The Strength of YOUR Joy…

Today marks the eighth anniversary of my sweet wife Piper’s Homegoing on September 2, 2018 at our country home in North Carolina, where we had lived for the previous four or five years.  And I see it as no coincidence that the Lord has been leading me on a further study of His kind of JOY over the last week… up to today.  For you see… I find it almost impossible to even consider the JOY of the Lord… without a direct reference or connection to Piper!

My very first memory of her was when she walked past my desk in eleventh grade academic English and sat down behind me… literally radiating with her big contagious smile, bright brown eyes and JOYFUL countenance.  And although she had been physically ravaged with the destructive results of Alzheimer’s in her body… as I stared deep into her eyes on that final evening back in 2018, I saw that same brightness and JOY radiating from her spirit that was actively present on that first day in class 49 years previous that night.

In the Old Testament book of Nehemiah, we see the priest and newly appointed Governor speaking to the children of Isreal as they faced the physical destruction of their beloved Jerusalem.  Things didn’t look too good… but the leaders encouraged the downtrodden people by saying,

“Today is a holy day for the Lord. Don’t be sad, and do not faint, because the JOY (that) you have in the LORD is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10 – God’s Word©/Apostolic Bible Polyglot w/Strong’s Numbers)

First and foremost, I believe that it is of most importance that we understand the key point of this verse… which is the fact that God’s JOY is to be seen and employed as an important source of yours and my STRENGTH!  The word ‘STRENGTH’ in both the original Hebrew and Greek is defined as our force, power, means of safety, protection, refuge and our stronghold.  And likewise, it also refers to our personal abilities.  In my life, I have come to understand and experience the power of the JOY of the Lord as,

“The foundational STRENGTH of all my inherent ABILITIES and God given GIFTINGS and TALENTS.”

The other important part of this verse is the step of faith that actually activates that STRENGTH in our daily lives which in our verse, follows the word “JOY” with the phrase,

“YOU have in the Lord!”

In other words… JOY… Godly JOY… Is a level of JOY that is predicated, fully focused and solidly based on our utmost TRUST in the Lord and the truth of his Word… and is something that each of us have to personally appropriate and then use in our daily lives!

My unshakable understanding and reference to the JOY of the Lord in connection to Piper, is based on 48 years of seeing His JOY working in and through her on a daily basis… no matter where she was, whom she was with, what was going on around her or whether she was in a good mood or not… of which it was difficult to find her in a bad mood… occasionally maybe… but not too often… because she worked to keep God’s JOY strong and active in her life!

You see… the JOY she radiated was not dependent on the varying circumstances in her or our lives… but was deeply founded on her personal relationship with Jesus, her unrelenting faith in the truth of His Word and her consistent ability (through years of practice) to verbally PRAISE the Lord in both the good times as well as the stressful ones!  She was a steadfast student of I Thessalonians 5:16-18 which tells us to,

“Always be joyful.  Never stop praying. And whatever happens, give thanks, because it is God’s will in Christ Jesus that you do this.” (God’s Word ©)*

So… the activity, STRENGTH, power (and enjoyment) of JOY went together with Piper… just like Peanut Butter and Jelly!  (Of which she preferred with freshly ground peanuts from the natural foods section at our neighborhood Raley’s and Smuckers Strawberry Preserves on Ezekial Bread… just a bit of Piper trivia in case you wanted to know! Oh… and I liked to add raisins and a sliced banana on mine… Hmmm… now I have to go out and get a box of raisins… I’ve got everything else!)

And what about you?  Does the level of Godly JOY that is based on your close personal relationship with Jesus and your unshakeable trust in the truth of His Word go together with YOU like Peanut Butter and Jelly (or whatever your favorite sandwich might be…)?

Think about it… Godly JOY is a lot more enjoyable, constructive and powerful in and for YOUR life than is sadness, depression and fear…  Just saying!

Have a great rest of your week.  We are back into daily Heat Advisory’s with today’s ‘feels like’ temps projected to be near 106 degrees!  But you know what?  I’m choosing to be THANKFUL and to let the JOY of the Lord be my STRENGTH (and my sense of COOL…) today!

 

*The King James Version gives us a little more information by clarifying “In (not for) everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” 

We are taught to give thanks and praise to the Lord with- IN the midst of everything – including the negative incidents in our lives… NOT because we are blaming HIM for the bad things… but instead, are TRUSTING Him to work in our behalf to give us strength, wisdom and resources throughout the situation.