The Joy of the Lord

 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13 (NLT)

Having joy in the midst of pain, trials and tribulation is not a easy thing to do on our own but when we seek God, we will understand that we already have joy available to us. As believers we have the Holy Spirit, which produces the fruit of the spirit. Galatians 5:22 says, ” But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness…” . Due to us having the Holy Spirit we can’t allow the enemy to take away our joy. Keep pressing, keep praying, keep praising, keep fasting, and keep smiling because praise often confuses the enemy. The enemy wants to see you down, depressed, go back to living in sin, give up, etc. When you completely trust in God you will overflow with confidence knowing God is in control. You will be filled with joy. When people walk out your life, do you wrong, turn their backs on you, reject you… Ladies just count it all joy because we don’t put our trust in mere humans; they are as frail as breath (Isaiah 2:22). BUT you can trust God; that He will never leave you nor forsake you. 

Negative thoughts

Let’s talk about renewing our mind and being able to cast down negative thoughts and making our thoughts obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). When you allow negative thoughts to linger and you entertain the enemy lies… let’s be honest you’re not going to have the joy of the Lord. The joy of the Lord is still having a praise, trusting God, fighting back against the enemy, while staying heavy in the word because you know God is in control. The joy of the Lord is when you still praise God even when he doesn’t answer your prayers because you know His plan for your life are far greater than your plan. Remember, Joy is already given to us freely by God. The bible says when we are in the presence of God there is a fullness of joy (Psalm 16:11).

Are you staying in the presence of God?

We shall count it all joy when we face adversity believing when we endure we are developing into the person God has called us to be (James 1:3-4). There is always a process and the process prepares you for something greater. So, count it all joy, God has something greater on the other side. 

Let’s read about when Jesus calms the storm

23 “Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” 26 He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. 27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!” Matthew 8:23-27 (NIV).

 You may be like now “what does this passage has to do with having the joy of the Lord?” The joy of the Lord comes with having faith in Him and believing that joy comes from Jesus Christ; the holy spirit living inside of you. In Matthew 8, Jesus healed a man with leprosy, healed a Roman officer’s young servant, and healed other diseases because of their faith in Jesus. Having the Joy of the Lord means you have faith in God, that He is with you and He will never fail you. The Disciplines was with Jesus as he healed the sick and delivered people in Matthew 8 before getting in the boat to cross the lake; yet during the storm the disciples lost faith because they thought Jesus was unaware of what they were going due to Jesus being asleep. We can’t lose focus on what God did for us and we can’t lose faith when storms come. We have to continue to have joy, trusting in God during the storms of life. The bible says, “Weeping may stay for the night, but joy comes in the morning” Psalm 30:5. If Jesus preformed all of those miracles eelier in the text of Matthew 8, then why wouldn’t He come through while they were on the boat in the midst of the storm. We cannot forget where God has brought you from and the things he has already done for you. The Joy of the Lord is imbedded in you when you receive Jesus Christ. Jesus will bring Joy, peace, strength, etc. so have faith, speak over your situation and trust him. Remember the Joy of the Lord is your Strength. 

 Below are a few scriptures to mediate on to remind yourself of the Joy of the Lord!

“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.” James 1:2 (NLT)

  “For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night,but joy comes with the morning.” Psalm 30:5 (NLT)  

“For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” 2 Corinthians 3:17 (NLT) God

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