May It Go JOYfully Well With You

          Have you had your Joy Juice today?  The Bible is rilled with truth that encourages, instructs and brings us JOY!

            As we begin 2013, let's be diligent about hiding God’s Word in our hearts so that we may aim toward a year of joyful obedience.  There are many verses in the Bible that instruct us to obey our Heavenly Father.  Let’s memorize Jeremiah 7:23. 

 "Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in all the ways I command you,  that it may go well with you."

            God loves us!  He wants our year 2013 to “go well” with us.  How can that happen?  By being obedient to Him.  That doesn’t mean going through the motions, the rituals so to speak.  It’s a matter of the heart.  We should love Him so much that we  WANT to obey Him.  Knowing that He would never ask us to do anything that would harm us, should be a motivator to stay steeped in His Word so that we will know what his wise commands are.  And when we’re feeling weak, like we are going to fail, we can call out to Him and He will answer us. 

            Sometimes we go running to Him like a child jumping into the arms of a loving father. Other times we are so weak, that He has to scoop us up off the ground and pull us to Him.  Either way, we can feel those strong loving arms around us in every type of situation.  Even when the unexpected heartbreak comes, it can “be well with us” because of our relationship with him…a relationship of strength and JOY.

            Obey God by walking in His ways; and drink in the Joy Juice that He pours out for you this new year!

"JOY" Is New Every Morning!

Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  The great thing about this special drink is that its flavor is new every day!

            That reminds me of a scripture in Lamentations 3:22-23(NIV): "Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,  for his compassions never fail.   They are new every morning;  great is your faithfulness."

            Such a comforting, encouraging passage to hide in our hearts at the beginning of this New Year! Our shortcomings of 2012 ...are PAST!  And God’s love, compassion and forgiveness can erase them away, and give us hope.

            I think a lot of times our biggest problem is that we can’t forgive ourselves.  All of us have made mistakes, bad decisions, ungodly choices.  But nothing is too bad to bring before Him.  If we come to Him with a broken heart and we are truly repentant of the sins we’ve committed, He is willing to give us a new beginning.  Today is the perfect time to get things right with God and ask Him to wipe the slate clean so that you can have a fresh start.  Use Him as your guide, your compass, your conscience.  Let the Holy Spirit prick your heart and give you new goals that will draw you closer to Him and will help you to accomplish His will and purpose for your life.

            May I challenge you to memorize those two verses in Lamentations 3… "Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,  for his compassions never fail.  They are new every morning;  great is your faithfulness."

Hide these words in your heart and experience JOY in the Lord!   Drink from the fresh fountain of JOY JUICE and be reminded of His faithfulness.

Hide that JOY JUICE! (In Your Heart)

 

Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  We need to start the New Year faithfully drinking it and serving it….especially in our homes.

            As we begin a new year, we should all be seeking guidance in how to live a more Godly, productive life.  Wouldn’t it be great if we had an instruction manual to tell us how?  Well, good news!  We do!!!!  It’s called the Holy Bible.

            Psalm 119: 11(KJV) says: "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee."  How do we “hide” God’s word in our heart?

·        By reading and studying it OFTEN

·        By memorizing scripture

·        By applying it daily

         When we are so familiar with the scriptures that we know them “by heart”, we are able to face any situation that may come our way. We will have the  knowledge and truth of scripture hidden in the depths of our hearts and minds.

            2013 has just begun and the year lies ahead of us…full of promise.  We know that all things won’t be perfectly wonderful, but we know the ONE who is wonderfully perfect!  And He will always be there to guide us.  Let’s ask the Lord to give us a desire to study His word.  On our list of goals for the new year, let’s place at the top “A deeper relationship with God through Bible study and prayer”.  

            Joyfully anticipate the opportunities that God will give you this year.  When you are sold out to Him and are following His guidelines in the scripture, you can “count it ALL joy” as James tell us. 

            Hide that JOY JUICE...in your heart! Study your Bible today; it’s the best instruction manual ever!

Resolve to Drink in and GIVE the JOY JUICE of JESUS!

Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  I hope you’ve “resolved” to develop the good habit of drinking in the JOY of Jesus throughout 2013!

