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Rejoice!

Rejoice!

Words of Faith 8-2-19

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2019

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

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Philippians 1

         And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, [19] for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. [20] I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.

 

      The Philippian letter is often called the JOY book because it uses this word more in a short collection of verses than any other Biblical writing.  Paul chose to repeat Himself to make it clear that this was not just talk. This was something real that He had experienced in a Roman jail. 

       What is Joy?  It is something quite different from "happiness.”  Happiness is dependent upon circumstances; Joy is dependant upon God.  Happiness will come and go; Joy coexists quite comfortably mingled with other emotions such as grief, frustration, and sadness.  Joy is a lasting peace that rejoices not in the bad or good things that happen, but simply in THE LORD.

     Joy rejoices that God is always at work around us and that God's perspective, even if we do not understand it, is eternal.  Joy rejoices in the knowledge that we were not created for time but for eternity. 

         Joy is able to look at the most difficult of situations and know that it will "turn out for my deliverance."  Joy is able to "eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death."  Joy is able to sing in the face of death, even with tears of grief mingled with the song.  Joy knows that as we trust God, Christ is exalted no matter what.  

         There is no strength equal to the Joy of the Lord (Neh. 8:10).  This is the deep abiding strength that comes only from God and which keep us going when everything seems to be against us.

         Someone once said that we each have a joy cup, a part of our spirit that only God can fill up.  When we are jostled, or bumped, Joy is what spills out if we have allowed God to fill that cup.  How is your joy cup? Do you need some filling?

 

     Lord, fill me.  Fill me for this day with Your Joy.  May Your Joy be my strength no matter the circumstance or difficulty.  May Your Joy be the strength to rejoice in You even in the times of trial.  In Jesus name, Amen.

 

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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, and our website, and our church app, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.  

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