What’s this ‘joy’ we’re supposed to feel?

September 14, 2023

Maria 1 Thessalonians 5, Hebrews 12, John 4, John 8, Joy, Nehemiah 8, Rejoicing 1 Comment

Rejoice always, 1 Thessalonians 5:16 NIV

….the joy of the LORD is your strength!  Nehemiah 8:10 NIV

The Bible commands us in multiple places to rejoice in God’s goodness. Wait a minute….isn’t joy a feeling?  How can someone command a feeling?  And what about Nehemiah’s flat-out declaration about the source of our joy? What do we make of that? For instance, what does ‘of’ mean?  Does it refer to joy FROM God or God’s OWN joy?

I found one clue in Hebrews 12:2:  Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. (NLT)

What do you think that future joy refers to?  Numerous possibilities likely exist about what would have made Jesus glad and supremely happy. I’ve selected two quotes from our Lord where he mentions what motivates him, that of finding pleasure in doing his father’s will.

I always do what pleases Him. John 8:29 BSB

My food (what satisfies me) is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work. John 4:34 BSB

Therefore, since we recognize that by carrying out his father’s will Jesus would bring him pleasure, we can picture our Lord anticipating his future experience of his Father’s beaming joy.  A huge celebration waited to kick off his return to the center of divine and happy glory within the trinity.

Another understanding of our Savior’s joy could be his happy and sure reality of one day very soon having us, his brothers and sisters, with him for all of time.

Keeping in mind those two possibilities of the source of the Christ’s future joy, I take Nehemiah’s words to mean the following.  In knowing that by completing the Father’s mission to redeem a people to be with him forever, Jesus endured the suffering because the end result would bring him ‘joy’.

He knew that in completing the law’s requirements to satisfy the Father’s justice (our sin being paid for plus perfect completion of the law for us) our successful journey to that other world would be guaranteed. We, the ones for whom Jesus lived and died, receive the privilege of living with the divine family forever.

So, how do I connect Jesus’ purpose-driven life and death with ‘the joy of the Lord is our strength’?

Let’s go back to Hebrews 12:1 and the first part of verse 2, right before the author talks about Jesus’ joy motivation.

Therefore, since we also have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let’s rid ourselves of every obstacle and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let’s run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking only at Jesus, the originator and perfecter of the faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (NASB)

I reason like this:  If enduring that hell of an experience for me brought Jesus joy, given his and his father’s goals and plans for us, then recalling his joy gives me enough confidence-building strength.  What do I need this strength for? Each day you and I bear suffering, our own and that of others we care for.  We need a lot of power to remain uncomplaining and cheerful in the daily trials assigned to us. Jesus’ perspective and goals and how he viewed the purpose of his own ‘staying put’ on the cross can fill us with energy we need to continue on.

How do we fill up or receive this power?  By directing our thoughts to Jesus on the cross.  This is what ‘looking only at Jesus’ means.

I find this explanation for ‘the joy of the Lord’ and ‘rejoice always’ a relief.  Because if I were to depend on my ability to rejoice, I’d feel dismayed most of the time. I don’t have it within me to FEEL joy. But remembering Jesus’ joy gives me hope, a thankful gladness and the lightness I need to carry on.

Are you just not the exuberant type of Christian?

June 23, 2022

Maria Isaiah 30, Nehemiah 8 , , , 1 Comment

Get ready for the ‘M’ word!

Yes, I’m talking about mathematics.  I hope you don’t still suffer from nightmares about how dumb you might have felt in high school math class. I’m not sure which causes more shuddering among adults I meet, memories of foreign language classes or all those required math courses.

But seriously, there exists a God-given math principle which helps us understand his word.  Do you recall something called ‘the transitive property of equality’?  (I had to look up its name, but my husband and I apply it often when reading our Bibles).

