Joy Abundant - How Jesus Gives Us Joy Amidst the Stress of Life

Psalms 16:17 — “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

Many of us, as we live out our earthly lives go around hearing about having joy amidst the trials in life. But what happens when your life takes a turn you never anticipated? That doctors visit, that job loss, that life altering event that no one could ever prepare you for…
When we’re face to face with scripture, and life seems or whirl around us, how can we apply this joyful way of living in the midst of difficult circumstances?

Joy isn’t separate from suffering

We first need to ask the Lord to help us to make peace with the fact that joy cannot and will not ever be completely separate from suffering.

Yes, we will go through seasons that feel happy and whole, and seasons that feel hollow and filled with unanswered questions…but joy in the Lord isn’t determined by the enemies’ schemes or the realities of life on earth. When we encounter trials and tribulations in our lives, it can be tempting to believe that when the struggles and emotional toll come to claim our days, that our joy is lost until whatever it is that is plaguing us is resolved. But this belief is how Satan has kept millions of believers trapped in an endless cycle of fear, and depression. Joy isn’t on the other side of trials.

It’s right here, meant for you right now.

And yet still, the wonderful thing about joy is it doesn’t diminish the hurt and wounding of the spirit that we experience as believers left in the wake of struggle…but rather it makes room for peace, faith, and healing to move in. Joy of the Lord validates the scars, while simultaneously being a balm to our soul.

Jesus was the perfect example of this kind of joyful living. Throughout His life, he knew the suffering ahead of Him. He knew, as he laughed with his mother, that one day He would see her tears hit the floor as she knelt at the cross before him, He knew as He watched Peter mature in faith and lavish brotherly love onto him, that he would deny Him, He knew that despite His coming sacrifice, being beaten and bruised beyond recognition to save His people…that they would be the ones to crucify Him.

Yet He still lived with joy abundant.

And He did this because of His continual reliance and time spent with The Father.

Christs deep suffering has brought us abundant joy

In Christ we have the assurance that no matter what event, doctor visit, news, scheme or loss makes us feel unsteady, we are ultimately secure in Christ, and because of that we can choose to praise and worship Him in spirit and in truth.

   But we can’t do this apart from God. It is by continually being filled in His presence, sanctified, and comforted, that we can begin to walk in joy despite those struggles at hand.
Our joy is found in the truth that in Christ we have Salvation (Which is healing, restoration, provision, safety, and eternal life) in our spirit, soul, body, work of our hands, and covenant relationships, we can choose joy knowing that we are met on all fronts by a powerful God. Because we serve a God who is good and has plans to prosper us and not to harm us, to give us a hope and future and works all things out for our good, we can choose joy knowing that this situation is in the hands of God. Because we have a Father who gave His son for us so He might be made sin for us who knew no sin so that we could be made the righteousness of God and partake in the divine nature of Christ, when we stumble, we can choose joy knowing that our identity in set safely in Christ.

   And when life feels like too much, and we are met with struggle and confusion, and fail to comprehend and choose joy despite all of this, we have a deeply loving and compassionate God, who leads us and guides us and helps renew our minds so we can glory in the joy of salvation and truth once more — and when we choose to ask God to help us to have joy, we can take comfort in the truth that He will do just that.

How can you sit at Jesus’ feet today and receive joy?"