Love and Joy Perfected

How is that for a title?  I have to admit I borrowed it.  I was spending time in my burgundy NKJV/Amplified Parallel Bible that has my name embossed in gold (that Pastor Arland gave me :-) and saw those words as the heading over John 15:9-17.  It caught my attention seeing as how LOVE and JOY are rather serious matters to me.  Reading there convinced me that my loving others is directly connected to the amount of joy that exists in my life.  Read it for yourself to see if you get the same impression.  

Jesus is speaking in the passage saying:

“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” 

“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.  Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you…These things I command you, that you love one another.”

In summary, He is saying:

·        I love you the way Father God loves Me

·        Live with My love as your way of life

·        If you follow My directives, My love will be your way of life the same way I follow My Father’s directives and  His love is My way of life

·        I am telling you this so that you can have My joy and you will be filled with joy

·        My command is that you love each other the way I love you

·        No one has a greater love than Me, Jesus Christ, the one who lays down My life for My friends

·        You are my friends if you do what I direct/command you to do

·        What I direct/command you to do is to love one another

 

Jesus wants loving others to be our way of life….our standard…..our norm!  And not just any old love, we are to love as He loves us – love others enough to lay down our life for them.  I appreciate the fact that He makes it plain.  He puts it out there for us to embrace and be rewarded with His joy & fullness of joy, or reject it and continue with a mediocre life.  Personally, I want all the joy I can get.  I said in an earlier blog that joy is a gift that you get when you place your trust in God.  Trust Him and make loving others your way of life.  You will reap dividends in joy, like you could have never imagined. 

Recipe for Joy

“I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life.” Deuteronomy 30:19

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” Proverbs 18:21

It is so important for us to choose actions and  words that are pleasing to God as we walk this life.  Each of us have a God shaped longing in our hearts – nothing else will completely fill or satisfy it.  Only in living for Him will you have fullness of joy, and my personal favorite - joy unspeakable!  That’s when you have so much joy that you try to resist speaking about it for fear of annoying those around you.   That is the kind of joy you have when you walk in your God given purpose. 

Like the Apostle Paul says in Philippians 3:12, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”  I’ll be honest, I want the joy that Jesus took hold of for me so I made some choices, choices that I declare regularly knowing that according to Proverbs 18:21 (stated above), I will eat of the fruit of my words.  So let me share with you my recipe for joy - the three things I choose and declare:

1.  I WILL TRUST GOD

I don’t have a solution to every problem or situation that comes my way, but I belong to the one who does.  I rely on His vast wisdom and compassion believing that I can and will successfully navigate this life with Him. 

Scripture

·   Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path.  Proverbs 3:5-6

2.  MY DAY WILL BE A GOOD ONE

I seek joy & peace to the extent that they have become my norm.  When things happen that are capable of rattling my cage, I acknowledge God and pray for His direction.  Then I relax in the faith I have in God, through Jesus Christ.

Scriptures 

·    The joy of the Lord is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10

·    The peace of God that passes all understanding will guard your heart  and  mind through Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:7

3.  I WILL BE A BLESSING TO SOMEONE TODAY

As I walk through life with Jesus Christ as my example, I become increasingly aware that my life is not about me.  As long as I focus on myself and my ‘stuff’, there is always room for discontent.  When I focus on being good to others and sharing the source of joy and peace in my life, I have purpose, I have joy, and I am fulfilled. 

Scripture

·    Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercy and God of all compassion.  He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us.    2 Corinthians 1:34 (The Message)

Happiness is nice, but I’d rather have joy.  Happiness can be affected by what happens to the people, places & things you care about.  Joy is a gift from God that you get when you place your trust in Him.  Try joy.  Once you have it, you will never want to be without it.  I promise.

How Do YOU Love?

We, the body of Christ, are to share the love of God with others.  If you are a Christian, it’s your job.  Really, it IS your job.  It’s my job too.  And it is the job of everyone who bears the name Christ.  Why?  Because we live in a world where people are lonely, hurting, disappointed, disenfranchised, and hopeless.  If we aren’t willing to extend love, who is going to do it? 

In Matthew 22:37-40 when asked which the greatest commandment, Jesus is replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”   Whoa Nellie!  (Yes, I did grow up watching Bozo, the clown.) That is major!  Of course we all claim to love God, but I don’t see a whole lot of people chasing their neighbors down to love on them.   

1 John 4:20-21 says, “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.”  Hmmm.  Now, it’s not Barbara saying that, it’s Bible!  And I didn’t see any exceptions given, which means that we are called to love the ‘unlovely’, those who may not look like us, act like us, believe like us, vote like us, smell like us and in some cases may not even like us.  None of that matters.  What matters is that we are obedient to the job given to us, the job to love.  

According to 1 Corinthians 13, “if you have not love, you are nothing”.    Again, very serious.  So, how does one love like that?  Well, we have all read the formula in the same chapter.  But have you ever applied it to yourself?  Read out loud the excerpts from verses 4 -7 below.  Instead of the word ‘love’ there is a blank.  As you read, fill the blanks with your name. 

____________ never gives up
____________ cares more for others than for self
____________ doesn’t want what ____________ doesn’t have
____________ doesn’t strut, doesn’t have a swelled head,
____________ doesn’t force self on others,
____________ isn’t always “me first”
____________ doesn’t fly off the handle
____________ doesn’t keep score of the sins of others
____________ doesn’t revel when others grovel
____________ takes pleasure in the flowering of truth
____________ puts up with anything
____________ trusts God always
____________ always looks for the best
____________ never looks back, but keeps going to the end

Wasn’t that a good description of you?  That is the YOU that will fulfill the commandment to love.  Let me encourage you to speak those words regularly, so that they nestle deeply in your spirit.  Hide these words in your heart so that they define who you are, but more than that, they will define how you love.

The First - 7 March 2015

This morning, around 2:00, I woke with it on my heart to write a blog.  A BLOG?  I had never written a blog.  This is uncharted territory for me.  But I know that I can do all things through Christ Jesus, so I am taking the proverbial deep breath and diving in.

I encountered an issue yesterday that saddened me.  It didn't take my joy, but it gave me pause.  I prayed about it, spoke with Pastor Arland about it.  I have peace about the situation, but I don't believe that the person who caused the issue has peace.  Sadly, the whole thing was due to misinterpretation of scripture. 

Sometimes we just need to talk about things.  We get comfortable with our personal biases and those of our particular social group, and sometimes those filters cause us to miss wonderful things that God has for us......things that we could enjoy if we are just willing to expand our horizons and get out of our comfort zones.  When we talk about things, when we share with one another we enhance each other's lives.  We glean from the experiences of others and they from ours.  Together, we can benefit from that wealth of experience and knowledge.  And as we lovingly share with each other, we gain understanding and ultimately trust. 

Consider your life with more understanding and trust.  Consider the body of Christ with more understanding and trust.  Just consider.