Sep 09 2024
Today's Bible Verse
These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.
In this verse, Jesus tells His disciples that He desires for them to obey Him because obedience will bring them joy. If we follow Jesus' commandments, we will find the path of life and joy—and this is exactly what the Lord wants for us.
When we follow after the Lord, His joy will be within us. This means our relationship with Him will be a source of life. As we walk with the Lord in greater intimacy, we will grow in our understanding of Him as the source and provider of everything good in our lives. We will not be afraid of things in this world, knowing that what truly gives us rest and life cannot be shaken by any earthly thing.
It is easy for me to get caught up in things like striving for holiness and work and checking the boxes of Bible study and prayer time. I sometimes forget that the Lord's desire is that I walk in joy with Him. I get so caught up in doing that I forget about being—being His child, His creation, and His friend. As a result, I can find myself doing a lot of what I think is right, but missing out on the blessings that come from them.
If this resonates with you, then take some time to sit with the Lord. Instead of focusing on doing something, focus on resting in His presence, reveling in His goodness and love for you. The Lord already loves us infinitely more than we will ever understand, and we don't have to do anything to prove ourselves worthy. Jesus has declared each of us worthy, once and for all.
When we are filled with the joy of the Lord, we will be able to obey without growing weary. We'll be able to see our lives as responses to the love that God has already given us—not attempts to earn what He already has said is our own. This is the pathway to joy.
Dear Lord, I thank you for being a God of joy. This verse says that you want to fill me up with joy, so help me to receive it, Lord. Help me to focus less on doing and more on resting in your presence. I want to serve and not be emptied and to experience the love you have for me. I love you, Jesus. In your name, amen.
If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.
-C.S. Lewis
God will not look you over for medals, degrees or diplomas but for scars.
-Elbert Hubbard
The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us.
-C.S. Lewis
"If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.
-Dorothy Parker
