Dare to Live Fully....with JOY!

Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Wake up and smell the sweet aroma of your blessings!

            One my former working colleagues used to say: "I’m too blessed to be stressed!"  I agree!  When I think of my many blessings, JOY bubbles up in my heart!   I’m blessed with a dear family, special friends and lots of joy in the form of grandchildren!  I’m blessed with good health and this stage of life to be a part of a ministry that shares God’s joy with others.

             What about you?  Have you tried to count your blessings lately?  Though none of us are at the exact same stage of life or set of circumstances, one thing holds true for each us: We all have blessings! Some times we get distracted from seeing our blessings because we get caught up in the busyness and challenges of daily life.  BUT….if we will look for them, I can promise you…blessings are there!

            One of my blessings in the form of a dear friend…that Proverbs kind of friend…the one who “sticketh closer than a brother” Proverbs 18:24 (or sister in this case)….Well this JOYful blessing of a friend gave me a new book the other day.  There was no special occasion, no celebration or fanfare or specific reason.  She just knew I’d love the book….and, wow, was she ever right!

            One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp is chocked full of reasons to experience the JOY of the Lord.  And listen to the subtitle: “Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are!”  

            May each of us be challenged to look past our daily difficulties and choose to live fully in the JOY of the LORD…RIGHT WHERE WE ARE!

Put Your HOPE in Christ...and Find JOY!

Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Don’t be afraid; it’s filled with only the purest of ingredients…..concentrated hope and love….which, when stirred together, makes a great, tasty serving of JOY.

            We’ve talked a lot lately about the subject of HOPE!  All of us need hope, don’t we?  Problems and discouragement aren’t particular with who they keep company!  All of us have to face the enemy of hopelessness at one point or another.

            I read just the other day that hope is both a noun and verb. How true! Writer Karen Cook explains that “hope is a feeling of expectation and desire for certain things to happen.” (noun) But it is also the action (verb) of putting your faith in that hope….and moving forward!

At times….hope can be a little scary!  Anytime we put our faith in something “unseen”, it can be a bit unnerving.  That’s why a strong faith in God is so important!  As Hebrews 11 tells us, “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”

When you begin to doubt how strong your faith is; when you need a “hope boost”, go to the eleventh chapter of Hebrews and see the “Hall of Fame for Faith”! These people put their hope in God…and God was faithful in EVERY instance!  If He did this in “Bible times”, He will do it for us today.  For you see, our God does NOT change!  He is a God of HOPE!

           

Put your hope in Christ and savor the sweet taste of JOY! 

JOY...Does the Body Good!

Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  If you want a healthy lifestyle, this is where to start: With your daily recommended serving of JOY and HOPE!

            In 1997 the American Heart Association reported a remarkable finding.  From years of research, they concluded that people who experienced high levels of despair and hopelessness had a 20 % greater occurrence of coronary artery disease (CAD) than did optimistic people.  Researcher Susan Everson stated: “This is the same magnitude of increased risk that one sees in comparing a pack-a-day smoker to a non-smoker.”

            Do you get the picture?  God calls us to choose HOPE and FAITH. No, we can’t control most of the circumstances that come into our lives.  But we can choose our reaction to them!  We will experience problems and difficulties, but…as children of God,  we can lay our burdens at the foot of the Cross!

How many times do we have to read or hear “The JOY of the LORD is our strength”(Nehemiah 8:10) until we truly believe it and apply that truth to our lives?  The faithful, Christian walk contributes to overall good health, for God gives us a legitimate basis for hope.  And with that hope…..comes JOY!  ABUNDANT JOY in Him!

            Have a double dose of JOY JUICE!  It does the body good…as well as our heart and soul!

Fishing for Hope? Bait Your Hook with JOY!

            Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  It’s just the thing to take with you everywhere….even on your next fishing trip!

            Are you a fisherman?  I’ll confess…I’m not!  I can’t bait a hook, throw a rod or take a fish off the line.  But I do like to see that little sinker bob when a fish is nibbling on the hook! There is a hopeful anticipation of what might be about to happen!

