You say joy, I say happiness, we're saying the same thing ....or, are we?
I think perhaps we've confused joy with happiness. Happiness is dependent on happenings. Circumstances in your life dictate whether or not you are happy. Joy, on the other hand is a gift from God - a fruit of the Spirit that transcends whatever is happening in your life. Joy allows you to rise —even to soar— above difficult circumstances, challenges, and heartaches. Joy comes from knowing Who is in control and that He has a plan to give you hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11) We do not draw our strength from the great feeling we get when things go right; if we did, we would be powerless when hard times and adversity hit, and we would all be easy pickings for the devil. Good times, happy times, come and go. When the times are not so good, its alright to be not so happy. Paul experienced some not so happy times, but his joy wasnot in the jail cell that held him. No, it was the joy of the Lord that was his strength!
"Joy in unrelenting pain" (Job 6:10,NIV), joy in not so happy times, it is the joy of the LORD that is our strength!
Lord, help me to draw my strength from your gift of joy and not from my feelings or present circumstances!
1 comment:
Ha! You beat me to it. I received a devo about this topic. People get the two confused. Happiness serves for a specific period of time only. Whether its because you just bought yourself a new toy and six months later its not giving you the same rush you had when you purchased it, or you received some $$$$$$ and now that its all spent and youahve nothing to show for it, and even a marriage. One may have been happy in a marriage but at one point God calls home one of the partners. The only thing left are the memories.
Now joy on the other hand is something that is eternal, forever. Like the devo says, joy doesn't depend on our circumstances, we rejoice no matter what.
Post a Comment