The Lord recently showed me a seed of joy during one of my morning devotional times. A seed deposited inside of us springs up and causes joy to grow in our hearts. He showed me that this seed of joy begins to grow when we understand who He is and accept that we are indeed His children, His creation. Our Creator/Father is the embodiment of love. He doesn’t only teach us about love; He is love. When we can fully embrace that we belong to such a loving creator who cherishes us, it causes joy to bloom in our hearts.
Today, I truly hear this strong message in my spirit that this is where the joy of the Jesus follower’s life comes from. The joy comes from realizing that He made us and walks with us through our lives (Deuteronomy 31:6 & 8, Matthew 28:19-20). It comes from knowing and accepting that we were each individually crafted by the God of love. It comes from knowing that He is a loving God, all-powerful yet loving. Just imagine how terrible it would be if He was a hateful, spiteful God, but He’s not! We don’t have an all-powerful God who hates us! We can rest knowing that He is always for us and never against us. (1 John 4:7-16, Romans 8:31-39).
We don’t need to worry about our life circumstances or let them get us down. The things we go through in life are only the window dressing of our lives. Things that happen “to” us are not the core of who we are. When we know in our core that we are His, know how much He loves us, that He made us for a reason, and that there is a plan and purpose for our lives, then we will be filled with joy.
Imagine for a moment that you had the richest, kindest, most loving and amazing father, and you knew he loved you deeply. Imagine if you knew that you could depend on your father for everything and that he would always be there for you and love you unconditionally. Well, that’s who you actually do have for a father! If you can get that deep in your soul, walk around with that image of an all-powerful Father who loves you and cares for every moment of everything you go through, joy blooms. If you can trust that God really is your Father and that He chose to create you, joy blooms. Joy blooms when you believe He is for you and never against you, even when you make mistakes when you know that He wants you to succeed in life, for His perfect plans for your life to come to fruition, joy blooms.
He wants to be part of your life and walk with you through every part of your life. He wants to hear from you through prayerful times with Him. (2 Chronicles 7:14, Psalm 145:18-19, Jeremiah 29:11-13, 33:3, Matthew 6:6, 7:11, Luke 18:1, Romans 8:26-27, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, James 1:5, 1 Peter 3:12). He wants to hear from you in the good times and the bad, in the highs and the lows. He wants to climb to the mountaintops with you and walk through life’s valleys with you.
Thank you, Father, for breaking through today and showing me who You are, who I am, and where joy comes from. I pray that every person will experience this realization of who You are and how deeply You care for them. Thank you that no matter what happens in my life, this deeply seeded joy of being your child can never be taken away.
Your Turn: Where is joy blooming joy in your heart today? Let us know in the comment box below.
