"Let Your priests be clothed with righteousness, and let Your saints shout for joy."
~ Psalms 132:9 (KJV)
Being upright has many benefits. Though the benefits of a holy lifestyle shouldn't be the primary focus, it is inevitable that the benefits will start rolling in once we get in line with Gods ways and commands. When we live Gods way on this earth we experience the fruits of His Spirit which in turn usually leads to all the earthly things we desire. This thought reminds me of Matthew 6:33 where the author says to "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things will be added unto you". All these things can mean anything that we desire or need but I would like to focus on the fruits of the Spirit that we obtain when we live right.
In Gal 5:22 love is the primary fruit of the Spirit mentioned that Christians should seek to possess most. Joy comes second in this portion of scripture. I want to focus on the fruit of joy in particular. Joy helps us tremendously in our spiritual walk with God. Usually when life throws us a curve ball joy is always there to catch it. When we are filled with joy it will always be the underlying factor of our present state which will cause us to laugh when we feel like crying. It will have us encourage someone else when we are not feeling encouraged for ourselves. Joy gives us the fuel we need to go forward in this journey we call life, throughout every season. Joy helps us to soar as eagles. We soar right over certain circumstances that would otherwise have us defeated. The bible tells us in one of the golden Psalms by David that "Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure". With the knowledge of that verse we should take heart. Let us anchor ourselves in joy for it will keep us safe and secure and smiling.
Now, joy is indeed a fruit that is altogether wonderful but in order for us to have this joy, and it work in us to the fullest, our lives must be right before God. Psalms 32:11 tells us to "Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart". Our hearts will be glad and we can shout without inhibitions when our lives are not only right but upright before God. He is the source of our joy and He is the center of our joy. So, it only makes sense that in order to have this joy in full we need to please Him by making Him smile. Here's a nugget, when He smiles, we smile.
Be encouraged and know that the joy that you have will strengthen you in the hard times and add beauty in the good times.
~ Royalbutterfli
Let's pray...
Heavenly Father you have given us many things but today thank you for the joy that you give us in turn for our lives. Thank you that you give us beauty for ashes, strength for fear, gladness for mourning and peace for despair. Please allow your joy to penetrate all the areas of our lives that need it. Where we're sad give us joy, where we're unsure give us joy, and Lord even when we are in a good place give us more joy. Thank you that you love us and will continue to provide for us according to your riches in glory. In Jesus name. Amen.
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