, and such a hope, is he not, ought he not, to be a joyful man?

 —Octavius Winslow

What I am anxious to see in Christian believers is a beautiful paradox. I want to see in them the joy of finding God while at the same time they are blessedly pursuing Him. I want to see in them the great joy of having God yet always wanting Him.

 —A. W. Tozer

Then young women will dance and be glad, young men and old as well. I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow. Jeremiah 31:13 NIV

I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. John 15:11 NIV

Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:8–9 NIV

            Pure joy is embracing Christ’s love for you as shown on the Cross—forgiveness, justification, redemption, sonship, victory over sin and death, eternal life with Him, inheritance, blessings—all yours when your faith is in Him. Are you not joyful and thankful for all this? And in your daily walk and continual pursuit of Him—His presence is always with you through every trial and tribulation and hardship. Are you not joyful and thankful that He is always with you in your pursuit of Him?  Sometimes, we lose sight of the obvious that is right in front of us and take all that for granted. Stop for just a moment. Embrace the infinite worth of His joy and live each day in that. Do you really need more to be joyful, living each day for Him and walking each day with Him? Let your joy be overflowing to all, and don’t let anything, or anyone, steal your joy.

The Joyless and Merely Existing

Don’t let your past dictate your future. God intended for you to have the abundant life—not lifelessness.

March’s Awakening, Day 15

The joyless Christian reveals himself by having negative thoughts and talk about others, in a lack of concern for others welfare, and a failure to intercede on others behalf. Joyless believers are self-centered, selfish, proud, and often vengeful and their self-centeredness inevitably manifests itself in prayerlessness.

 —John MacArthur

Too unconcerned to love and too passionless to hate, too detached to be selfish and too lifeless to be unselfish, too indifferent to experience joy and too cold to express sorrow, they are neither dead nor alive; they merely exist.

 —Martin Luther King Jr.

We all desire to be happy. That is something that is innate in human nature; nobody wants to be miserable, though I am aware of the fact that there are people who seem to enjoy being miserable and some who seem to find their happiness in being unhappy!

 —Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Either the day must come when joy prevails and all the makers of misery are no longer able to infect it, or else, for ever and ever, the makers of misery can destroy in others the happiness they reject for themselves.

 —C. S. Lewis 

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:2–3 NIV 

When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your unfailing love, Lord, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy. Psalm 94:18–19 NIV  

            The joyless. The merely existing. Those who are miserable and unhappy for the sake of being miserable and unhappy. And maybe the worst—the makers of misery, inflicting their misery upon others. We all know those individuals, and maybe one of those describes you.

We have all had to endure pain and hardship, and some of us have had to endure abuses of every kind. It is most difficult to overcome genetic predispositions to anxiety, depression, anger, addictions, and many other of the maladies that plague us. It is also extremely difficult to overcome those emotional and experiential events that have traumatized us in our past. Many of us need not only the help of God, but also professional help in the form of counseling and medicine. God has given us all of this and more to help us overcome the seemingly impossible. As difficult as all this is, we cannot give up and succumb to being those joyless, miserable, unhappy, merely existing, misery-makers. It certainly is of no benefit to us to be that way and it assuredly affects everyone around us in negative ways.  The first step of every cure is recognition that you have the problem and then seeking out all available help and options. Remember, sometimes God removes the thorn, sometimes He does not. Somehow, someway, God can work it for His good—if we let Him.

What is God’s Spirit, the Divine Whisper, speaking to you? Let God work the evil for good, and seek help in every way. God never intended for you to exist in a negative and oppressed way.

Joy and Happiness Are Not the Same

Are you living in God’s joy, or are you living for the next happiness fix?  

March’s Awakening, Day 14

The Bible talks plentifully about joy, but it nowhere talks about a “happy Christian.” Happiness depends on what happens; joy does not. Remember, Jesus Christ had joy, and He prays “that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.” 

 —Oswald Chambers

It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness.

 —Charles Spurgeon

It is important for us to make a distinction between the spiritual fruit of joy and the cultural concept of happiness. A Christian can have joy in his heart while there is still spiritual depression in his head. The joy that we have sustains us through these dark nights and is not quenched by spiritual depression. The joy of the Christian is one that survives all downturns in life.

 —R. C. Sproul

Happiness is caused by things that happen around me, and circumstances will mar it; but joy flows right on through trouble; joy flows on through the dark; joy flows in the night as well as in the day; joy flows all through persecution and opposition.

 —D. L. Moody 

But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. Surely, Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield. Psalm 5:11–12 NIV 

and those the Lord has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. Isaiah 35:10 NIV 

            Although joy and happiness are similar, they are still different and distinct and we should understand those nuances. Happiness is based on what happens and the circumstances surrounding it. It is an emotional and experiential response based on pleasure or good fortune and is fleeting, as it will come and go depending upon our experiences.

            By contrast, joy is not solely based on our experiences or what happens around us. Joy is sourced within us as a deep satisfaction, contentment, and assurance of who we are and all the good that our future yet holds. Joy is an internal attribute and state of mind, not simply an emotional response to our experiences. Whereas happiness may come from our worldly interactions, joy comes from God above with assurance in His Word and all His promises to us, and knowing that we are children of the King and coming home soon.

            Yes, it is most important to have joy and good to be happy too, as long as we realize that joy will remain despite the fleetingness of happiness. Rejoice in your joy and be thankful for your happiness and don’t lose sight of them both. But remember, in those trials of strife and pain, the world may temporarily take your happiness away, but it can never remove your joy. 

