Acts Project

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

 Admittedly, quite often, I begin my days putting down joyful anticipation and picking up joyful resignation.   

Don’t you ever feel like you just can’t shake off the doldrums? When I wake up in the mornings I have thoughts like; “What is this day about?”, “How will I get through?”, and “I can’t wait to go to work so that I can get home.”  These are real thoughts and emotions I go through and have to work through quite often. 

Why do I struggle so much to see the potential in my days?  Why is it so difficult for me to see the purpose that exists in front of me?  After all, I am a daughter of our great God and He orders my steps.

I think there are probably a couple of things going on here….

THIS IS A SPIRITUAL ATTACK….

I am being angrily pursued by an evil, relentless enemy whose goal it is to rob me of all that is in me that reveals the truth of our wonderful God.

As a Christian it is my utmost joy to share about God and His love for me and His love for those around me, this is a delight.  My life is to be an overflow.  I am naturally compelled to share this truth with others as His love has been so freely and wonderfully given to me.  Doesn’t it make sense that the devil would be after my effectiveness and attempting to steal this joy?  Of course!  We need to acknowledge that we are in a spiritual battle and sometimes the feelings we are struggling through are simply darts from the enemy.  Feelings are fleeting; we have to move beyond them for the greater joy.

I AM NOT IN TOUCH WITH THE TRUTH…

I am convinced that many of the struggles we face in life come from our veering from the truth of who our God is and how He looks at us. I am not talking about physical and material struggles nor am I talking about feelings.  I am speaking to behavior and our choices to live out the lies that our spoken to us by the enemy.  For example, when I battle depression and am feeling weighted down with condemnation and well, quite frankly, thinking that God is mad at me, doesn’t like me and is “once again” generally disappointed in me, I am being attacked and it is time to get in touch with the truth.  I read a quote once from George Muller where he stated that it is our number one responsibility each day to delight ourselves in the Lord, we need to get a grip on His heart after us and revel in Him.  Did you know that He delights in you?  Did you know that He looks at you with an all consuming love?!!  In 1 John 3:1 we are told “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”  This is not a truth that changes dependent on the moment or how greatly we “perform”.  This is a truth that remains as we are His children.  This is how He looks at us.  We need to get in touch with this.  We need to wonder at Him EVERY day!  Pay attention to his heart after you.  Did He give you a beautiful sun rise today?  Did he help you through something extremely difficult?  Did he help you to acknowledge the beautiful warmth of the sun or a movie that spoke to your heart?  Did He reveal a new truth in scripture that spoke so directly to what you are going through?  Did he sweetly convict you of something He wants to take out of your life so that you can draw closer to Him?  We need to be in touch with His great love for us.

BACK TO JOY….

Ok, so back to joy.  I believe that we will never be able to reach those who are hurting and need to know God if we our selves are not touched by this truth that produces joy.

Let’s face it, there is much in life that hurts, that is disappointing, that grieves the soul and that brings great anguish.  So how do we find joy?  The Lord has been speaking to me about this because it is an area of my life that needs to be strengthened. 

One evening I came home from a class I was taking on Colossians and the Lord really convicted me through our discussion. I had to come before him and ask Him to heal me, to change me, to show me what the root issue was for my behavior.  He so sweetly whispered, “It was for the joy that was before Him, He endured the cross”.  As it registered with me the Holy Spirit gave me a revelation; “It was for the joy that was set BEFORE Him that He endured the cross”.  Funny how revelation can come through words you have read before or heard a million times, this is the power of God’s Word!  After these words had pierced my heart, I suddenly felt a new freedom come over me and I felt my Father’s sweet conviction.  Isn’t it wonderful how His conviction comes through love and kindness?! I had to ask God to help me to stop living for fleeting joy and to start living for the joy that is set before me, the joy that remains in all circumstances.  Jesus endured the pain and anguish of the cross because of the joy that was set before Him, a Joyful Anticipation!  This is not a giddy joy, or a “high on a cloud” joy.  This is a solid, stable like a rock joy that remains through trial and tribulation.  It is the joy that allows you to feel the pain of this world and enables you to press on and persevere because you are living for the pure and true joy, the real deal.  It is this joy that enables you to see more clearly His heart after you.

Dear God, make this a truth in my life.  Make this the reality of our lives as a Christian community.   God, your word tells us that we are to be joyful always, that this is your will for us! Father, may I live for the joy that is set before me?  May I love lavishly and sacrificially as you have so loved me?  I want to endure this life in a way that wins the broken, the down trodden and the desperate souls as you have won my very own!  I love you abba, thank you for loving me.

Share on Facebook