Monday, August 26, 2013 - 4:05 pm

Yesterday, Pastor Jason Small, from Community Church in Waterdown, spoke to us about joy. Where does it come from, how can we have more, and how do we live it out? Pastor Jason gave the example from Acts 16:22-34, where Paul and Silas have been beaten, stripped and imprisoned, and yet they still had joy. Nehemiah 8:10 says, "...the joy of the Lord is your strength." If we rely on circumstances around us, or our own feelings, to bring us joy, we are bound to be disappointed. Situations will inevitably come that are hard to enjoy, to say the least. People will do things we wish they wouldn't, accidents will happen, pain and heartbreak will leave us wondering how anyone can find joy in this world. Our feelings will fail us when we feel weakest. Unlike circumstances, or our feelings, God is consistent. When we're at our weakest, His joy is our strength. What a comfort to know that we can always lean on His strength, we can laugh at whatever circumstances come our way, and we can take the risks to live and love more fully. In order to experience joy in every area of our lives, we need to turn every area over to God. In whatever areas we've been running away from God, we've also been running away from His joy. I can certainly attest to that. Whenever I try to take control of something in my life instead of trusting Him with it, the excitement soon fizzles out, and the hoped-for joy never materializes. I just find myself weak and tired and wondering what made me ever think I knew better than God what would bring me joy. Let's give up that futile attempt to manufacture joy, and go back to what works - walking in the Holy Spirit and letting the joy of the Lord be our strength.