Take Heart! Have a Joyfully Blessed New Year!

            Have you had your Joy Juice today?  May you have an abundance of joy in the New Year! And let’s not forget the joy-filled blessings of this past year! 

            If I could have one wish for each of you as 2017 begins, it would be that this year will be a year of God’s favor….filled with JOY and contentment. And that will be my prayer! But we also know that there will come days of struggle and heartache.  We won’t always be happy.  But we can rest in the joy that Jesus is there to walk with us through those difficult times.

            We do have a choice in some things. We can choose to be grumpy and complain when things don’t go our way; or we can face each challenge with a smile and believe that God knows what is best!  We can approach a problem with doom and gloom, focusing on all the negatives…or we can look toward the “light” and trust that God has it all under His control.

            In John 16:33 Jesus said: “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”   Because of Jesus, we have hope in knowing that the ultimate victory has already been won; we can claim the peace and joy of Christ even in the most troublesome times. 

            Let’s choose to begin our new year with a joyful perspective.  When those difficult situations arise, let’s determine to walk through them with the attitude of Christ! He IS walking right beside us, filling us with His strength and JOY.

This is Joyce Ashley of JoyJoy Ministries reminding you to drink in the joy of Jesus  faithfully, each day of the New Year!  Have a JOY-filled 2017!