MORNING MANNA         12/12/19

I just received an ad email from Sirius XM that said, “Turn on the Joy”. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if it was that easy? Just hit a button or turn a knob and you receive instant joy. Well we all know it doesn’t happen that way. And wishing won’t make it work. So where does this highly prized joy come from? Since everyone wants it you would think they would listen to every suggestion, pursue every lead, and investigate every avenue to get it. I guess some people, in a sense, do just that – but they look in the wrong places. Most people refuse to go to the one place where the answer is found – God’s Word.

Our text tells us that joy is a fruit of the Spirit, not a work of the flesh or a reward for effort. Regardless of how hard we try we cannot produce genuine joy. All we can produce is an cheap imitation. There is no possibility of true joy until a person has first been born again. Contrary to popular thought, only Christians have the potential for joy. It is produced by the Spirit of God in a child of God who is in the will of God – yielded to the Son of God. And joy is never alone. To some degree it is always accompanied by the eight other things mentioned in our text.

I can’t change your circumstances, but I can tell you that joy is possible regardless of your situation. And it is that supernatural joy that gives you the strength ( Neh. 8:10) needed to endure the challenge you are facing. That’s why you must not ignore a lack of joy. That is a serious situation. Don’t think of joy as an option, but rather an obligation. We are commanded to be joyful, and pretending won’t do. Without joy we are both weak and wayward. So rather than just dragging through the day in a depressed state, think about this – “But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee”. – Psa. 5:11. – HDS