Week of August 23

John 16:24

(Holman Christian Standard Bible)

"Until now you have asked for nothing in My name. Ask and you will receive, that your joy may be complete."

He says "your" joy... my joy. Really? God cares about "my" joy and not just His or other people's. Does this mean that He really wants to do something about it when my heart is breaking?

My heart has been breaking on a rather frequent basis lately. It reached the point last night that I was crying and feeling very "unloved" by my Savior. I mean... I know He gave his life for me. And, I was sure that He loved... me on some level. I am sure that He does not wish me to die and go to hell. I am sure that He gave his life for my eternal salvation, but it is much harder for me to be sure that He really wants me to FEEL joy. But, then today, I opened this verse.

You see, back in May I started a personal study on joy. Circumstance have been less than ideal for me for quite some time. I looked up a whole list of verses on joy that contained a promise of when God wants to give us Joy. I have not been reading every verse each week. I have been opening a verse a week to meditate on and keep ever before me. That means... back in May God knew how I was going to feel last night... and back in May, God put in motion events that would speak volumes of encouragement to me today (August 23). This tells me that He must really be concerned about my emotions. And, He must really want me to experience complete joy.

LORD, please help me and my dear husband through this hard time in life. Please hold us under your protective wing and keep us safe in the strong crevice of your high tower. You said through the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 40:31) that those who trust in you will find strength. Lord, We need strength. We are trusting in You. Please help us. You said to ask so that our joy may be complete. I am asking now... we need strength and joy, and I am trusting you to provide. -- In Jesus name, AMEN

Until next time...

What JOY!

Psalm 126:3 (New Living Translation)

"Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us! What joy!"


As the Psalmist did, remember that God has done amazing things for me. What joy! Things are less than easy for me on this 9th day of August, 2010. I am scared about my future. But, Paul directs me in Philippians 4:4-9 to rejoice at what God has done for me, tell God all my problems, and dwell on or think on good things. "Yes, The LORD has done amazing things for [me]!" I can think on those things. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He will take care of me.

Verses to Chew Over this Week: August 9

Luke 12:6-7 (New Living Translation)


“What is the price of five sparrows—two copper coins? Yet God does not forget a single one of them. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows."


Philippians 4:4-9 (New Living Translation)


"Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you."



Rejoice! God is so concerned about me that He numbers the hairs on my head. And, I lose a lot of them!


"Formula" (for lack of a better word) for keeping anxiety at bay:

1. Rejoice in the LORD. Keep Him in His place. Don't forget to praise Him simply because of who He is.
2. Tell God my problems and what is concerning me.
3. Then trust Him to care and act. Thank Him for being a part of my life and loving me. He won't necessairily do what I want him to do, but if I turn the situations over to him, He will change the situation or me. He cares greatly about me.
4. Thank God for all He has done, all He is doing, and all He is going to do. Thank Jesus for dying for me on the cross so that I can have this relationship with Him, and I don't fave to face life alone.
5. Think on good things... all the things God has done, all the things God has made, how much God is in controle, how blessed I am...

Shouts of JOY at Change...

Psalm 105:43 (New International Version)

"He brought out his people with rejoicing, his chosen ones with shouts of joy"


The thing that sticks out to me with the verse this week is that when God led his people they were rejoicing. They were sending up shouts of joy as they went through a change, and change is a scary thing. As I am seeking God to lead me... I mean truly seeking Him & for Him to lead... this tells me that I should beware of the path that has me "kicking and screaming", wanting to cry all the time... the path that feels like a "mighty, holy sacrifice". This is not to say that I don't believe God will ever ask me to do something that is hard or contrary to my fleshly nature. It is just that I believe that, if I am seeking God with a humble, contrite heart in right relationship with Him, He will change me to want to do the hard or contrary thing so that I am rejoicing with shouts of joy when I do it. He is just that good.

Thank you God for leading with rejoicing and shouts of joy!

Until next time...

God Comforts Me

Psalm 94:19 (New Living Translation)

¹⁹ When doubts filled my mind,
your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.

Give me happiness...

Psalm 86:4 (New Living Translation)

"Give me happiness, O Lord, for I give myself to you."

Willingness, Obedience & Joy

Psalm 51:12 (New Living Translation)

"Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you."

The Psalmist asks the LORD to restore to him the joy of his salvation, and then in the same sentence or breath, he asks the LORD to make him willing to obey Him.

I think the Psalmist recognized a link between obedience and joy. He realized that he needed to obey the LORD to have His joy. He realized that, without obedience, the relationship is broken and we cannot have joy. Such a short verse, but it teaches so very much.

The Psalmist recognized that we can do nothing without the LORD. The LORD gives us the very willingness to obey Him as well as joy. So very often, I think of obeying God and joy as separate. I fear that God will ask me to do something that brings my life something very far from joy. Often what God asks me to do is hard... not easy, but what Jesus did for us was not easy. How great it is that I can learn from the Psalmist to ask God for help with this. Lord make me willing to obey you...

"The joy of my salvation..."

I find myself being so petty. Worried about how healthy my dog is and how things are going at work and what to cook for dinner. All earthly things. But, I guess this is to be expected since earthly is all I "really" know. But... God is worried about my salvation.

I should take joy in the fact that I have been saved from everlasting condemnation and that I experience grace and mercy everyday of my life. I can have relationship with God through Christ. Wow! I should be praising... not worrying.

When I think of what Christ did for me and how superficial my life is to the grand scope of what Jesus did, my problems seem much smaller. Maybe that is part of the joy of my salvation. The very grandness of what Jesus did for me makes my problems seem smaller.

And, then.... He answers my prayers for the small, petty things in life... a paper I lost at work, lost earrings, paying bills, getting a parking space at the store, rain holding off because I don't want to walk in the rain in the shoes I wore to work... and I am so overjoyed that He actually cares about me!

The Joy of my salvation and obedience... so very much to ponder...

Until next time...