EXPERIENCE JOY IN THE NEW YEAR”

Creates a new person Text: Psalm 37: 4 “Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart” Q: Can I keep my Joy though this Year? Can I experience joy in my Christian life?” THE JOY OF KNOWING JESUS Philippians 3: 7 -14 reads: There is nothing better than knowing Jesus .The Apostle Paul said, “I consider everything I have achieved in this life worth nothing compared to the greatness of knowing Jesus my Lord. And I would gladly give up everything in this world for joy of having Christ call me his friend and brother.” Not that I could ever earn or deserve that. But Christ calls me His friend and brother because I believe in him. He make me good and holy, and worthy of his friendship and love because of my faith in Him. And so, one thing I do. I forget what happened yesterday, and I keep my eyes on what is ahead. I press on to win the prize that God is keeping for me, and that is to share in an everlasting life overflowing with love and happiness with Jesus. There is nothing better than that on earth or in heaven. Sadness and depression will and as enter the life of many Christians. Job wished he had never been born. Job 3:11, he asks, “Why did I not die from the womb? Why did I not give up the ghost when I came out of the belly?” David prayed to be taken away to a place where he would not have to deal with reality. (Read: Psalm 55:6-8). Elijah, even after defeating 450 prophets of Baal with fire, called down from heaven (Read: 1 Kings 18:16-46) fled into the desert and asked God to take his life (Read: 1 Kings 19:3-5) Q: Can you overcome these periods of no joy? How can we keep our joy? We will see how these same people overcame their sadness and depression. Job said that, if we pray and remember our blessings, God will restore us to joy and righteousness. Job 33:26 reads, “He shall pray unto God, and he will be favorable unto him: and he shall see his face with joy: for he will render unto man his righteousness.” David wrote that God’s Word can bring us joy Psalm 19:8 says, “The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.” David also realized that he needed to praise God even in the midst of despair. Psalm 42:5 reads, “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.” In Elijah’s case, God let him rest for a time and then sent a man, Elisha, to help him (Read: 1 Kings 19:19- 21). We need a friend (Read: Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). We need friends that we can share our hurts and pains with. It helps us when we share our feelings with a fellow Christian. We may be surprised to find that he or she has struggled with some of the same things that we are going through. It is certain that dwelling on us, our problems, our hurts, and especially our pasts will never produce true spiritual joy. Joy is not found in materialism, it is not found in physical things, and it most certainly is not found in obsession with our inner selves. It is found in Christ. We who belong to the Lord “glory in Christ Jesus, and put no confidence in the flesh. Phillipians 3:3 reads, “For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.” To know Christ (Read: John 15:1-11) To know Christ is to come to have a true sense of ourselves, and true spiritual insight, making it impossible to glory in ourselves, in our wisdom, strength, riches, or goodness. But believe in Christ, in His wisdom and strength, in His riches and goodness, and in Him only. If we remain in Him, immerse ourselves in His Word, and seek to know Him more intimately, our “joy will be full” Conclusion Finally, remember that it is only through God’s Holy Spirit that we can find true joy (Read: Psalm 51:11-12). Galatians 5:22 reads, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith.” 1 Thessalonians 1:6 follows up with, “And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost.” Each of these verses are saying is that we have a choice. We can continue to seek to guide our own lives, which results in emptiness, or we can choose to pursue God and His will for our lives with a heart of joy, which will result in living life to the full, having the desires of our hearts met, and finding contentment and satisfaction. This is so because our Creator loves us and desires the best for us (not necessarily the easiest life, but the most fulfilling). We can do nothing apart from the power of God. (Read: 2 Corinthians 12:10, 13). The harder we try to be joyful through our own efforts, the more miserable we can become. Rest in the Lord’s arms and seek His face through prayer and Scripture. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope and joy by the power of the Holy Spirit” (As Romans 15:13 tells us, “Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.” (Read: Matthew 11:28-30). Whosoever Will Worship Ministries Assoc: Pastor Wesley Fulton (In need of prayer, please call 409-938-1799)