I used it the other day when I came upon a favorite promise in Isaiah.  It goes like this: 

“If A=B and C = B, then A= C”

For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” But you were unwilling. Isaiah 30:15 ESV

Immediately, the Lord brought to mind Nehemiah’s encouragement to the people of God who had been standing all morning listening to the Levites explain the scriptures being read out loud. They began to weep when they understood their sin.  At that point, with all the people feeling genuine sorrow for breaking God’s law, Nehemiah stops the mourning to give them a message of peace:

Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 ESV

As I read Nehemiah’s description of divine strength, the Holy Spirit connected that to the Isaiah verse, stirring up that long ago math lesson.

-If repentance/turning back to God and trusting the Almighty produce strength.

-And if believing and rejoicing in the word of God gives strength.

Then, it follows that trusting God and rejoicing in/being glad about the written Word  are two ways of saying the same thing.

Why am I drawing out this principle?

Because for some of us, our personality type keeps us from connecting with that term ‘joy’.  So, I get stuck on the word ‘rejoice’.  In my mind, I picture fans of a winning football or baseball team’s exuberant excitement. And that’s not me.

So, when I see the phrase – rejoice in the Lord, I simply use one of Strong’s synonyms for the Hebrew term rejoice – be glad.

Now THAT I can do with authenticity. Hands down, I am VERY glad to belong to God’s family and to have Jesus as my master, friend and older brother.  Nothing settles me more; nothing produces more contentment than knowing God. 

So, dear friends, if a certain verse or word doesn’t fit or connect with you, pull out that transitive property of equality and search out something that will help you understand scripture in a more meaningful way.

Do you struggle to have joy?

August 12, 2021

Maria Hebrews 12, Nehemiah 8, Psalm 2 , , , 2 Comments

The joy of the LORD is your strength, Nehemiah 8:10 NIV

I’m reading a book by Simon Sinek that my son Wes recommended, Start with the Why. One of his teaching points is that if employees sense their company respects them, including them in the company’s vision, the ‘why’, then profitable outcomes will follow naturally. Getting employee buy in and creating a work environment where they feel safe and valued increases retention and allows for innovation.

Would that had been my experience in my last school where I taught French! As much as this private school publicized their values and vision for education, in reality they optimized keeping clients happy, i.e., parents. The administration feared losing paying families.  They talked a good talk of being a progressive school which used ‘best practices’, but in reality, teachers were expendable and always at fault in any conflict with parents. The head and his staff cared most about keeping the bottom line in the black.

Just as building employee loyalty and confidence starts with decision makers optimizing a happy and safe work environment, so too does our God know just what will make us feel most safe, loved and cared for.

Look again at how God describes his people’s strength and safety.  He announces it’s connected to HIS joy.  Whose joy?  I used to struggle with this verse because I never feel consistently joyful about God.  I often wondered, ‘Is the strength of my faith dependent on the amount of joy I can gin up?’  Since my feelings go up and down, that thought offered no comfort.

But then I wondered, maybe the Levites weren’t talking about the people’s joy, but the Lord’s joy.  If that’s the case, wouldn’t that change everything?

So, is the Lord joyful? Is he a happy God?  What would you say?

I thought of two places in the Bible that present a cheerful God, one from each testament.

  • Psalm 2:4 NLT reports:  But, the one who rules in heaven laughs.
  • Jesus went to the cross, for the joy awaiting him. Hebrews 12:2 NLT

Closely connected to laughing and joy is pleasure.  At Jesus’ baptism, God audibly announces that he is ‘well pleased’ with his son. The Father repeats this at the transfiguration. 

I conclude that our triune God is a happy God.  So, how does that lead to our strength?  Think about parents.  What provides security to children? Happy and contented parents, for kids can then conclude, ‘If Mom and Dad don’t seem worried, then I guess we’ll be okay,’ despite difficulties. That parental quality might not be the only quality of a healthy home, but I’ll argue that it’s essential.   

To the degree that I can trust that God is not worried about life on planet earth in 2021, then I will feel safe.  Strength to face difficulties comes from knowing that we will always be secure, since God is in charge. Our heavenly Father is not rocked by world events. He can laugh and be carefree because he controls all events. As PCA pastor Scotty Smith repeats, ‘God’s sovereignty is my sanity.’

