Monday, September 23, 2024
As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commands you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. John 15:9-11
Finding True Joy
We are all searching for something, and until we find what we are looking for we will grasp one wrong thing after the other. What is it? Some may say happiness, purpose, or fulfillment. But what we are really seeking is joy – not to be mistaken for happiness. True joy from the Lord is deep rooted in our heart. That joy, like the Lord, is unchanging because He is unchanging. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever so when we find true joy in Him, that joy is the same yesterday, today, and forever, no matter what. It cannot be shaken or taken by anyone or anything.
What makes us happy in this moment will be gone the next. Our circumstances can be like shifting sand where we constantly have to adjust what to hold onto and what makes us happy. When we hold onto anything but Him, we will continually have to shift because that one thing will not make us happy or secure always. So we grab the next wrong thing. We are searching for deep seated joy but instead settle for momentary pleasure or happiness in something or someone that will ultimately end up disappointing us, leaving us emptier than before, and even more desperate for that hole to be filled.
How do we experience the fruit of joy in our lives as the Holy Spirit forms it in us? We are all for having the fruit of joy in our lives, but often we do not want to do any work on our end. But to find true joy, there a couple of steps we must take.
Remaining in Him – To remain in something is to abide, dwell, or make your home in. As Christians following Jesus, we live our lives in Him, stepping where the Spirit steps, learning to live and love like Him. If we are not abiding in Him, we will abide somewhere. When we abide in Him, He gives us life and we bear the fruit of the Spirit as we are transformed. If we are not abiding in Him, our fruit will look very different.
Obedience – John 14:23 says If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. Jesus said if we truly love Him, we will want to obey. Obedience to Jesus is a direct result of a transformative relationship with Him and the Agape love He pours into us. His love for us and our love for Him is part of our Spiritual Formation – the process of being formed into the likeness of Christ for the sake of others. - Robert Mulholland, Invitation to a Journey, 16. Part of walking in obedience in Him is pouring out that obedience into the lives of others. When we pour His agape love out to others, we will find true joy. The secret to an abundant and joyful life is to give it away to others
God wants us to find true joy. He desires to give us abundant life in Him, where true joy is found. We settle less and fill the void with something – anything. This deep seated, unshakable joy is far more desirable and fulfilling than anything we try to substitute for it. It is a gift given and the result of abiding in Christ in a loving and transformative, relationship with Him and obedience to Him.
