The Joy And Happiness Of The Lord!

"I think happiness is what makes you pretty. Period. Happy

people are beautiful. They become like a mirror and they

reflect that happiness."

-- Drew Barrymore

Why can't we be happy? Why can't we be defined as a people full of joy and laughter and smiles? What a powerful community that could be! And why can't we be that? The Bible says after all: "A cheerful heart makes good medicine but a crushed (or broken) spirit dries up the bones" (Proverbs 17:22). I don't know about you, but dry bones doesn't sound very healthy or particularly good. But that's not the only place it says something like that...repeatedly we find the phrases "Shout aloud with joy!" or "May you be filled with joy" or "Rejoice in the Lord!" or other such phrases...most commonly found in Psalms but also in other books. I want to share some with you in case you are ever in the instance where you need encouragement in this area. 

Philippians 4:4 
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 
Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 40:16 
But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation always say, "The LORD be exalted!"

Psalm 13:5 
But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.

Romans 5:1-4 
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.

Psalm 28:7 
The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.

Romans 15:13 
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 64:9-10 
All mankind will fear; they will proclaim the works of God and ponder what he has done. Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD and take refuge in him; let all the upright in heart praise him!

1 Peter 1:8

Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory

John 16:24

Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.

And that's just the very beginning...I didn't even begin to even *start* to list all the many many verses that go on about joy and rejoicing and happiness and all that relates to those topics. You can just go to Google and type in "Bible verses about joy"...there is no end to them! Now to return back to my original point: why *wouldn't* you be happy and filled with joy? Is there any reason valid enough not to be joyful? Is there really any negative thing that is bigger that the greatness of salvation and life in Christ? We are a redeemed people and we are no longer bound to sin, hell, and damnation! We have been set free from our cage and given a new life to live completely separate and apart from that old life. So why would we revert back to that life and be filled with gloom, sadness, or any negativity?

Which brings me to my second point: negative people. There are few things that can ruin a day apart from negative people. They just kind of drag themselves into a pit and bring everyone else along whether they want to or not. Well, I take that back...if you are a joyful person it is your choice to be dragged down with them or not. I have been around a lot of negative people before...I live with one and I became close friends with one while I was away at camp. It's not always a McDonald's playground type of life when you are around them, I'll tell you that. But I don't even need to tell you that...all of us have probably come in contact with at least one really consistent negative person in our lifetime. They surround us and seek to live their lives in perpetual misery. I think misery makes them happy...or wait, they don't want to be happy....well at least maybe they get some kind of fulfillment out of being gloomy. 

Okay, I am being a bit unfair here...but truthfully...what is accomplished by being constantly negative? By always seeing the worst in people or in situations. By seeking to avoid all good things and only focusing on the bad? How does that advance anyone let alone the glory of Christ? These people don't get less blessings than the rest of us...they don't somehow get all the "mean" stuff in life and the rest of us get the good stuff. They just chose to focus on whatever seems bad and blow it up and make it their life and existence. 

We are told that everything that happens to us is from the hand of God...whatever we receive whether we think it is a blessing or a curse...it is all for our good and our benefit. Without the "bad" we would have no spiritual growth or maturing. So why look at the "bad" and call it bad when in reality it is all good...it is to educate us and grow us in the Lord to further His glory and kingdom. 

I'm not saying any of this because I have all this rejoicing stuff down pretty darn well. I am a pretty negative person myself, just ask my family. But in this new turn of life that I'm trying to take to become a true Christian and child of God I'm seeking to take every area of my life and pick it apart and see where I can improve and encourage others to improve. Maybe the negative people don't even realize they're negative. I talked to the girl I met at camp and it wasn't even till she was away from home and around us other girls that she began to see how exceedingly negative she is. 

All this to say...go be happy! Smile and laugh it up. This is your one and only life to do it right and have fun and glorify God! There isn't a single reason in this world to be negative or gloomy or unhappy...even Job didn't reject himself to that even when he lost *literally* everything he had...family, possessions, or health! Everything is straight from the hand of God and given to us to build and strengthen us up to do His will. May you truly be filled with the joy of the Lord and live to praise Him for it!

(All italics added by me...I still don't know why I did it, but it seemed like a random good idea at the time...I hope it doesn't bug any of you!)