            One real fisherman said, “It is better to fish hopefully than to catch fish.”  I think he was referring to the excitement & anticipation that hope can bring! Even if the fish simply nibbles on your hook and goes away, you have the hope that he will come back.

            The Bible teaches us that the Christian life is “hope experienced”.  A “hopeless Christian” is really a contradiction in terms. As children of God, we have THE reason for HOPE. His name is JESUS!  Even in this crazy, mix-up, sinful world…..we have hope because we know we are here on this earth for only a little while!  Our life’s a “mist”, a “vapor” as the Bible says in James.   But our hope lies in the truth that we will spend ETERNITY with Christ!  Scoop that up in your JOY net!

            Romans 15:13 is my prayer for each of us today:

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit!”

            Let’s go “hope-fishing ”!  Bait your heart for the greatest “catch of the day”… JOY and HOPE in JESUS!

Soar on Wings Like Eagles; Run....with JOY!

Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  When you drink in your daily serving, your day will be filled with hope in the Lord….as well as JOY!

I have many “favorite passages” of scripture, but one that I really love at this stage of life is found in Isaiah 40: 30-31.  It says:

“Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

            All of us…no matter what our age…get tired! Young, old or somewhere in between, the busyness of our days sometimes siphons our physical strength! It’s also true that when we are going through emotional turmoil, we lack energy and vitality. But did you hear what the previous verses said? 

            As Christians we have HOPE!  Hope in the Lord!  He will renew us mentally, emotionally, physically, spiritually if we allow Him!  My Bible footnote explains:

"Hoping in the Lord is expecting that his promise of strength will help us to rise above life’s distractions and difficulties.  Trusting helps us to be prepared when he speaks to us.  Then we will be patient when he asks us to wait and expect him to fulfill the promises found in his Word."

            Today, my friend, I'm hoping and praying that you will “soar on wings like eagles; run and not grow weary” as you accept His joy & share it with others.

             

Christ...Our JOYful HOPE!

Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  I HOPE you have….because JOY in the Lord brings a special kind of HOPE!

            Most of us would admit that we have been through periods of time when we have experienced “hopelessness”.  It’s like being in a deep pit and you can’t see the way out.  Despair and anxiety are your constant companions.  It’s not a place we like to visit, much less stay for very long.  But the sad thing is…..many people live there!

            Do you?  Is your life in such turmoil that you stay discouraged and defeated?   How do we “leave that place”?  Even when unexpected, heart-breaking circumstances arise, we do have a choice about whether to “park” and stay there, or ask God to take the wheel and navigate us to the next place.

            The choice is between God’s way & our way.  Our way is often filled with hopelessness because we don’t have all the answers.  God’s way is ALWAYS filled with HOPE for HE is ALL KNOWING, ALL POWERFUL and HIS LOVE IS EVERLASTING!

            As the Psalmist wrote in Psalm 33:18:

Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love ... 

            Choose today to leave the state of “Hopelessness” and come to live in the place  of God’s love…a haven of HOPE and JOY!         

         Leave “hopelessness” behind and choose Christ, our JOYful HOPE!   

           

Clean Hands and A Pure Heart....of JOY!

         Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Too weak to lift your glass this morning?  Never fear!  God is near!

            James 4:8 says: “Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.”  So often that’s where we put a period and we forget that there is more to that verse.  YES, it is true that God will come near to us as we seek to be closer to him; but the rest of the verse if SO important, too.

Let’s read the verse in it’s entirety: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

When we draw near to God, we enter into His presence as sinners.  The verse says, “Cleanse your hands and purify your hearts.”  If we rely on our own strength to do this, we will never be clean enough.  But the good news is that we don’t have to depend on ourselves.  Our own righteousness will NEVER be enough but GOD’s righteousness in us is ALWAYS enough!

            So how do we obey the command to “Cleanse our hands and purify our hearts?” By assertively directing our heart away from trusting our own performance; and believing that it is only by the righteousness of God that we are worthy to draw near to Him.  We should praise and thank God for His grace, freely given to each of us by a loving God.  Only HE can make us clean and pure. 

            What JOY it is to know that because of Him, we can have clean hands and a pure heart!