FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT—JOY
When my parents first learned that I would be moving to Africa, there was a subtle cloud that hung over them at the mention of Credo’s name. Through the deepness of my smile and the surety of my voice they gently, sometimes roughly, wrestled with the idea that it may actually happen. Once they met him, they knew, much like I knew, that in the next year we would more than likely be worlds apart.
A random day I dropped by my parent’s house, and my Uncle Jason was there, lingering in the corner with a glass. The tilt of his head and drag of his shoulders indicated that he’d been drinking. Taking a long breath I braced myself for what he was going to say. For what felt like hours of beratement, which I later learned was a well-intentioned loving uncle, I listened to him discuss an archetype of an African man and a history of a people that wasn’t consistent with the man I was marrying or the family he grew up with. I was insulted, hurt, and pissed off at the notion that he or anyone would believe that I decided this on a whim, with no confirmation from God at all. So, respectfully, I told him, “God knows me. He knows who to send to deliver a message to me. He knows how to speak to me in a way that I will receive it. This right here is not that.”
Later that night, I dreamt and saw a scripture, Exodus 3:12, written on a piece of paper. The beginning of that scripture read “And God answered, ‘I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you...’” I could have thrown myself out of the window. I knew in my heart before that Credo and the life we would have is what God had for me, but the confirmation from God, after being presented with a spirit of fear in my uncle, confirmed everything I knew about Credo and God. My heart swelled with a joy that has never left me since that moment.
When Credo asked my parents for my hand in marriage, they happily agreed, and my mom had a familiar grin on her face. She started by saying, “You know I tried to pray you away right?”. Laughing to herself she continued, “Then, God stopped me in my tracks, and told me ‘This is who I have designed for her.’”. The weight of a familiar joy tickled my spirit and God affirmed again, His knowledge of me, my faith in Him, and my faith in the man I was going to marry.
THE JOY OF THE LORD IS BASED IN THE FAITH AND HOPE THAT WE FIND IN OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIST
The biblical definition of joy is calm delight springing from faith and joyousness caused by the Holy Spirit. There is no joy apart from God. We can experience happiness, a version of contentment, and a version of gratefulness. But, joy, the kind that comes after weeping (Psalms 30:5), the kind that God says is our strength (Psalms 28:7), the kind that will stand and carry us through our suffering (James 1:2-4), the joy that awaits us on the other side of obedience (Hebrews 12:2), that joy, is only found in Christ. Without Him we can never feel the true freedom for hope of joy.
Psalms 16:11 “You make known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
In order for us to be filled by God with anything we have to be empty. A full glass can’t be filled because there is no room. Likewise, a person full of fleeting happiness and worldly passions can’t be filled with joy. The presence of God is mandatory for the filling of joy.
John 15:9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
The definition of remain in this scripture means to be held continually, to last, not to become another or different. In order to be held continually by God you will have to keep His commandments.
Jesus instructs us to remain, to last, to continue to be present in His love because His joy is tied to obedience and completion.
Romans 15:13 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
God is the ruler, creator, and source of all things related to hope. If you are lacking hope, you are lacking the presence and understanding of God. God does not and can not abandon us, distance is not created by God, but by us.
“As” in this scripture is connecting trust to the filling of peace and joy by God. The trust I have in God will be the measure of my joy and peace. If you are lacking joy and peace, you may be lacking trust. If you are lacking trust, where have you not believed, asked, or learned about His character?
2 Corinthians 1:21-24 “Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come…Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because by faith you stand firm.”
God is the source of our ability to stand firm in Christ. He alone gives us the will, desire, and power to live a life pleasing to Him. You will fail trying to love, serve, or live for Him without Him.
God’s spirit is the Holy Spirit. After the resurrection of Christ, the Holy Spirit was sent to dwell, comfort, and lead us in all truth. Without the Spirt of God in our hearts, how will we know what pleases God? How will we commune with Him daily? How can we withstand? How can we navigate life? The Holy Spirit is not optional it is evidence that you belong to God.
Remember the biblical definition for joy is calm delight springing from faith. Standing firm, being immoveable and steadfast, remaining in, tarrying with the things of God comes from your faith. Your faith, being planted in Jesus, is where your joy comes from.
Faith is the currency of all heavenly things. It is how we are saved, delivered, forgiven, and are able to live. Without faith you can’t please or know God. Without faith you can’t know joy.
JESUS IS THE WAY TO ALL THINGS JOY
Even with all the teaching and biblical rearing I received throughout my life I still struggle with remaining in Christ daily. I will find glimpses of Him in instagram posts and reels, sermons and study books, podcasts and verses of the day, but those things are not enough to help me change my life in a way that values the submission to Christ over everything. True connection to Christ is the only way I will know joy. Enlarging my understanding and knowledge of God is the only way I will be able to trust Him. A word given to another person is not enough to sustain me. The things you find in this blog will not be enough to sustain you. The only way to joy, the only way to God, the only way to life is through true connection to Christ. Anything else will not do.
Jesus is the way to joy.
Jesus is the way to life.
Jesus is the way to fulfillment.
Jesus is the way to everything we will ever need in this life and the next!
