Christ's Passionate Love = Joy of Easter

         Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Please be passionate about drinking your portion this week of Easter.

            When you hear the word passion or passionate what thoughts come to mind? 

Webster’s Dictionary defines passion as "extreme, compelling emotion or intense emotional drive."

This week we are focusing on the JOY of Easter.  We can’t talk about Easter without recognizing the passion of Christ.  What was the source of His passion?  It was His intense love for mankind. Because He loved you and me so much, He gave his life for the sake of restoring us to fellowship with God.

 Philippians 2:6-7 tells us: “he made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant by being made in human likeness.”  His passionate love caused Him to leave the glory of heaven to take human form and live an obedient life of self-sacrifice required by the holiness of God. Jesus was dedicated to accomplishing the requirements foretold by prophecies and the will of the Father.  All of this…for us! That’s the JOY of Easter. 

         The final words of Jesus from the cross were a triumphant proclamation. Like a runner crossing the finish line in agony, yet with great emotion in overcoming obstacles, Jesus said “It is finished!” (John 19:30) He had accomplished His purpose on earth.

            May we never take Christ’s passionate love lightly.  Instead of focusing on egg hunts, parties, and new clothes, let’s drink in the passionate love of Christ and experience the sweet JOY of Easter.

Fix Your Eyes on the JOY of Easter

            Have you had your JOY JUICE today? In preparation for Easter, we need to drink in the fresh joy of the Lord!

            Sunday we will celebrate Jesus’ resurrection.  That’s the part of the story that brings such JOY!!  But for this to occur, He first had to die. That’s the sad part of the story…until you realize the significance of that death on the cross.   

The joy for us as Christians is that His love was so great that He WILLINGLY did this for us.  John 3:16 tells us clearly that:  "God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that  whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

According to that scripture, the purpose of his life was to offer Himself as a sacrifice for the sins of mankind. The Bible says that Jesus became sin so that we could be forgiven and found righteous in God’s sight (2 Corinthians 5:21). 

As Hebrews 12:2 says: “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him, endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”  Jesus looked beyond the suffering, shame & death and focused on the joy that would come.

            Join me as we “fix our eyes on Jesus”….especially this week leading up to Easter.  It is only because of Him that we can drink the fresh Joy Juice of Jesus every day!

Cowboy Joy Jewels...GOLD NUGGETS!

            Have you had your Joy Juice today?  Let’s go mining for some gold nuggets of joy.

            We’ve talked a lot this week about cowboys and some to similarities between the lingo surrounding their ways and a person who is trying to walk the Christian walk.  To close out our week, I’d like to share seven “Cowboy” Joy Jewels.  We’ll call them GOLD NUGGETS:

1. As you wet your whistle from your canteen filled with the Joy Juice of Jesus, share with others & watch it naturally replenish! (You’ll be dancing a joy jig and causing a hoedown everywhere you go! ) 

2. Wear your cowboy Hat of Hope from daybreak to the set of sun, knowing that regardless of where your path may lead(---over the mountaintops, through the deep valleys or across the wide-open plains---)God is in the saddle with you!

3. Bridle your tongue with the Master’s love and truth. Allow Him to guide you with the “bit of blessing” and the “reigns of radiant joy”!

4. Let the saddle blanket of God’s peace cover you as He goes with you along each troublesome trail of life.

5. Practice consistently with your Lasso of Love and be ready to rope in even the most resistant of rouges in the Rodeo of Life.

6. Are you branded by the past or blessed by forgiveness? Are you marked by guilt or giddy with God’s goodness and grace? Are you jubilant in His joy because you are truly, willingly branded by Christ? Only then, can you take the victory lap as your ride the White Horse of Faithfulness and yodel His love song with joy!

 7.   When the Holy Spirit “spurs” your heart….Don’t be namby- pamby….SKEDADDLE! You’re in “cahoots” with God so…..go spread His joy!

Never Let Your JOY Tumble Away!

            Have you had your JOY JUICE today?  Don’t let your personal serving tumble away!

            If some of you are “cowboy” fans, you may remember the old song written by Bob Nolan and made popular by the Sons Of The Pioneers entitled “Tumbling Tumbleweeds”.

