The Quiet And Joyful Soul

Wednesday, June 14, 2023

Good morning, Lord

Verse of the Day: Philippians 3:20 New King James Version

For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,

Memory verse: John 10:27-28...27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

Today's reading: EZRA 9-10 ACTS 1

The Quiet And Joyful Soul

Does the way you deal with hard troubles ever bother you? You know, the fact that the Bible says a lot about peace and joy and 'not having troubled hearts' but when the really hard stuff hits you the hardest, you are extremely troubled? We need to be reminded that Jesus did feel troubled.

Matthew 26:38 ►Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

Yes, Jesus was troubled with sorrow and he went through His own death and the resurrection to conquer it so that we would know that the power of God is ours in Him to conquer our own hard times. Jesus died to set us free from the law of sin and death. Jesus died and then sent us His Holy Spirit to help us heal and know His victory in our own lives.

John 14:27(Jesus said) "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

There are many who claim to be believers who seem quiet souls but show no signs of joy.

John 15:11 ►(Jesus said)"I have told you this(to keep my commandments in the preceding verse 10) so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.12 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.…"

So, what has happened to us from the point of realizing our salvation in Christ and being born into His kingdom of freedom and how we are now? The Bible tells us:

Jeremiah 2:13 "My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.

Please consider what this verse says. God says, "My people...have committed two sins". There are many that say they are born of the Spirit of God but seem to be short of His peace.

Have you created your own 'cisterns'? This meaning, have you `created your own way of systems in your own life to create or achieve perfection in your life? If these 'creations' of our own are not of the Spirit of God, they are sin which means we have forsaken our God. Please don't stop reading.

We all make decisions at one point or another that are not of Faith. This is always sin and Jesus died to forgive all sin-past, present, future. We let sin build a wall between us and God-sin that is already forgiven. God has done His work-the sin is on us. This is where confession comes in. When we confess, we agree with God that, yes, we have sinned and we are sorry for leaving it untouched for so long. God removes our guilt that results from our sin-He restores the years(or whatever amount of time) that the locusts have destroyed.

The everyday living-lesson here is that what we feel on the inside during times of pain and sorrow should be governed by what is inside(our counselor, the Holy Spirit) and not by what the world says on the outside.

Jesus said in John 15:4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

Peter wrote in Philippians 4:11 ► I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.

Learning to be peaceful and joyful(content) is a choice. Draw from God's capacity granted to us in Christ Jesus.

...because He loves us...

Father in Heaven,

I draw from Your capacity to defeat this sorrow; I draw from Your capacity in Christ to forgive and love. I confess I have let sin numb me from your power to defeat the world. Have mercy on me.

Merciful and kind Master,

In the name of Christ Jesus,

Amen