My cactus above bloomed beautifully again the end of January and the first of February this year. It is always a thrill and a joy to admire its beauty as it only blooms once a year as a rule, although last year it bloomed twice. Double treat ! But joy such as these soon to fade blossoms bring is rather fleeting and short lived. True joy comes from the Lord and is yours forever !
Joy is fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). You have to be regenerated, born again, in order to have the Holy Spirit living within you and thereby produce fruit of the Spirit, of which joy is one. When you stop the lust of the flesh and worldly desires (with the help of the Holy Spirit), you have the joy of knowing you please the Lord and the joy resulting from a clean conscience.
"And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." - Ephesians 4:23-24
"Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Spirit." - Romans 15:13
So to have true joy, we need Jesus as our Savior, to cleanse us and wash us white as snow. There is joy in the Savior, and joy in knowing you have a heavenly hope. Before I was converted, there was not any joy to speak of. Oh , sure, fleeting moments of happiness, but they soon passed. I have shared with you before how I used to worry constantly, and worry will definitely steal your joy. Thanks to the Lord now, even in the midst of trials, there is still joy for me because I have learned to focus on God and Jesus and I am so grateful for all He has done in my life and in my heart and soul and mind. That is another key to being full of joy, to have a thankful heart and attitude .
The above image says it all. So many people are so self-centered and so self-absorbed that they don't take time for Jesus or for other people.
"The out-and-out Christian is a joyful Christian. The half-and-half Christian is the kind of Christian that a great many of you are,,,,,,little acquainted with the Lord. Why should we live halfway up the hill and swathed in the mists, when we might have an unclouded sky and a radiant sun over our heads if we would climb higher and walk in the light of His face." - Alexander Maclaren
Below is an old song that makes you joyful just to listen to it,
"Joy is the serious business of heaven." - C. S. Lewis
This all reminds me of that quote attributed to Abraham Lincoln, "Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." There is much truth in that, but for true joy you need Christ in your life. You then will lead a more holy life and have a closer, personal and intimate relationship with God through Jesus Christ. What joy ! I intend to do a post here soon about "Holiness", as it is so very important to the Christian in order to see heaven.
Below is a sermon on becoming full of joy by Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Jesus speaking at John 16:22, "And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you."