Finally, let’s connect God’s manifest joy and happiness to his peace.  Isn’t it logical that the one who controls all events and people, directing them according to his plan, is a God who is at peace?  He’s not stressed.  We all know that joy and peace flee when worry dominates.  Maybe this is why Paul’s exhortation to hand over all cares is a path to enjoying God’s supernatural peace, that state of tranquility that can only be explained by God being in control of everything.

It’s not my self-generated peace or joy that will steady me in this life.  Peace and joy from above flow downhill, whether from the executive headquarters of a company or parents in a family. As Christians our confidence in life comes from knowing that our God is enjoying himself and is cheerfully happy.  His joy is our strength.

Does joy look different in each of us?

June 16, 2019

Maria 1 Corinthians 12, Joy, Nehemiah 8, Uncategorized , , , , , , , 6 Comments

For the joy of the Lord is your strength – Neh 8:10

I desire joy and you probably do as well.   But, do you or I always know it when we see it?  Can we recognize joy in another Christian?

For sure, there are those fellow believers who seem to bubble over with a happy passion for Jesus. We recognize that as ‘the joy of the Lord’.

My husband, Michael, prays daily for that kind of joy.  He really wants it, but seems burdened by the belief he bears that he is not anywhere NEAR feeling or displaying that kind of visible, expressive contentment in the Lord.

But is he making a fair self-assessment? I wonder if we do ourselves harm and cause a disservice to fellow believers when we narrowly define the expression of joy, when we expect a joy-filled Christian to look and act a certain way.

This morning I read a definition of JOY in a Tabletalk article. The following two sentences brought relief:

  • “Joy is an apprehension of our great God. It is a realization of and a trust in His promises.” (Rev Kevin D. Gardner)

Oh!  So, joy doesn’t HAVE to look like that constant jovial, spilling over, unrestrained child-like delight that I imagine in ‘real’ Christians?  Is it possible that we’re not ‘less’ of a Christian if our sense of and expression of joy is different?

Here is what I think happens. God has wired each of us, his image-bearers, as one-of-a-kind individuals, assigning us temperaments per his wisdom. Could we be incorrect in assuming that OUR particular experiences of God will be or should be the same for each believer?   Could we be burdening brothers and sisters when we describe AND prescribe God’s way of relating to us as normative?

I don’t doubt that you have people in your life who admire you for something, who look to you as a role-model.  By observing you in person, they have bestowed upon you a degree of power to speak into their lives.  You might not even know them.  They may in fact be social media followers who respect you from a distance and want to be more like you.  That is a weighty responsibility, my friend.

I have accorded others that kind of influence over my life.  And it has not always been good for me.  At my very weakest moments when I have measured myself against that ‘Admired One’ and come up short, the self-flagellation has been toxic to my soul and well-being.

In the past, my insecurities as a mom left me ‘that kind of’ vulnerable.  These days, my self-generated critical tapes can play over and over about how I grandparent and how I ‘ezer’ or help my husband. Those times of self-doubt tempt me to look at other older women and draw incorrect conclusions about them.

The result?  I feel bad about myself and think….”I gotta do something different.”  That thought alone feels like pressure and I grow anxious.

Now isn’t ‘anxiety’ another word for ‘discontent’!

Is that what God wants for us, his beloved children?  Does our Father mean for our sense of falling short (of the kind of joy my fellow believing brother or sister displays) to cause doubt about his love for us?  Does he want us fearful that we might not be a Christian?

No!  I don’t think so.

Brothers and sisters, be gentle with yourself.  I believe that joy as a trait or marker of believers comes to fruition by the operative power of Jesus’ Spirit implanted in us at our RE-birth.  Believing, trusting, taking as TRUE all of God’s words in Scripture is what nurtures and grows the kind of joy Jesus had. Jesus loved his flock, his posse of friends and supporters.  But he was a serious Man, the God-Man who suffered in a real body.  I don’t get the picture from Scripture that he was the bubbly type, but the always trusting type, the God-Man who believed his Father.

