TOPIC: THE JOY OF THE LORD IS YOUR STRENGTH
Bible Reading: Ezra 9-10; Acts 1
“Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength” Nehemiah 8:10 (KJV)
Joy is a supernatural force that can turn around any situation and keep you safe and secured in hard times.
Apostle Paul encouraged the Philippians to, “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice”(Philippians 4:4). You might say, “that is easier said than done considering the current situation,” but it will interest you to know that the Apostle wrote this letter from prison. Being cheerful and rejoicing is a deliberate act and step of faith that you take to release the supernatural force of joy that was deposited in your spirit man at the new birth.
You don’t have to look like what you have gone through because you can stir yourself to praise God by the anointing for gladness in you.
While ‘joy’ is a spiritual force that is deposited in every child of God as an anointing, ‘rejoicing’ is a deliberate process of faith by which we release that force to go to work in every area of our lives. Many have the joy of the Lord in them, but they aren’t experiencing miracles because they aren’t rejoicing! They are always sad, cranky, complaining, entitled and barefaced. They aren’t deliberate about releasing this force of joy through thanksgiving and praise.
Jesus told His disciples in John 15:11, “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” If you allow Jesus to speak to you through His Word daily, you will always rejoice.
In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Paul writes, “Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” The admonition isn’t to give thanks FOR the situation, rather it is about giving God thanks THROUGH the situation.
Decide to REJOICE by setting up structures and deliberately creating the environment to rejoice. Get out of ‘sorry’ state that the devil wants you in. Decide to release the force of joy into that situation. Start with creating a playlist of praise and worship songs on your device, turn up the volume and dance yourself happy.
In our text, Nehemiah encouraged the people to be intentional about releasing the force of joy. He said to them, “… Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared:…” The reason is simple, “THE JOY OF THE LORD IS YOUR STRENGTH!” The word ‘strength’ actually means ‘defense.’ If the devil can’t break your defense, he can’t steal your goods. Refuse to be put under by anything, go ahead and rejoice today.
DECLARE: I will rejoice and I will be glad for God is the strength of my life.
Pastor Alfred Samuel