Do you remember going to Vacation Bible School or somewhere on a bus and singing the song ♪"I've got joy, joy joy,joy down in my heart." ♫ On my journey into adolescents I use to hear "happiness is a choice."
Now in my adult life I am learning there is a difference. Did you know there was a difference?
Well, if not, let me share with you what I've learned and maybe this will help you someday. If you have, please share what you know about the difference between joy and happiness.
First let's start with joy. First joy is something that is truly given by God.
You can find this in Ecclesiatis 2:26 and in Galatians we are told that it is a fruit of the Spirit. So it is something that you cannot have without God giving it to you. Joy I have found is this unexplainable emotion inside that can become so apparent in a smile or actions towards another. If I could give you a visual; I imagine joy as water in a pot, the Love of the Lord is heating it up, next the water boils and last it reaches its peak and cannot be contained. You now find yourself ready to stand up and dance, raise your hands and clap, your face shows a smile that you have no control over. Haven't you ever smiled so long that your cheeks hurt? Yes, this is the joy that I am talking about. It is deep inside your soul and it is unexplainable. As the song goes, ♫ "I've got the joy, joy, joy,joy down in my heart to stay."♪
Now for happiness. I mentioned that to be happy is a choice. You have control over being happy, sad, or even mad. This goes back to you having control over your reaction to someone else's action. Someone just hit your car from behind, you now have a choice to be mad about it or happy that noone got hurt. You can rant and rave over the fact that you have to call your insurance company (if you have one) and just deal with the situation and be happy that you don't have to pay for the cost of damages.
Being happy is a choice and it is a surface feeling. You can be happy one second and mad the next.
Anyone can be happy if they choose it, or they can receive joy which lasts a lot longer.
What do you choose today in your circumstance? I encourage you to be happy and find the good in every situation. You will have trials and the Lord tells us in James "to count it all joy when you fall into various trials." It's not easy, but it does make the situation you are going through a lot easier to handle.
So, what song is on your heart today?
Psalm 98:4 (NKJ)
Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth;Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises.
Romans 10:9 (NKJ)
That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
It's this easy to accept Jesus and the benefit package he has waiting for you.
Sing a song no matter who is listening.
Everyone needs encouragement and I want to encourage you today. I hope you will enjoy today's write up.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Regrets
Have you ever found yourself asking a person to do something and then later regretting it? I think we all have. I can remember a time when asking my spouse to wash my clothes. I offered to go and fold them once they were dried; only to find that they were discolored. Ouch!
This reminds me of the story of when Sarai, Abram's wife, couldn't have children. But her maid servant Hagar could. So Sarai had this great idea to have Abram lay down with Hagar so Sarai could have children through her. Yet, after Hagar did and she become pregnant, Sarai mistreated Hagar and told Abram to tell her to move out of the city. Ouch!
Now granted, my laundry isn't half as much of a regret as Sarai having Hagar bore a child.
Yet tell me this. How many times have we made plans for other people to do something, expect others to do something and ended up getting angry with that person? How often do we expect others to answer our call or provide for our daily needs and when they don't deliver we get mad?
Who are we mad at though? Let's look at this. We get mad at the person who didn't jump through hoops for us and accomplish what we wanted done. We get mad with maybe the third person involved like Sarai got upset with Hagar.
We have a difficult time looking at ourselves as the one we should be mad at. The problem with this is that we have to face the facts that our decisions are not always right. We should admit that our idea was not thought through but was specific and ended up hurting someone else and it affected our life and theirs. We should admit that it may have caused basic injuries such as a broken relationship, physical loss or damage, and more importantly it hurt one or more people along the process.
The best part is that God knew it was going to happen before it started. We, you and me, have to decide what we are going to do about our actions and the reactions of those decisions.
I believe that recognizing who was really at fault might help. I find that when I admit I had a part in it and face the fact that I need to apologize for my part, the situation gets better instead of worse.
You see when two or more are involved in a decision making process and both parties agree; that means that each of us have a responsible part for the outcome, good or bad.
God knows our hearts. He also knows where we are in life and if the apology we give is honest and pure and not just a bandaid to temporarily fix the situation.
He wants us to live free, free in Christ. Not hold onto bitterness like Sarai did, but be compassionate like God is.
Is there someone that you wronged today? Perhaps someone has wronged you. you have a choice on how you will react to their actions. Today, I hope you offer forgiveness and begin to live a free and joyous life.
Remember someone can only have you on their hook if you let them.
~ Marjorie
This reminds me of the story of when Sarai, Abram's wife, couldn't have children. But her maid servant Hagar could. So Sarai had this great idea to have Abram lay down with Hagar so Sarai could have children through her. Yet, after Hagar did and she become pregnant, Sarai mistreated Hagar and told Abram to tell her to move out of the city. Ouch!
Now granted, my laundry isn't half as much of a regret as Sarai having Hagar bore a child.
Yet tell me this. How many times have we made plans for other people to do something, expect others to do something and ended up getting angry with that person? How often do we expect others to answer our call or provide for our daily needs and when they don't deliver we get mad?
Who are we mad at though? Let's look at this. We get mad at the person who didn't jump through hoops for us and accomplish what we wanted done. We get mad with maybe the third person involved like Sarai got upset with Hagar.
We have a difficult time looking at ourselves as the one we should be mad at. The problem with this is that we have to face the facts that our decisions are not always right. We should admit that our idea was not thought through but was specific and ended up hurting someone else and it affected our life and theirs. We should admit that it may have caused basic injuries such as a broken relationship, physical loss or damage, and more importantly it hurt one or more people along the process.
The best part is that God knew it was going to happen before it started. We, you and me, have to decide what we are going to do about our actions and the reactions of those decisions.
I believe that recognizing who was really at fault might help. I find that when I admit I had a part in it and face the fact that I need to apologize for my part, the situation gets better instead of worse.
You see when two or more are involved in a decision making process and both parties agree; that means that each of us have a responsible part for the outcome, good or bad.
God knows our hearts. He also knows where we are in life and if the apology we give is honest and pure and not just a bandaid to temporarily fix the situation.
He wants us to live free, free in Christ. Not hold onto bitterness like Sarai did, but be compassionate like God is.
Is there someone that you wronged today? Perhaps someone has wronged you. you have a choice on how you will react to their actions. Today, I hope you offer forgiveness and begin to live a free and joyous life.
Remember someone can only have you on their hook if you let them.
~ Marjorie
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