NO to Bitterness! YES to Joy!

            Have you had your Joy Juice today?  If you have your heart set on joy in the Lord, there is no room for bitterness!

            Hebrews 12:15 clearly tells us: “See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled;”

            One of the most destructive and dangerous emotions we can harbor is bitterness.  If not dealt with, it can destroy the person, as well as relationships with others. It’s hard to admit that each of us deals with this sin of bitterness…but we all do and need to be on guard. Why?

* It can rob us of our peace and joy.
* It is an open door for Satan to control our life.
* It can lead to the loss of good friends.
* It can hurt or destroy our relationship with family and can destroy marriages.
* It makes peace and harmony impossible.
* It puts a wedge between us and God and will keep us from growing spiritually.

          Satan uses the weapon of bitterness to accomplish his devastating plans. Through hurt, resentment, anger and hate which can build up in our hearts, he can steal our joy. That’s why it is so important to keep our hearts guarded, our concerns covered in prayer and our thoughts saturated with the truth of God’s Word.

             Let’s see that no root of bitterness springs up in us; instead, let’s overflow with a fountain of joy.