Choose JOY in Jesus!

           Have you had your Joy Juice today?  It’s the last day of 2014.   Where did the time go?  Are you regretting that you didn’t drink enough JOY JUICE this past year?

Regrets…we all have them.

·        There are things that we have done that we wish we had not.

·        We’ve said things in anger or simply without thinking and may have hurt someone we love.    

·        We may have made some bad decisions that have affected relationships, job performance or our financial security.

·        We may not have accomplished our goals that we set for ourselves in 2014.

       We have a choice to make. Will we put on our “sad face” :( and pout & whine about what could have been or should have been? That’s a sure way to let the enemy steal our JOY! OR we will choose to focus on  the scripture found in  2 Corinthians 5:17?  “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone; the new has come!”

Let’s choose JOY in Christ.  He will forgive our past sins, mistakes and shortcomings. (That’s the “old” stuff.)  He wants to fill you with new joy…His joy so that you can move away from the past and run joyfully forward into the New Year…2015.

 

Let’s say goodbye to any regrets we have regarding 2014 and put our trust in the One who will make us into His new creation.  Get ready for a joyfully blessed new year!  

Trust + Obedience = JOY

            Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Yesterday we drank our JOY JUICE as we listened to Mary’s “Song of Joy”.  Today let’s take a closer look at Joseph.

            Joseph was a man of integrity and strong beliefs.  When Mary told Joseph that she was with child, he was confused and didn’t know what to do.  God knew that Joseph needed reassurance, so He sent a messenger to confirm Mary’s story and give him guidance about how to handle the situation.  Joseph was sensitive to God’s instruction and was willing to be obedient regardless of the consequences.

            God honors integrity.  We all need to aim toward a life of integrity and obedience to God.  Instead of following our feelings and trying to understand all the details of a situation before going forward with God’s plan for our lives, we need to accept the truth that God has a master plan.  In Jeremiah 29:11 God says to us: "For I know the plans I have for you…plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

            Do you trust God to be in control of your life? A new year is about to begin. Odds are, each of us will find ourselves in a difficult situation at some point during the year.  When we do let’s follow Joseph’s example: Trust + Obedience= JOY!

Let’s pray for each other to be sensitive to God’s plan in our lives…and get ready for a sweet serving of joy.

           

A Song of Joy

             Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Since Christmas is over, let’s slow down and ponder the JOYS of the season past.

            The part of the Christmas story that talks about Mary “treasuring and pondering these things in her heart” is so special.  Until Gabriel’s unexpected visit, Mary’s life was probably quite ordinary.  Can you imagine her surprise, when she was told by this angel that she would be the mother of the very Son of God?!

            What was Mary’s response to this unexpected news?   Though she found Gabriel’s news puzzling, she never doubted the message.   When the angel explained that this would be the Messiah, she immediately responded: “I am the Lord’s servant.  May it be to me as you have said.”  (Luke 1:38)

            Mary’s complete “Song of JOY” can be found in Luke 1.   This expression of her heart shows us how intimate her relationship was with God.  .

            God’s best servants are usually ordinary people who love Him and make themselves available to Him. Are you like Mary….so in love with Him that you are willing to say: “I am the Lord’s servant.  May it be as you have said.”  Our true character is revealed by how we respond to the unexpected.  Let’s strive to be more like Mary and respond with a heart of genuine love and availability.  If so, then we will be singing our own Song of Joy!!!!

Won't you to join me as we close out the old year and look forward to many more songs of joy in the new year? Let's start singing! :)

The Sheperds were Overjoyed!

            Have you had your Joy Juice today?  Hope you had plenty to last through Christmas!

            How quickly Christmas Day came and went!  The rush of the holidays is coming to a close.  But will we forget why we’ve been celebrating?  Let’s take the JOY of Christmas and share it with others.

            That’s what the shepherds did in Luke 2:15-20:

“When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.’  So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and the baby, who was lying in the manger.  When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about his child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”

            These shepherds were overjoyed at the revelation of the truth and they went about excitedly spreading the word!

            How about you and me?  Do our lives reflect that kind of excitement?  Though Christmas day is over, let’s strive to joyfully and excitedly take the good news with us wherever we go, every day of the year.  What better way is there to share the JOY of the Lord?

Don’t leave the joy of Jesus just for Christmas time.  Take it with you everywhere, every day!

Happy, Joyous Birthday, Dear Jesus!

            Have you had your Joy Juice today?  Merry Christmas! It’s Christmas Day--the perfect time for celebrating with joy!

            Our hearts should be overflowing!  “JOY TO THE WORLD, THE LORD HAS COME, LET EARTH RECEIVE HER KING!”

            This is the day we have set aside to honor the birth of Jesus.  Let’s not lose that truth amidst all the packages, people, food and fun!  Sure, it’s a wonderful blessing to be able to share this day with our loved ones. But may we never forget to give God  thanks for His “indescribable gift” of Jesus.

            Let’s celebrate His birth throughout this Christmas day.  It’s very appropriate that we sing  “Happy Birthday, dear Jesus”.  Singing is a wonderful way to praise and worship our Savior…for all of us, young and old.

            Listen to how the angels sang in Luke 2: 13-14:  “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!’ "

            Have a wonderful, blessed Christmas Day. Hope you’ve invited Jesus to be your guest of honor.  May your day be filled with  JOY beyond description!

Happy Birthday, dear Jesus! And Merry Christmas, dear friends!  

Good News of Great JOY....on this Christmas Eve!

            Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Perk a big pot full, because it’s Christmas Eve! 

            As a child, I remember bubbling over with excitement every Christmas Eve!  My siblings and I could hardly go to sleep because of the joyful anticipation of what Christmas morning would bring.

            In our Christmas story in Luke 2, we read about the excitement of an unlikely group, the shepherds.  They usually didn’t have a lot to be excited about…but on that special night, they were in store for much joy and excitement!

“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified!  But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news of great JOY that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” 

            Talk about a birth announcement!!  At first the shepherds were afraid, but their fear was transformed into great JOY when they heard the good news.  Their Savior had been born…our Savior!

            On this Christmas Eve, let’s ask God to fill our hearts with the wonder of this blessed event, the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.  Ask Him for child-like excitement and anticipation---not about the gifts we’ll receive tonight or tomorrow, but about THE GIFT we have already received!  Accept Him with great JOY!

 

Get excited! It’s time to celebrate the birth of the King! JOY TO THE WORLD!  

Open Your Heart to Christ and Find True Joy

           Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Why don’t you curl up with a warm cupful as we read more of the Christmas story today?

            Yesterday we read from Luke and were reminded of why Joseph and Mary were in the little town of Bethlehem.  Let’s read verses 6 & 7 today: 

“While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son.  She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”

            Like a good mother, Mary was prepared in case the baby was born while they were on their trip to pay their taxes.  She had packed “swaddling cloths” to keep the baby warm and snuggly wrapped….just as hospitals do today!

 

            She wrapped him in those cloths and placed him in a manger.  Stables were often caves with feeding troughs called mangers, carved into rock walls.  But no matter what kind of stable it was---the fact is, the surroundings were dark and dirty.  Not exactly the kind of place the Jews expected as the birthplace of the Messiah King.

            How often do we limit God by our own expectations?  Keep in mind that He is at work even when we don’t see Him---even in the dirty, dark stables of our lives.

            Christmas is a wonderful time to give ourselves totally to God—every area, especially the dark and dirty stables of our heart.  When we do, we will experience a JOYful peace and will understand why we can sing: JOY TO THE WORLD, The LORD has come!!!!!!

Have a Merry Christmas by opening your heart to Christ.