Scripture:
Romans 15:13 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Observation:
Sometimes I stray from God in my search for joy and peace. He is the source for these. Allowing GOD to fill me with joy and peace guarantees a full and overflowing cup. Beyond this – the joy and peace that come from God are purposed to bring us hope. Do other sources do this? I certainly think there are other sources of joy and peace, but they’re not reliable, not sustainable, and there is ultimately no hope in them. God wants us so filled with joy and peace, that our hope is overflowing.
Application:
I should do a “source check” on a weekly basis. From where have I sought joy and peace in the last seven days? I know for this last week it hasn’t been Christ as much as it should.
Prayer:
Lord, I know I can find satisfying joy, peace, and hope in you; please keep me focused on Christ.
Scripture:
Psalm 70:4 “May all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness. May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout, ‘God is great!’”
Observation:
Filled with joy and gladness. Not happiness, wealth, health, or so many of life’s other blessings and gifts, but joy and gladness. These other things are transitory – some people have them all their life, some come in and out of them, others are cast a hard lot and never see a single one. Joy and Gladness can be independent of every other life circumstance and these are what David requests of God for us – for me.
Application:
I do feel full of joy and gladness! So what does David say my reaction should be? Shout “God is great!” I want my reaction to every circumstance, every success, every failure, every blessing, every tragedy to be “God is great!” Not because of the transitory, but because of my joy in Christ. Beyond the internal shout – I have to remember loose it from my soul and release it in my speech. Good news ought to be shared.
Prayer:
Lord – thank you for the gifts of joy and gladness, let them continue to surround my life.
Scripture:
Psalm 118:24 “This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.”
Observation:
This verse follows half a dozen which describe struggle and hardship – still the author ends with thanks and praise.
Application:
I am a complainer. It’s something I struggle with. A situation isn’t fair, a person isn’t reasonable, logical, or consistent – blah blah blah. Even in the midst of complaining I’m aware I’m doing it, and I can’t stop myself. Though I tell myself “It’s not wrong to complain – I need to have an outlet, I need to talk this through,” I can feel it poisoning my spirit. It seeps in to every crevice of my life and, worse than just filling the cracks, it soaks into everything it touches until there’s “good reason” to complain about everything.
There are certainly laments throughout Scripture, but they are often peppered throughout with phrases like “but the Lord saved me,” and as often, or more, are solidly resolved in praise and thanksgiving. Whatever my situation, I get to make the decision to pour my complaint and discontentedness or God’s joy and gladness into it. God has given me his strength, and his resources to be able to say THIS is the day! God made TODAY and I choose to rejoice, and be glad. This is a problem of focus, not of circumstance.
Prayer:
Thank you God for today – let my focus be on you and on your blessings.
Scripture:
John 19:17-18 “Carrying the cross by himself, Jesus went to the place called Skull Hill. There they crucified him.”
Observation:
I can’t imagine how John must’ve felt as he wrote these words. On one hand, his description of the scourging and death of Christ is cold and dispassionate. There is nothing that describes Christ’s pain, nothing that describes the confusion John must’ve felt watching this unfold. On the other hand, John is writing this years after the fact – well after the resurrection. How interesting to talk about death from this perspective. I think Jeff died peacefully, but he is still gone. It still moves me to think about. I wonder how I would feel if I saw him again three days later. How would I feel about his death then?
I imagine that chain of events was particularly difficult for John to describe – perhaps merely recording the events was all he could compose himself enough to do. However, he still sat from the vantage point that Christ’s death removed his sin, that Christ rose from the dead, and that when John died he would be with Jesus in heaven. This is the context which frames my life as well. Christ has removed my sin, and whatever happens to me in life, I will be in heaven with Christ at the end.
Application:
The only reasonable context for my life is forgiveness, joy, and expectation. When my actions don’t reflect these gifts, I need to reevaluate.
Prayer:
Thank you God for sending your son, Thank you Jesus for dying for me, a sinner.
Scripture:
1 Peter 1:3-6 “All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see. So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while.”
Observation:
Last Wednesday Nicole and I decided on a whim to go to the cabin, my favorite place to be, and we hadn’t been since the summer of ‘07. I was giddy with excitement. I took a day off at work and made preparations to be gone. Nicole had all sorts of lists, she packed, she shopped. We invited friends because we knew that it was going to be an incredible time – and it was! I had forgotten how much I absolutely love being there. Life at the cabin is perfectly paced, it’s simple, beautiful … I love the cabin. This is the same “great expectation” and “wonderful joy” I should absolutely feel about heaven.
Application:
There are certainly some differences in these situations. I knew I was headed to the cabin in a matter of hours, and I was headed there with some of the people I love most. I also knew what I was headed to, and that I was coming back. There are so many unknowns about heaven – and of course the arrival there undoubtedly means leaving people behind. None the less, I know that the cabin won’t compare, and that most of the people I love will eventually be there with me (Makes me think I should probably expand my love circle), and that when I get there I will meet Christ in person. I am excited to be in heaven – my life really could reflect that in better ways. I could start by inviting more of those I love.
Prayer:
Lord, thank you for this time. Thank you for meeting me here. Develop my anticipation of arriving in heaven as well as the actions appropriate to that expectation.