            It went like this:

See them tumbling down
Pledging their love to the ground
Lonely but free I'll be found
Drifting along with the tumbling tumbleweeds

Cares of the past are behind
Nowhere to go but I'll find
Just where the trail will wind
Drifting along with the tumbling tumbleweeds

Chorus:

I'll keep rolling along
Deep in my heart there's a song
Here on the range I belong
Drifting along with the tumbling tumbleweeds.

            While the song was a great “cowboy anthem”, do we really want to just “tumble along” through life?  God has a purpose and a plan for each of us. He tells us in Jeremiah 29:11  “ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

            If we tumble along through life….outside of God’s plan….we will not experience a life of JOY.  However, abundant joy can be ours by allowing God to take our past mistakes and transform us into  JOYful Christians with a song in our hearts.

Horseshoes or JOY Shoes?

            Have you had your Joy Juice today?  Even before you put on your shoes, you can drink in the joy of the Lord!

            There are sandals, boots, flip flops and tennis shoes.  Baby bootees, bedroom slippers, loafers and high heels. We can buy running shoes, swim shoes, cleats and clogs. Ballet slippers, tap shoes, mountain climbing shoes and moccasins.  Why, there are even shoes for horses. The main purpose of the horseshoe is to provide protection for the horses’ hooves against abrasion and breakage as they gallop along rough paths.  I guess that’s really the purpose of most all shoes…to protect our feet.

            There are 36 Bible verses that refer to shoes. One is found in Ephesians 6:15. The New Living Translation says: “For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.”  In this passage, the shoes are part of the Armor of God that we are to put on daily.  And then in Isaiah 52:7 we find:  ”How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings…”

            Our question of the day is: What kind of shoes are you wearing?  Are they shoes that cause you to tap dance through the day, avoiding taking a firm stand for Christ?  Could they be flip-flops which cause you to change the way you speak and act according to who you’re with at the moment?  OR are they the beautiful, shoes of peace which give you boldness and protection as you share the Good News of Jesus Christ?!

            "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the (joyful) Good News"! Put on your Jesus shoes and start sharing!

HOWDY, Partner of Joy!

           Have you had your Joy Juice today?  Howdy partner! Hope you’ve had time to wet your whistle with the delicious “sauce of joy”?

             In preparing for a fun banquet with the cowboy theme, I’ve enjoyed reminiscing about growing up in the Roy Rogers/Dale Evans era.  Many of the tv shows (on our black and white television set in my childhood home) were good, wholesome cowboy westerns.  My brother and I got cowboy outfits for Christmas one year!  Talk about fun! Though my cowgirl outfit had a skirt, my brother’s suit had “chaps”. 

            Real “cowboy” chaps are leather coverings to protect their legs as they ride their horses through the rough terrain.  The thorns on the shrubs and bushes around the ranch can tear into the cowboy’s legs if they are not properly protected.

             Do we need protection in our daily walk? You bet we do! And God gives us “spiritual chaps” in the form of His Word. The Bible is filled with instruction and wisdom to protect us from the “rough terrain” of everyday life. BUT we must choose to put on that protection. Without it, we will be ripped and torn by disobedience and poor choices.  Ephesians 6:13 instructs us….

 “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”

            Put on your “spiritual chaps” and face today, boldly and joyfully!

Are You "Branded" for Christ?

          Have you had your Joy Juice today? Even tough cowboys need daily canteens full of joy!

            I had the privilege of attending a ladies’ banquet a couple of weekends ago. The theme was “Branded For Christ”.  The creative decorations, the delicious menu and the charming attire of the attendees all revolved around the Western theme. It was a joyfully fun night! My thoughts were “spurred” about the similarities between cowboys  “branding” their livestock and being a Christian who is “branded” for Christ.

            Branding is a term that is used when ranchers mark their property. A branding iron is often used. That involves pressing a heated metal shape against an object or animal to signify ownership.   

            Let’s consider how Christ “brands” us.  Instead of using a painful, hot iron to leave His mark, God, instead sent Jesus to die a cruel death on the cross for you and me. He took the pain for us. His “brand” is the sacrifice of love…The Cross. When we are truly “branded for Christ”, His mark of love, salvation and joy should be evident in our lives.  

            May we live by Joshua’s words in Chapter 24, verse 15:

”… choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve… But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."

           Are you “branded for Christ”? Then, giddy-up and serve Him with gladness & joy!