Originally posted on 8/31/16

Inspirational Thought of the Day:

The very act of worship when we don’t feel like it is where God takes our act of faith and creates joy within us.

Scripture of the Day:

Psalm 100:2-3

“Worship the Lord with joy! Enter his presence with joyful singing! Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us and we belong to him; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.”

One of the first things Satan wants to steal from us when we are saved is our joy. Nothing as potent at killing the message of the Gospel as joyless believers wandering around this earth telling everyone they need to be saved. Who wants that kind of salvation?

We all want joy. We want to be able to celebrate this gift of life but get dragged down by obstacles and circumstances as if they were supposed to bring us joy in the first place.

Don’t get me wrong – to be human is to feel – and life hurts sometimes. But joy does not have to be connected to that feeling of disappointment. It is when our life is in the gift instead of the Giver of those gifts that we forget our original source of joy.

I am not talking about living an inauthentic life where we go around with a plastic smile saying everything is great when it isn’t. But joy in the LORD isn’t dependent upon our circumstances. That would not be real joy, after all. Just temporary happiness.

So how do we access this joy when life just doesn’t feel very joyful? Worshiping God. With joy. Not the answer you were looking for? Does it seem impossible to worship with joy when you don’t have any? But the very act of worship when we don’t feel like it is where God takes our act of faith and creates joy within us. For it is what we were made to do.

If worship is a sacrifice of praise, then it is in the moment of resisting our flesh and worshiping God anyway that we rise above our sorrows and discover a real abiding joy in Jesus.

When we focus on all our concerns and burdens, it is a joy killer. But when we come to worship God, remember all God has done for us and focus on Who He is, joy just invades the soul. You cannot contain it. Try it.

Each Wednesday this summer I share a message on the hope that God has for us on https://www.facebook.com/ChristianCorner/. Won’t you join me tonight? God has a hope for us that never fades. If that does not bring joy, I don’t know what will. We are no longer a slave to fear – we are His sons and daughters! We are no longer lost, but found. We are surrounded with God’s love and will enjoy all eternity with Him. Joy indeed.

Worship God with joy today. You are loved with an everlasting love that has no end. The joy of the LORD is your strength.

Oh Lord, we worship You! Set our gaze on You – for You are lovely. Transform our worries into worship and cause us to rise above it all and be filled with the abundant joy You provide.

Denise Pass | Author | Singer | Speaker | Worship Leader