All About GOD - Growing Relationships with Jesus and Others
Joy to the World! Are you joyful?
One of the most used words in the bible is the word Joy. Joy is listed as part of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. We are to be the most joyous people in the world, so why are so many of us not joyful?
In the bible we are commanded to be joyful. Count it all joy the word of God tells us, but what is the problem with that imperative? You are hurting, how can you possibly be joyful, you ask, is there a button I am to push and make myself joyful? We often even get angry when people give us the biblical command to count it all joy and we think they are not sensitive, but are they being insensitive or are we being blinded by pain etc…?
We tend to think happiness and joy is something that happens to us, that is passive, but not something that we have control over. But can we create joy and happiness by an act of the will or by abiding in Christ? Is joy an automatic reaction to abiding in Him, to being filled with the Spirit?
Scripture gives us a command to count it all joy; it’s an imperative, it’s an obligation. It is our duty to be joyful and the failure to be a joyful Christians is a manifestation of the flesh. Don’t misunderstand me, we all experience sorrow and grief. Jesus was called a man of sorrow and acquainted with grief. It is better to go to the house of morning than to spend our time with fools and blessed/happy are those who mourn scripture tells us, but how can a person be in mourning and still be joyful?
How can Jesus be a man of sorrow and be the most joyful human to have ever walked the earth?
How can we experience feelings of mourning (which are not sinful) and have the biblical dimension of joy, even when we are experiencing mourning and grief and in the midst of our sorrow?
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by David Velasquez on
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I continue to pray for them as well.
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Permalink Reply by Amanda on
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Thank each of you who are praying. Your prayers helped me today, too. I felt a peacefulness throughout the day from the time I left home that I have not felt in a long while...but tonight I can't sleep. But God was with me today.
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Just a small update about this family. The husband continues to improve daily in small baby steps. He was running a fever today so they had to postpone a surgery they had scheduled for today. An anonymous person paid the total expenses for Jacqueline's and Rachel's funeral. The other children returned to school yesterday. The mother is very sad.
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I wanted to add that fellow teachers in the school district have donated all their sick time to my friend, who teaches science in middle school, so that she can be off the remainder of the school year and still get paid.
There are many generous people and God's providence is awesome.
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Thaks for the updates Amanda. Our God is good.
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Here's another update. He is breathing completely on his own now and fully awake. He must have been very thirsty because he asked for a root beer when they took away the ventilator and he began talking non-stop. He knows about the girls now. They've also said his burns are healing very well and no skin grafts are needed now...he will heal without them. That is amazing. He is still in intensive care. I believe he will be OK. His family needs him. He knows that. God does, too.
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Praise God. Continuing to pray for this family as God leads.
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Thank you, David. There is more good news regarding his recovery. He is now listed in stable condition and has been moved from ICU and off the burn unit into a post-surgical care unit. It means he is receiving specialized care for his burns to aid healing, help with pain, and physical therapy to help get him back on his feet. He still has a lot of swelling and is very short of breath and his eyes suffered burns but he can see. His mouth, throat, and lungs were all scorched from smoke inhalation as well. It has been a little over two weeks, and I would say his recovery is now in leaps and bounds, not baby steps. Keep praying. God is working. The older children are now asking the "Why" questions, and the family still has not found a new home and are living with relatives.
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Permalink Reply by Mary O on
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I can't imagine the pain she is feeling, but I will pray for them. How are you? How are you feeling? They're your friends. I'm tearing up just thinking about it, and I've never met them.
Something I got when I accepted Jesus as my Lord. A heart.
Love and God bless,
Mary
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I spent today at the hospital with my friend and I did see her husband. He is in critical condition in a burn unit. He has some severe burns and will need surgeries and skin grafts. He is very swollen. He's not breathing on his own. They are keeping him very sedated but when he is not as sedated, he is responsive. They want to keep him still because he has tried to pull out his tubes and IV's. He was not conscious when I saw him. I just told him he has to get better and his family needs him. I prayed for him. Seeing him, I personally felt that he will pull through this. He better not let me down.
The life celebration for Rachel and Jacqueline is Monday. My friend told me they will be buried together in the same coffin. She told me Jesus is carrying her... otherwise she would have already collapsed. I'm afraid I wasn't much of a comfort to her. I told her I love her and we cried together and she hugged me and was glad to see me. She talked quite a bit about everything that has happened and about the girls. I listened. It's all very sad.
This is really a tough thing.
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Permalink Reply by Rita Cullimore on
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Amanda,
I am so sorry for your friend's loss. Her joy will be when she sees her two daughters again. She will have joy in her other children for now. Your love and strength will help her tremendously. She will need to talk but you are there to listen as she tells you of the joy she had through Rachel's and Jacqueline's short lives. You will be there there for the strength she will need as her husband goes through his healing process and you will be there through the joy of her husband being made whole again. My prayers are with then all. Through Christ, your friend will have the strength to endure along with her other children.
God has prepared you for such a time as this. May He bless you with the strength to be a blessing to them through His blessings to you.
Love ya'....
Rita
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