Brothers and sisters, be wary of describing and prescribing YOUR experience of God’s joy (or forgiveness, peace, guidance, love, mercy etc) as the only fitting expression and communication of God’s goodness.  Yes, be real and share about God and his goodness in your life. But be responsible and wise with your words. Remember those weaker and younger in the faith and be aware of your impact on them. As for me, I don’t assume that everyone enjoys or experiences God the way I do. I am analytical and feel fed through reading and studying and meditating on true ideas about God.  Others feed on God through music or nature or movement.  Our God loves diversity!

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit;  and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord;  and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.  To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.  1 Cor 12: 4-7

PS: As I was editing this post, I decided to see if I could find out what kind of ‘of’ is meant in the phrase, “The joy of the LORD”.  Does ‘of’ mean FROM, or PART OF or……?  I googled it and found this helpful blog post that shifted my understanding of the verse in Nehemiah.  Please invest the time to read it.

My first duty of the day – to make myself happy in God

September 25, 2016

Maria God's Purpose, Habits, Happiness, Idols, Joy, Love, Nehemiah 8, Obedience, Struggles, suffering, the Law, Thoughts , , , , , , Leave a comment

bible-reading-in-the-am

My hero in the faith is George Mueller, the 19th-century British pastor who together with his wife established and ran orphanages for four to five decades.  He intentionally journaled throughout those years in order to encourage the ordinary Christian to live and work by simple but powerful faith.  He wanted the average Christian to KNOW that learning to pray in reliance on Jesus was a tool and blessing that all could learn to do, with powerful results.

One of his personal resolutions that he followed to the benefit of thousands goes like this:

“The first great and primary business to which I ought to attend every day is to have my soul happy in the Lord.”

Life may be falling down around us, but to be a Christian means to be the possessor of the most precious and lasting treasures imaginable.

It’s probably like this for you, but when that morning alarm breaks into my oblivion, it’s like I have forgotten all that is true and unchanging.  What hits me is the immediacy of the day’s circumstances.  And given this suffering and corrupted world, many days seem to loom difficult and heavy-laden when I get up.   If I let my feelings take their cue from those first thoughts, I will stay depressed throughout the day.  Or I will use something created to distract myself, what God calls an idol. (food, email, escape reading)

God offers an alternative if we but follow it.  Christian are called to rejoice always (1 Thess 5:16). Therefore, Mueller’s advice is not optional if we are to obey our Father in heaven.

I don’t intend to talk about how I go about making myself happy in God.  What I rather mention is why God wants his children to be happy they belong to him.  I’m learning the reason God commands me to exult in him is because joy in God is key to loving others.

Listening the other day to a sermon by John Piper I actually felt capable for the first time of LOVING OTHERS.  You remember how Jesus summed up the Law in Matthew 22:40 by saying in effect:

  • Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength
  • Love your neighbor as yourself

Because I seem to be wired more as a rational person than a loving, emotional person, I’ve struggled with what love looks like according to God.  I often feel guilty that I don’t FEEL love towards my neighbors.

But the way John Piper explained love, it sounded doable for a Christian empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Piper explained what God means by love like this: “Love is the overflow and expansion of joy in God, which gladly meets the needs of others”

Given THAT definition, making myself happy in God each morning is not only life-preserving to me, but equally necessary for those around me.  When I have re-established and reconnected with WHY I can be happy no matter how crummy the day’s circumstances may be, then I have strength and energy to move out of myself toward others.  That is the ONLY way to love others.

Have you ever had someone do something for you out of duty?  How does that feel?

It’s like when we tell a child, “Tell Sammy that you are sorry!”

and the child’s “Sorry” doesn’t satisfy at all.  It’s not from the heart.

Same with our deeds done to meet a neighbor’s needs.  If we help out of obligation, it’s not the same as initiating something out of the energy and God-given strength borne of joy in Him.

Joy in God is a pervasive and persistent theme in the Bible.  It doesn’t seem optional or healthy to neglect.

May this truth from Nehemiah 8:10b find its roots in you and me:

“Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!”