Approach with Joy

The greek word for joy is 'chara'.  Chara defines joy further as a response, a rejoicing, a gladness, to celebrate.  One definition says the cause or occasion of joy.  Occasions are things that you attend or things that happen by someone doing something to providing something.  We recently attended our first ever Bar Mitzvah.  That was an occasion!  And it was full of joy.  A occasion of joy requires an action, right?  So begin joyful is a love action!  We choose to respond to events and circumstances in joy, we choose to praise our God with great joy. 

Emma is a pretty joyful person, except when she doesn't want to do something.  When she is faced with something that she does not want to do or does not want to say, she stands and looks at me and says nothing.  Her countenance is not bright and her eyes just drop.  My kids are on a swim team and Emma has been helping the little kids in the pool this season.  Recently she was due to be at the pool to help the little kids and she did not want to go.  I got the dark countenance, looking sadly straight in my eyes, clearing hoping she could bail out.  We had a conversation about commitment and even if you don't want to do something, you have to complete what you have committed to.  She sadly got into the car and off to the pool we went.  Then, miraculously, when I picked her up, she came bounding out of the pool, huge smile across her face, jumped into the car and was clearly joyful.  I asked how the time had been and she responded, "GREAT!"  She made a decision to do something that she had committed to and came out of it in great joy.  Just like we make a decision to be joyful and enjoy the journey that God has placed us on.  Just like the songs of ascent from last week's post.  We made a decision to be a Christian, can we do that with a joyful heart?

We are to be joyful in the journey because the joy at the end of it will be exceeding more joyful.  I am sure Emma walked onto the pool deck with a  smile on her face that day and after being in the experience of helping the little kids, she, in the end, was blessed with pure joy.  So making a choice to be joyful may be tough in the moment, but the end result will be more than even imagined.  In Hebrews 11: 24-28 it talks about Moses' faith and how he chose to be mistreated along with the people of God and not be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter.  He had the opportunity to remain an Egyptian, but he chose to join his own people.  Hebrews 11:26 says "He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures in Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward."  Do we look ahead and out of the circumstances that try to drown us?  Do we go in them joyfully expecting something exciting at the end?  Our children will encounter many tough situations in their life and the ability to approach them joyfully will help with some of their darkest times.

"Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up...My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you - I, whom you have redeemed." Psalm 71:20 & 23 
We are talking a lot about how we approach situations this week and as the kids and I head off to a summer camp we are practicing being joyfully expectant, even in situations that try to overwhelm.  Because in the end, the JOY of the Lord is our strength in all situations.

By His Grace