Fruits of the Spirit: Joy

Galatians 5:16-25 KJV
16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
18 But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Joy is:
A pre-determined attitude (Philippians 4:4) of praise for God's goodness (Psalms 5:11) by maintaining an eternal focus (Psalms 16:11) in the midst of difficulty (Hebrews 12:2).

To avoid spoiling watch for complaining.

I am not a morning person. Far from it. I thrive on late night deadlines, reading until the wee hours of the morning, movie marathons and snacking in front of the tv while everyone else is sleeping. And I pay the consequences every morning when Kieran, a chip off his Daddy's block, wakes at daylight, bright eyed and bushy tailed. He comes bounding into my bedroom ready to start the day, while Devlin, who is no more a morning person than I am, and I try to burrow further under the covers. Generally my mood is soured before my feet even hit the floor because I don't want to wake up. And I have no one to blame but myself. I lose my joy before I've even had time to wipe the sleep from my eyes. And in losing mine, I tarnish the joy for my boys and Brandon if he's unlucky enough to be home when my grumpy hind end finally rolls out of bed.  

I know what time Kieran wakes up. He's like clockwork. Rarely does he sleep past 7:30am. But I also crave the quiet time I have to myself after they're all in bed. So I can either sacrifice my alone time which is when I blog and do my homework, or I can change my attitude. I can pre-determine my joy. Philippians 4:4 tells me to rejoice in the Lord always. Always. Not just when Brandon is sweet enough to take the boys for the morning and let me sleep in. Not just when I luck up and Kieran sleeps until 9:00am. I should be rejoicing when I hear his little feet bound through the house and jump into my bed because that means he is alive.When my boys were newborns, I had almost an irrational fear of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. I was terrified of it because it seemed like there was nothing I could do to prevent it. So instead of sleeping when they slept, I hovered over them, checking their breathing constantly. Somehow, even though they have outgrown the SIDS stage, I still find myself checking their breathing at night before I go to bed. If I can't see them moving on the video monitor, I creep into their room and lay my hand on their chests just so I can rest assured that they are still breathing. So my blonde haired, blue eyed, alarm clock is absolutely cause for rejoicing because the Lord has blessed me with another day with him. And tomorrow at 7:30am, instead of grumbling and shushing him, I am going to pull him in close and cover his beautiful face in kisses.

And then as we go about our day, I am going to continue to praise God's goodness because it is everywhere I turn. Instead of complaining that Devlin dumped his lunch on the floor, again, I will praise the Lord for having enough food to feed him because there was a time when I wasn't sure we'd have groceries for the week. Instead of complaining that Kieran didn't pick up his toys in the living room and it looks like a bomb exploded, I am going to praise the Lord that I have a living room to clean, because it was not so long ago that there was a very real chance we'd be without a home. Instead of calling my Momma to complain about the boys being wild, I will praise the Lord for two healthy boys who can roughhouse and play with each other because I remember a time when I thought my arms and my heart would be empty, with no babies to hold. Yes, God's goodness has filled my life with joy.

Tomorrow I will maintain an eternal focus on my Lord, even in the midst of difficulty because in His presence is the fullness of joy, at His right hand are pleasures for evermore. When I lose my joy, and I've spoiled my day by complaining, I lose my focus on God. I get out of the Spirit and if I'm out of the Spirit, how can I raise my boys to have a focus on God? Joy and the Lord go hand in hand. I cannot have one without the other. There is nothing in my life that should be able to steal my joy in the Lord. Unless I let it. Hebrews tells us that Christ endured the cross for the joy that was set before Him, despising the shame all the while. What was the joy that was set before Him? The cleansing of my sins, my pardon bought with His blood, my name written in the Lamb's Book of Life. That was His joy. That was the reason He endured the cross. For me. For my boys. For you.

Tomorrow I will wake up with a pre-determined attitude of praise for God's goodness by maintaining an eternal focus in the midst of difficulty. 

In the morning when I rise, give me Jesus.

Give me Joy.

BE YE GLAD

Words and Music by M.K.Blanchard 

In these days of confused situations.

In these nights of a restless remorse,

When the heart and the soul of the nation,

lay wounded and cold as a corpse.

From the grave of the innocent Adam,

comes a song bringing joy to the sad.

Oh your cry has been heard and the ransom,

has been paid up in full, Be Ye Glad.

Oh, Be Ye Glad, Be Ye Glad,

Every debt that you ever had

Has been paid up in full by the grace of the Lord,

Be Ye Glad, Be Ye Glad, Be Ye Glad.

From the dungeon a rumor is stirring.

You have heard it again and again.

But this time the cell keys are turning,

and outside there are faces of friends.

And though your body lay weary from wasting,

and your eyes show the sorrow they've had.

Oh the love that your heart is now tasting

has opened the gate, Be Ye Glad.

Oh, Be Ye Glad, Be Ye Glad,

Every debt that you ever had

Has been paid up in full by the grace of the Lord,

Be Ye Glad, Be Ye Glad, Be Ye Glad.

So be like lights on the rim of the water,

giving hope in a storm sea of night.

Be a refuge amidst the slaughter,

for these fugitives in their flight.

For you are timeless and part of a puzzle.

You are winsome and young as a lad.

And there is no disease or no struggle,

that can pull you from God, Be Ye Glad.

Oh, Be Ye Glad, Be Ye Glad,

Every debt that you ever had

Has been paid up in full by the grace of the Lord,

Be Ye Glad, Be Ye Glad, Be Ye Glad.