Fruit of the Spirit: And if the devil doesn't like it, he can sit on a tack...

Remember that old Sunday School song?

I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart.
Where? Down in my heart!
Where? Down in my heart!
I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart,
down in my heart down in my heart to stay.

Good stuff! Today's topic, continuing on the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) is Joy. The dictionary defines joy as, "the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation." While joy is pretty easy to define, joy is not something easy to obtain or hold on to, it seems. We live in a world that seemingly exists to crush and exhaust us: we run to and fro, getting this and that done...and we're tired, and we're worn out, and sometimes we're just plain unhappy. That, my friends, is where we forget what it's all about: God and His everlasting love and mercy!

Think about it: we serve a God who spoke the universe into existence. Spoke it...he said "Moon" and there the moon was. Whoa. And yet somehow, in the grand scheme of things, He decided to show mercy on us, his screwiest creation, and sent His Son Jesus to die for our sins so we can spend eternity with Him. Doesn't that make you smile when you think of it? This mighty and powerful God cares for me! That is the source of joy: the remembrance of what God has done for us. It should drive us and put a smile on our face and a spring in our step. Yes...it's hard, very hard, to keep it up in such a day and age...but think about how much God has done for you and continues to do: He lets us get up in the morning, He provides for us, He gives us breathable air, He gives some of us good health...the list can go on forever. There's always something to be joyful about because God always works, sometimes we just don't realize it. This joy will help us tackle even the toughest of times, because in it we realize that God is bigger than anything we'll face. Nehemiah 8:10 says, "Do not grieve. For the joy of the Lord is your strength." God is God and He loves us...when we can continually think on that and have joy in that, we can go through anything!

The dictionary also gives another definition of joy that I like, "to feel joy; be glad; rejoice." To me, this definition goes hand-in-hand with 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. " Not only do we have to have joy that God is there for us, but we need to give thanks and praise Him for all that He does. No matter how lousy you feel, getting into some good worship time with God feels great, doesn't it? You stop and ignore all the junk in life and focus on Him...and you rejoice in all that He's done and His goodness. It's joy, folks! A couple days ago I was getting ready for work and I was listening to some praise and worship on my MP3 player, particularly "Agnus Dei" by Donnie McClurkin...it's such a powerful version of that song and sometimes I feel like I'm overwhelmed by the love, power, and majesty of the Lord. It made me think of what praise in Heaven must be like: the angels all in chorus, crying out "Worthy is the Lamb!" And it made me think: because of Jesus, I'll join in that chorus one day! It made me feel GOOD, it made me smile, it brought me joy. It was exactly what I needed for that day...and it's true: the joy of the Lord is my strength. We have to continually think on that: it's easy to be happy about my Yankees winning, or getting out of work early, or finally making it to another weekend without losing my mind. But that joy is fleeting...the joy of the Lord is everlasting because His love endures forever!