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Nehemiah 8:10b - The Joy of The Lord Is Your Strength.Nehemiah 8:10b (NIV) Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.INTRODUCTION The joy of the Lord is the joy that springs up in our hearts because of our relationship to the Lord. It is a God-given gladness found when we are in communion with God. [Nelson SB] The powerful exposition of the Word of God can bring deep conviction of sin. But repentance must not degenerate into a self-centered remorse but must issue into joy in God's forgiving goodness (cf. 2 Cor 2:5-11). [Expositors Bible Commentary] COMMENTARY PEARL What Is Joy? Some people think Christians should always be smiling and happy, and something is wrong if they aren't. But this isn't necessarily true. Jesus stood outside the tomb of His friend Lazarus, and we read that "Jesus wept" (John 11:35). As He approached Jerusalem "He saw the city and wept" (Luke 19:41) because of its spiritual blindness and guilt. He knelt in the Garden of Gethsemane and was "in agony ... [and] His sweat became like great drops of blood" (Luke 22:44). Don't confuse happiness with joy. Happiness comes with happy circumstances; joy wells up deep inside our souls as we learn to trust Christ. Joy does not mean that we are never sad or that we never cry. But joy is a quiet confidence, a state of inner peace that comes from God. Life's troubles will rob us of our happiness, but they can never rob us of the joy God gives us, as we turn in faith to Him and seek His face. The world doesn't need believers to put on our "happy faces" to prove our faith is real. true joy radiates from within and makes its presence known regardless of circumstances. Let's be more concerned with authenticity than appearances. [Hope for Each Day by Billy Graham] COMMENTARY Look Up "Woman, why are you weeping?" (John 20:13). Mary's heart had been crushed by the crucifixion of her Teacher. Now she was standing outside His tomb, wailing because His body was no longer there. She was so overcome by her grief that she did not recognize the voice of the One she was seeking. We are surrounded by such sorrow in a sinful world. Circumstances, from our perspective, can often appear hopeless. There are times when everyone feels like throwing in the towel. Even the faithful prophet Elijah was overwhelmed with discouragement when Jezebel hunted him (1 Kings 19:4). Both Mary and Elijah are valuable illustrations for today's Bible promise. It's easy to get our eyes fixed on the difficulties in life, but in so doing, we take our eyes off the joy we have in the Lord. God can be near to us, yet we separate ourselves from Him because our focus is wrong. The joy of the Lord truly is our strength. Rather than letting despair have its way, we may look in faith to God. We can see through the darkness and hope for a better future, avoiding the dark pit of despondency, simply by turning our eyes away from the world and upward to God. Joy is not a fleeting feeling but an abiding contentment that comes only from God no matter our circumstances. Equip yourself with this promise that you may successfully fend off discouragement. Through the God who loves you, you can have joy even amid your greatest trials. Wonderful Savior, I thank You that my spirit may rejoice even in trial. Help me to glorify Your name when I'm faced with adversity. [The Most Amazing Bible Promises by Amazing Facts] Happy Hour If, when I say Happy Hour, the sound of clinking glasses and bawdy music come to mind, you and I are thinking about two different settings. Merchants of misery attempt to make their brew seem desirable by disguising that interlude - often just after working hours - as a time of happiness. But true happiness doesn't come with a hangover. True joy doesn't create guilt. So, let's re-frame the term. To do that I need to share with you a secret I learned from an old man. One of my heroes, George Mueller, who lived in the 1800's. Among other reasons, he was famous for having cared for more than 10,000 orphans rescued from the streets of London, without ever once asking anyone for anything. Years ago Ruthie and I visited five of the magnificent stone buildings he built in Bristol, England. They're still there, monuments to Mueller's faith. Mueller saw the thousands of destitute waifs around him and decided God would be honored if He, God, were asked to provide for them. As you can imagine, the need gave an instant focus to Mueller's prayer life. For food, for housing, for medical care, for clothing, for caring staff, for the thousand things kids need. And Mueller had no Charitable Trust to rely on. No 501(c)3. No Crowd Sourcing. Instead, he prayed. We're talking burden here. Unrelenting. Remember, when things got tight he couldn't just send them home. Can you imagine what his morning prayer time must have been like? Can you imagine how earnestly he must have prayed, "...Give us this day our daily bread..."? I love that his journals are filled with vignettes like the time he and 300 children sat down to breakfast, but Mueller knew there was no food in the kitchen. Without a hint of panic he assured the children the Lord would provide. As they finished thanking the Lord for the food there was a knock at the door. It was the local baker who recalled that he hadn't slept all night. He had a sense the children might be hungry so he arose and baked bread enough for all. A second knock followed. Seems the neighborhood milk delivery wagon had broken a wheel just outside the orphanage and it could not be repaired before the heat of the day would cause the milk to sour. Could the children use some milk...? But here is the most important lesson I learned. Here are his words, "The first great and primary business to which I ought to attend every day, [is] to have MY SOUL HAPPY IN THE LORD." (The emphasis is Mueller's.) Every morning George Mueller had his happy hour. Happiness in the presence of God is a sign of trust. That's why God prompts Nehemiah to assure us, "The joy of the Lord is your strength." (8:10) God is honored when a joyous early morning time with Him becomes the highlight of our day. By Don Jacobsen CLOSING THOUGHT Remember that prayer is the source of your strength. A worker cannot gain success while he hurries through his prayers and rushes away to look after something that he fears may be neglected or forgotten. He gives only a few hurried thoughts to God; he does not take time to think, to pray, to wait upon the Lord for a renewal of physical and spiritual strength. He soon becomes weary. He does not feel the uplifting, inspiring influence of God's Spirit. He is not quickened by fresh life. His jaded frame and tired brain are not soothed by personal contact with Christ. "Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord." "It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord." Psalm 27:14; Lamentations 3:26. There are those who work all day and far into the night to do what seems to them must be done. The Lord looks pityingly upon these weary, heavy-laden burden bearers and says to them: "Come unto Me, ... and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28. 7T 243 LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY Nehemiah 8:10b - The Joy of The Lord Is Your Strength. http://www.abible.com/devotions/2022/20220728-0830.html http://www.abible.com/devotions/2018/20180117-0842.html Isaiah 12:2, 3 - God Is My Salvation, Strength and Song So I Trust Him and Do Not Fear. https://www.abible.com/devotions/2024/20240420-0938.html 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 - Gods Amazing Grace. https://www.abible.com/devotions/2024/20240517-0905.html LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT https://abible.com/links/ |