Sunday, October 21, 2012

Finding JOY


Finding JOY

Nehemiah 8: 9-10 "This day is holy unto the Lord your God. Mourn not nor weep. For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law. Go your way, eat the fat and drink the sweet. Send portions to them whom nothing is prepared. This day is holy unto our Lord. Neither be ye sorry. The joy of the Lord is your strength!"
God is a God of joy! God is a God of strength! We are His people. We are a people of strength. No man can take your joy! In the book of Nehemiah 8, we find a celebration called the Feast of Trumpets. It was a time of joyous and glorious celebration. Tonight is a night of celebration. We are not a defeated church. We are not a defeated people. We are a triumphant church. God is a triumphant God. The people of God are the people of joy.
It's time to rise up and claim the promises that God has for us! There is an awesome power in joy! The joy of the Lord is your strength. We have been given power to overcome. God is a good God. We need to be happy because he is on our team. He loves you. He is a God of joy.
In Psalms 43:4, David said, "Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy; yea upon the harp will I praise Thee, O God my God."
If you want exceeding joy, there are two things you need. You need an altar and you need a song. Too many people are going through life with man-made joy. We look forward, with joy, to the next weekend. We look forward, with joy, to the next activity. We look forward, with joy, to the next vacation getaway. But joy, exceeding joy, seems to elude us. We are losing our vision of what true joy really is. You need to find yourself an altar and get in the presence of God. Every once in a while, you need joy to come in the prayer room. You also need a song! Make a joyful noise unto the Lord. Sing unto the Lord. Judah ushered in the Presence of God. Trumpets sounded with joy. Music can be a feel-good, even to a backsliden king!
In Psalms 16:11, David said, "Thou wilt show me the path of life, in thy presence is fulness of joy. At thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore." What path are you on? Where is your road traveling to? We gotta get into the Presence of God. That is exactly where the fulness of joy is. Need more joy? Get in God's Presence. Go to God's house and get you some joy. Get on God's power team and you will have more pleasures than you ever thought about. Joy is being in His Presence. If we can get into His Presence, it will be ok.
Your pain will not last forever! God did not suppress or depress you. God wants to bless you and strengthen you with His joy. Put on a smile. Be happy. God's got it all under control. Psalms 30:5 says, "For His anger is just a moment, in His favor is life. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning." Joy is coming! Gird up your loins. No man, family, friend, co-workers and enemies can take away your joy. The devil is a liar. He is a miserable jerk, the father of lies and he lost what you need. God is the God of joy!
In Isiah 61, we find that we shall receive as spiritual Israel the oil of joy for mourning. Oil is a type of the Holy Ghost. There is joy in the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is a Revealer of Revelation. The more you get to know God the more joy you will have. If your spirit is heavy, He will clothe you with praise. Put some praise in your mouth and God will change your attitude. You will see things through the eyes of joy. No man can take your joy! God also says, I am gonna double what you need. Need a double portion? Worship God! Praise Him in the Holy Ghost. You will get what you need and more.
Romans 14:17 "For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost." The kingdom of God is within you. Don't worry about worldly possessions. Seek ye first the kingdom of God. Get in the Spirit. There is righteousness there, peace is there, joy is there. Go get it. No need to go around with your head hung low. The joy of the Lord is your strength.
In Galatians 5: 22-23, we find what the Holy Ghost should be doing to us. The first three are the keys to total victory. Before you can have anything from God, He must first give you love then joy and peace will follow. We are not a defeated people. Our God is an awesome God. He reigns from heaven and lives in our heart by the power of the Holy Ghost. It is time to manifest the power of God in our lives by releasing joy to reign forever. We are not a defeated people. We are a people of exceeding joy and praise to God.
It is time to rejoice! It is time to be happy. It is time to get some joy. We are a blessed people. You cannot curse what God has blessed. Get wild. Get crazy. God is a God of joy. He is our righteousness. He is our peace. He is our God. When sinners repent, just one, that's all it takes. It smells like a flesh flower. Heaven is full of joy. He ain't got the Holy Ghost yet. Just the fact that he sees his need for God makes heaven joyous. Wonder how heaven feels when he gets baptized in Jesus' Name? What about when they receive the Holy Ghost? What a party! We just sit here when thousands of promises are given to us from this pulpit every year. Accept them. Bask in them! Joy is in the house!
Jesus tells us in the book of John to keep His commandments. God owes us nothing if we will not keep His word. But if we will walk according to His word, Man will He bless us! God is a God of His word! His word is rich with promises. His promises are full of joy. Jesus said, These things have I spoken to you, that my joy might remain in you and that your joy may be full. There is a transferal of power here. It starts out with God's joy then He says my joy shall be yours and it will be all you can contain.God is full of joy.
Luke 6:20-23 Rejoice, leap for joy,
no man can steal your joy.
Claim it. Take it. Seize it.
No man can steal joy from you.
Neither can the devil .......unless we allow it!
THERE IS POWER IN JOY!!!!!!!!!!!


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