Obedience Brings His Perpetual Joy

Are you experiencing the fullness of His joy? Are you serving and worshiping Him with all that you are? Are you continually walking in obedience to Him? Joy is an attitude of your heart.

March’s Awakening, Day 13

Trying to work for God without worshipping God results in joyless legalism. Work minus worship magnifies your will power not God’s worth. If you try to do things for God without delighting in God you bring dishonor upon God. Serving God without savoring God is lifeless and unreal.

 —John Piper

The Lord gives his people perpetual joy when they walk in obedience to him.

 —D. L. Moody

Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you. Psalm 51:12–13 NIV 

Deceit is in the hearts of those who plot evil, but those who promote peace have joy. Proverbs 12:20 NIV  

            Joy comes when you have a willing spirit to be obedient to God and in serving God with true worship and devotion to Him. Just going through the motions, without a heartfelt sincerity, does not qualify you for His inexpressible joy and blessing. The proper attitude of your heart is essential in experiencing that true joy that only He can offer. Having Christ truly in your heart, worshiping Him in spirit and in truth, and serving Him through your life mission will bring that perpetual joy and keep you firmly grounded and prepared to meet every life challenge. Make sure you have Christ firmly in your heart and mind and you’ll certainly be established in the fullness of His joy.

Joy—Your Invincible Host Against Difficulties

When bombarded by the external accidents of life, it should be your core center of joy that sustains you. Is your joy an invincible barrier against difficulties?   

March’s Awakening, Day 12

Join the great company of those who make the barren places of life fruitful with kindness. Carry a vision of heaven in your hearts, and you shall make your name, your college, the world, correspond to that vision. Your success and happiness lie within you. External conditions are the accidents of life, its outer wrappings. The great enduring realities are love and service. Joy is the holy fire that keeps our purpose warm and our intelligence aglow. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.

 —Helen Keller 

Seek joy in what you give not in what you get.

 —Author Unknown 

Fits of depression come over the most of us. Usually cheerful as we may be, we must at intervals be cast down. The strong are not always vigorous, the wise not always ready, the brave not always courageous, and the joyous not always happy.

 —Charles Spurgeon  

But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful. Psalm 68:3 NIV 

            I would encourage you to read those words of Helen Keller again. Exceptionally powerful words coming from one who endured and overcame what most would believe impossible. Note that joy is the driving force of your purpose, and joy is your invincible host of protection and barrier against life’s difficulties. Joy at your core center enables you to persevere and overcome those external conditions of life. Kindness, love, and service are the realities of the outpouring of joy from your center. It all lies within you and yes—blaze the vision of heaven upon all that you do. Note also, that this life has normal periods of ups and downs, ebb and flow, times of great progress and times of needed rest. The Lord’s joy at your center will sustain you in strife, propel you to progress, and empower every success. It is the intangible quality that makes one great.            

Joy in Your Purpose

Life’s joy comes when you’re living out your life purpose. If you’re not joyful, then maybe you’re not walking down the right path—God’s directed path.

March’s Awakening, Day 11

One filled with joy preaches without preaching.

 —Mother Teresa  

Real joy comes not from ease or riches or from praise of men, but from doing something worthwhile.

 —Sir Wilfred Grenfell 

Joy can be real only if people look upon their life as a service, and have a definite object in life outside themselves and their personal happiness.

 —Leo Tolstoy 

Guard my life, for I am faithful to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God; have mercy on me, Lord, for I call to you all day long. Bring joy to your servant, Lord, for I put my trust in you. You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you. Psalm 86:2–5 NIV  

            True and lasting joy will come to those who are living with purpose and serving within God’s calling to their life mission. God’s joy will overtake and overwhelm you because you are in fact doing what you were designed to do. This is the core of who you were destined to be and in accomplishing your life mission, you will experience the greatest satisfaction, fulfillment, and unspeakable joy. Living for Him is a wonderful thing indeed, and although not ever easy, it is always gratifying. A true labor of love is a lot of work, but the joy derived from it makes it all worth it and seem like no work at all.

Count Your Joys

Are you living in the trouble that each day brings, or are you continually counting your joys?

March’s Awakening, Day 10

Joy is always the result of God’s presence, God’s blessings, God’s justice, or the fellowship found with other believers.

 —Kristin N. Spencer, “The Truth About Godly Confidence”

Man is fond of counting his troubles but he does not count his joys. If he counted them up as he ought to, he would see that every lot has enough happiness provided for it.

 —Fyodor Dostoevsky 

All joy (as distinct from mere pleasure, still more amusement) emphasizes our pilgrim status; always reminds, beckons, awakens desire. Our best havings are wantings.

 —C. S. Lewis 

Surely you have granted him unending blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence. For the king trusts in the Lord; through the unfailing love of the Most High he will not be shaken. Psalm 21:6–7 NIV 

The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him. Psalm 28:7 NIV

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor. Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours. Isaiah 61:1–3, 7 NIV 

            When was the last time you went through your day counting all your joys? It is much easier to mumble and grumble and expound upon all your troubles, isn’t it? Those negative thoughts and words have a profound impact on how you view your day—and your life. It is truly disheartening that we tend to focus on the negatives instead of living in all the positives—and we are all guilty of doing this to some extent. I would imagine that if we seriously took the time each day to count all that was right and good and positive, it would certainly overwhelm the negatives by a landslide. Living in His joy is a daily choice. We can choose to see and live in all that’s good, or keep our blinders on and live each day only in the trouble that it brings.