The Strength Of Joy

The Strength of Joy

Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength! Nehemiah 8:10

WHEN THE JEWS WHO HAD BEEN EXILED throughout the kingdom of Persia returned to Jerusalem, it took decades to rebuild. More than a century after the city was destroyed, the walls were completed, and the community rededicated itself to God’s law. But when the law was read at the dedication ceremony—it had to be interpreted for many who no longer understood Hebrew—the people began to weep. They were overcome with regret for having fallen so far from God’s standards. They realized how much they had lost, to the extent that Nehemiah had to remind them of what they had gained. Regret is not a Kingdom value; the joy of the Lord was their strength.

We live in a Kingdom of joy and thrive only when we allow joy to become our dominant attitude. We shouldn’t put on a fake smile to falsely present how spiritual we are; that’s hypocrisy. But becoming like God, we learn to have joy even while we work, solve problems, or grieve. We root ourselves in the ultimate certainties of the Kingdom. We bless our enemies with joy, pray for difficult situations with joy, enter into our battles with joy, think about tomorrow with joy, and do everything else we need to do with hearts full of rejoicing and praise. In fact, we have to if we want to experience the climate of the Kingdom in our lives. This is what it’s all about.

It’s wonderful when the evidence of God’s work is easy to see in our lives—when our prayers are answered, he supernaturally intervenes, and we feel the fullness and abundance of his shalom. But if we’re searching for those things with hearts full of frustration, discouragement, bitterness, regret, and doubt, we may have to wait a long time. The climate of the Kingdom is joy, and the fruit of the Kingdom depends on it.

As you pray, pursue joy. Saturate your life in it. Let your faith be rooted in its rich soil and see what grows. It’s room temperature in God’s Kingdom, regardless of what your outward circumstances look like. Your life, your prayers, and your faith flourish because the joy of the Lord is your strength.

Joy is the serious business of heaven.