The Joy of Jesus

by Leonard Ravenhill

 Joy! What a scarce commodity that is. There are many who say that they are abiding in Christ. There are few who show that they are abounding in Him. Joy! How elusive. How indescribably blessed is the believer who has his soul filled with it.

Isaiah had predicted, “With joy shall ye draw waters from the wells of salvation.” Our blessed Lord in His high priestly prayer requested from His Father for His disciples, “That they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.” He prayed this for every soul that should ever believe on Him. “. . .for them also which shall believe on me through their word.” (John 17:20).

Joy is not created by possessions, or by positions, but by a Person—Him! Let me add, however, that joy is not an inflexible, unvariable thing. It is not a deposit placed in the soul after salvation without any chance of deterioration. It can stand all pressures satan or circumstances bring against it; but, and ponder this well, the sun of joy in the soul can be eclipsed by our own disobedience.

Joy requires at least two conditions: submission and service. “If ye abide” --submission—means staying put when it might seem smart to quit. It means believing God when it appears far wiser to believe everybody else. It means defying one’s feelings and fears and saying triumphantly, “Thy will be done!”

Joy comes through service. Most Christians are activists; they get caught up in some kind of church work. But not all of it is good. Not all of it is essential. Even missionaries find themselves tangled in lesser things than winning the lost. Unprayerful souls soon get diverted from the supreme task He appointed for them.

Exceedingly Precious

They shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; (Malachi 3:17)

But what will the honor be for us poor creatures to be reckoned by the Lord to be His crown jewels! This honor have all the saints. Jesus not only says, "They are mine," but, "They shall be mine." He bought us, sought us, brought us in, and has so far wrought us to His image that we shall be fought for by Him with all His might. C.H. Spurgeon 

Blind Skiers

"I will guide them ... I will not forsake them."

Isaiah 42:16 NIV

One day when he was skiing in Colorado, author Peter Lord saw some people wearing red vests with the words 'BLIND SKIER'. He thought, 'I have a hard enough time skiing with two good eyes, how can they ski successfully with none?' The answer was - they had a guide whose instructions they totally trusted and followed! As the guide skied beside them, he'd tap his ski poles together and assure them he was there. Then he'd say, 'Go right! Turn left! Stop! Slow! Skier coming up on your right!'

What a picture. Life is like skiing downhill blind. We can't see even five seconds into the future. We can't see the struggles to come or all the other skiers who might run into us, or over us. And those fears are heightened when we recall how often we've been blindsided by people we trusted and circumstances we didn't see coming. Humanly speaking, it leaves the strongest of us feeling vulnerable. And that's when we must place our confidence in the God who never changes and never fails. Here's what He has to say to you today:

'I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them' (Isaiah 42:16 NIV).

What is it that gets you through the unfamiliar places, the dark places, and the rough places in life? God's rock-solid promise: 'I will guide [you] ... I will not forsake [you].' And His assurance is all you need! Bill & Debby Gass

Bulldogs and Poodles

"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you"
James 4:8 NKJV

The story's told of a bulldog and a poodle who were arguing one day. The bulldog was making fun of the poodle, calling him a weak little runt who couldn't do anything. The bulldog said, "I challenge you to a contest. Let's see who can open the back door of their house the fastest and get inside." The bulldog was thinking he would turn the doorknob with his powerful jaws, while the poodle was too small to even reach the knob of his back door. But to the bulldog's surprise the poodle said, "I can get inside my house faster than you can. I accept the challenge." So with the poodle watching, the bulldog ran to the back door of his house and jumped up to the doorknob. He got his teeth and paws around it and tried to turn it, but he couldn't get enough grip on the knob to do it, so he finally quit in exhaustion. Now it was the poodle's turn. He just did what he'd been doing every day for the last several years. He went up to the door and scratched a couple of times, then waited patiently. Within a few seconds his master not only opened the door, but picked him up in his arms, patted him on the head affectionately and carried him inside.

The difference was in the relationship. Some of us are bulldog Christians. It's all grunting, growling and trying to please God. Give it up! All God asks us to do is, "Draw near to Me and I will draw near to you."  Bill & Debby Gass

LIFE HAPPENS FAST

Watch closely. Pay attention. Slow down. Take time. Life comes at us full force from the first breath and does not slow down until the last. There is no time to waste.

Scripture calls it "a vapor".

Paul said, "Make the most of every opportunity."

Jesus offers in "abundance."

How many reminders do we need for us to get the message? Life happens fast!

