Articles
JOY IN THE NEW YEAR
“Through the door of service a man enters the house of Joy.”
Solomon wrote “A joyful heart makes a cheerful face…” (Pr. 15:13) May we all be able to have a joyful heart in 2017! Joy is a state of mind; it is an inside job. Most people are just about as joyful as they make up their minds to be. Joy is in the heart, not in the circumstances. Remember that joy is a way of travel, not a destination and its fullness is found in Christ alone (Jn. 15:11).
As we come to this New Year, it is within each of us to determine our state for the coming twelve months. Who and what will we be? Will we strive to have the heart, mind, attitude, disposition and behavior of Jesus? Will we have his character and integrity? It's our decision!
You see, who and what we are is not dependent upon circumstance and situation in life. It's not dependent upon how much money we make or have, the total years of formal education, nor our political position. Character is determined by what is going on inside us. Character is a heart condition. Solomon wrote, as a man thinks in his heart so is he. Jesus maintained that from the heart come the issues of life. What is our heart condition?
You will never see joy quoted on the Stock Exchange or displayed in the window of a department store. True joy is not found in what a person has. Someone once said, “Success is getting what you want… joy is wanting what you get.” It was Spurgeon who put it this way, “It is not how much you have, but how much you enjoy that makes for happiness.” If you don’t enjoy what you have, how would you enjoy more? Paul said to Timothy, and to you and me, that God “gives us richly all things to enjoy.” The Hebrews writer adds, “….be content with what you have.” (Heb. 13:5) Let us learn to be content and enjoy what we have.
What a person is will also determine whether he is joyful. No person can be truly joyful unless he feels his life is in some way important. Here is where God comes in. First and foremost, union with God is the key! David wisely said “How blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!” (Psa. 144:15) Joy is a spiritual commodity which must be nurtured by the Christian virtues we find only in the Spirit. “The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace……” (Gal. 5:22) Repeatedly Jesus pronounced the special blessing of joy and happiness upon His followers. (Jn. 13:17; Mat. 5, etc.) Not all circumstances will be joyful, or even desired. But joy, like manna, can be gathered by grains and enjoyed every day. Paul wisely tells us to “…delight yourselves in the Lord!” (Phil. 3:1) Do not lack diligence; be fervent in spirit; serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer. (Rom, 12:11-12)