             Why not include among your New Year’s Resolutions the commitment to draw closer to the Lord, thus finding more JOY?  We can choose JOY every day of the year by focusing on Christ and adjusting our attitude to be like His. I once saw a painting of someone’s perception of Jesus laughing.  It reminded me of what a sweet cheerful spirit he must have often exhibited!  

              Resolve to laugh more. And resolve to give, give, give, and give some more! Give of our time, our resources, kind words of encouragement, thoughtfulness to others in their time of need.  We should develop a habit of giving.  Jesus gave; and He encouraged His followers to do the same. 

            Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice….He gave His life for us! Are we willing to give sacrificially? Sometimes it may be just few minutes of our time; other times it may require giving up a little comfort or convenience. And then there are those times when we should share financially or of other resources. 

            In 2013, maybe our new motto could be “Live to give”!  Ask God to show you  how to be a blessing to someone. And watch the blessing of JOY bounce right back to YOU!

Give the gift of JOY by sharing Christ with others today!

A Cheerful Heart is Good Medicine

Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Even when we don’t feel like laughing, the JOY of Jesus can still be ours!

            Laughter is good for us!  Studies have been done to prove that laughter boosts our bodies’ immune system and reduces hormones that trigger stress.  One study  showed that the immune system of those who laugh a lot releases more disease-fighting t-cells than those of “non-laughers”. 

           

            Kinda makes me want to laugh at the simple fact that science is now “proving” what the Bible has told us for years…."A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” (Prov. 17:22)  A cheerful attitude really does lead to a healthier life!  But how do we find that cheerful heart when our circumstances are anything BUT cheerful?

            We have to be intentional about reading and applying the word of God in our lives. Scripture after scripture tells us to “fret not”, “be anxious for nothing”, “be joyful always”.  The important thing is to remember is that Jesus is our  “Joy Partner”…and He’s in the business of tending to our hearts! We can rely on God to help us see the joy even in times of sadness and struggle.  Let’s keep our focus on Him and drink in His special flavor of JOY throughout every day of the New Year.

May this be a cheerful reminder that a genuine relationship with Jesus fills your heart with much JOY!  Share it with others throughout this New Year.

May the God of Hope Fill You with All JOY and Peace!

            Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Are you facing this New Year with a cheerful outlook?

            I know that some of you who are reading this are saying, “But Joyce you just don’t know what I’m going through right now.”

 And you are right…I don’t!  But God does! He knows exactly where you are and what you need.

            You may have heard me use the analogy of looking at our problems through a magnifying glass. When we do that, our problem looks really big.  But consider this….the problem hasn’t gotten any bigger….just our perception of it has!  Isn’t that what we do when we focus on our problems instead of focusing on the problem-solver….God?!

            We can choose to be weighted down by our problems…trying to handle them alone, allowing the enemy to discourage and defeat us and steal our JOY….OR we can choose to let God have control.   We don’t need a magnifying glass to see God! He has the strength and power to handle all of our problems…if we will release them! 

            Prayer:  God, we know that you have a plan for each of our lives.  Give us the strength  to rest in Your power, not to live in defeat and discouragement.  Help us to magnify You, your love, your faithfulness, your sovereign control of our life…..and fill us with your JOY!

          Romans 15:13 is the blessing I pray for you today: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

An Abundantly JOYful 2013 is My Prayer for YOU!

Have you had your Joy Juice today?  May you have an abundance of Joy Juice in this New Year! So much that you’ll be sharing with others the whole year through!

            If I could have one wish for each of you as this new year begins, it would be that 2013 will be filled with JOY and contentment.   We know that there will be days that will bring struggles.  We won’t always be happy.  But we can choose how we react to our circumstances.

            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 know that God is there to walk with us through it!  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 control.

            In John 16:33 Jesus said: "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."  In other words, Jesus will not abandon us. We have hope in knowing that the ultimate victory has already been won, therefore we can claim the peace and joy of Christ even in the most troublesome times. 

            So start out this new year with a JOYful perspective.  When you find yourself in a difficult situation, choose to walk through that time with the attitude of Christ, because He is walking right beside you, filling you with His strength and JOY.

Drink your Joy Juice faithfully each day of the New Year!  And have a JOY-filled 2013!