Pull out your box of photos, or photo album, or pull up your photos on your computer and you will be amazed how quickly life has happened. "Where did that little girl go?" "How did he grow up so fast?" "Wow! He looks old!"

Watch the news. Another horrific tornado where lives were lost and property were destroyed in seconds. A plane goes down. An automobile accident on the Interstate. A shooting in the city. A murder in one of the wealthiest neighborhoods. A heart attack took the life of a young husband and father.

Life happens fast. It comes so fast that about the time we get comfortable in one phase of life we move into a different phase. We start feeling good being single, and suddenly we are talking marriage. Then, we work and work at being the best husband or the best wife and here come children. We feel like we get the parenting thing figured out, we are grandparents.

With life coming (and going) so fast how do we manage it? Here are a few things to remember.

Live today, not tomorrow or yesterday. Spend too much time looking ahead or behind and you will miss what is happening in the present. Jesus said, "Take no thought in tomorrow." Paul said, "Forgetting what it behind I press on."

Slow down. Try to eliminate hurry from your life. If you have small children try not to say, "Hurry up!" too many times. When you get on the freeway, drive the speed limit. When you are walking if you see something worth looking at, stop and look at it. Remind yourself that you have all the time you need to do what God wants us to do.

Enjoy the moment. When you work, work hard. When you rest, rest. When you are with friends, shut your phone off and be with your friends. When you are with your spouse, really be with her. When you are with your children, be with them.

Life happens fast, but it does not have to overwhelm us, we do not have to miss it, and we can enjoy it. God has given us life and life abundantly. We have the tools to live it at His pace and in His time and like He wants us to.

This week I hope you can receive the life God has planned for you and enjoy it to the fullest.

As seen in Tom Norvell's weekly email, "A Norvell Note"

Our prayers may be awkward.

Our attempts may be feeble.

But since the power of prayer is in

the One who hears it and not in

the one who says it, our prayers

do make a difference.
--Max Lucado

The Browns were shown into the dentist's office, where Mr. Brown made it clear he was in a big hurry. "No fancy stuff, Doctor," he ordered, "No gas or needles or any of that stuff. Just pull the tooth and get it over with."

"I wish more of my patients were as stoic as you," said the dentist admiringly. "Now, which tooth is it?"

Mr. Brown turned to his wife... "Show him, honey."

It's easy to be brave when someone else is the one experiencing the pain! I wonder as I write and speak about facing trials with a positive attitude if I could be so upbeat if I actually suffer the loss of everything I own in a hurricane or tornado. It's easy to be brave when someone else is experiencing the pain!

It's also easy to believe that someone else is the only one needing treatment. "Don't look at me, doctor. Take care of her!" As you sat listening to the sermon last Sunday, did you find yourself saying, "I sure hope so-and-so is listening, because this is something he really needs to work on!"

Listen to these words of James:

"But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does." (James 1:23-25)

James does not say that the word of God is a magnifying glass or a telescope to look at others. Rather, it is a mirror. And a mirror is only used to look at yourself.

I pray that you will take the opportunity today to use the word of God as a mirror, and may your life be changed by it. Alan Smith

Gratitude--It's Contagious!

'In everything give thanks...' 1 Thessalonians 5:18 NKJV

Author Barbara Johnson was frazzled; she was running late, and on the bus to work she had to stand. Her attitude was going downhill fast when a cheery voice from the front of the bus announced, 'Beautiful day, isn't it?' She couldn't see the man, but she listened to his commentary as he described the lovely scenery...this church...that park...a cemetery...a firehouse. His grateful attitude lightened the mood of everybody around him. Then as Johnson got off the bus she caught a glimpse of the speaker: an average-looking man wearing dark glasses and carrying a white stick! Paul said, 'In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God.' We don't thank God for trials, we thank Him in them. Gratitude is like a boomerang. It blesses the recipient, enables a 180-degree turn and blesses the person who gives thanks. Whatever the crisis in your life, God is prepared for it and has made sure you are equipped to endure it. Many other people have experienced exactly what you're going through. Some have made it through victoriously. No matter what the temptation God promised to '...make a way to escape, that you may be able to bear it.' (1 Corinthians 10:13 NKJV) Every trial has its escape route. They are inseparable. But the devil doesn't want you to know that. Every time you're in the middle of a test, he insists there's no way out. So when the devil is really on your case, piling on the pressure, that's an indication the way of escape is close at hand. We need to do what God says: rejoice! Remember: '...The joy of the Lord is your strength.' (Nehemiah 8:10 NKJV) When you continue to give thanks and have His joy, it gives you strength for the journey. Bill & Debby Gass