Strength in Joy

Praise Reports:

Thank the Lord for safety on those icy roads!

Praise God for Scott Philip's joyful attitude

Prayer Requests:

Clara's sinus infection

Wisdom and grace for Roy and Julie and their family

Mary

The Childress family

Keep praying for Scott Philip's healing

Joy and blessings for Lydia

Pray for provision and encouragement for our fire and police departments.

Relief of Kim's neck pain

Pray for James Anderson that he would feel God's love and care and that he and Christin can be together soon. 

Free Girl Eating Yummy Pink Donut Creative Commons, originally uploaded by Pink Sherbet Photography.

This week we had a group discussion, throwing out some ideas about what Nehemiah 8:10 might be talking about when it says that "the joy of the Lord is your strength".

The NIV, KJV, NLT, ESV and Revised Standard all say "the joy of the Lord is your strength." The Catholic Bible says that "the joy of Yahweh is your stronghold." Let's look at the words: 

• Joy--rejoicing, bright, cheery
• Strength--a strong fortress (Psalm 27:1)

What does the Bible say brings Jesus joy? Hebrews 12:2 talks about "the joy set before Him" that He endured the cross for. What happened after He died? Well, He was resurrected and went into Heaven, but He was in Heaven before coming to earth, so what changed to bring Him such joy? Us! The prospect of having us with Him in His Kingdom was what made Him endure such a terrible death. Another thing that brings our Lord joy is when we abide in Him and follow His commandments (John 15:10-11).

The people in Nehemiah were crying as they heard the Law being read. It was probably the first time they had heard it and really understood it, and they realized just how far they fell short of its requirements. But they were told to stop weeping, because the purpose of their understanding the law was supposed to be joy! They had a God who cared for them, loved them, and wanted to be their strong refuge.  

Let's bring this down to a very practical level: how can we get that strength that comes from the joy of Lord? What were the Jews told to do in Nehemiah? They were literally instructed to "enjoy choice food and sweet drinks" and to "send some to those who have nothing prepared." This is what God wanted His people to do? Eat rich, fat food, drink sweet drinks, and send them to others? Of course this was a very specific instance, but the eternal principle is that we should enjoy the good things in life and share them with those less fortunate than us. 


Have you every really considered what the three great annual feasts were all about? They were scheduled times for everyone to stop what they were doing, come together, and sacrifice the best they had to God, then eat all of the best food! The Lord wanted them to host a huge party in His honor! There is great strength in a lifestyle of joy and generosity.  


There are three ways we can look at the joy of the Lord being our strength: 
1. As we do what God requires (eating and sending food, in the case of the Jews) we experience joy, and that gives us strength.
2. As we do what God requires then God experiences joy and He gives us strength.
3. As we rejoice in the Lord we grow strong. 


We can come away from this with all of the above in mind.


In the end, don't be a lemon-sucking Christian. We are here to show real joy to world! Remember your rich blessings. Sometimes our joy is deferred (like Christ's it is "set before" us). Even if you don't have good food and friends now, you are to rejoice in what you do have--a Savior who loves you. When we read the Bible we should not be like the Jews and feel guilt for our failures. Jesus died for us to read it with joy and hope. Romans 8:1, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." 

What if we all lived every day like we believed that? We would be filled with joy!