The joy of the Lord is our strength!  How can joy, an emotion; create strength?

One of the definitions of strength is an intensity of an emotion or belief.  So, if the joy of the Lord overflows beyond measure, then the intensity of the outpouring of that joy upon us gives us the strength we need to endure and overcome.

Psalm 16:11 tells us, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

In God’s presence is the fullness of joy!  Not partial, or incomplete joy but the fullness of it.  When something is full it means, it is filled to capacity, nothing else can be added or it will result in an overflow!  My God!  What a delight it is to have this type of joy on the inside of you every day of your life.  How do you tap into this type of joy?  By getting into God’s presence.  How do you get into God’s presence?  Seek Him in prayer and meditation.  Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

Now is this the only time you can experience this joy?  Only in meditation and prayer?  Nope.  You can experience this joy all the time if you desire it.  How? Receive the Holy Spirit.  If you already have the Holy Spirit living on the inside of you then you have this joy already.  You make the choice when you want to activate it but its already there.

When Jesus’ disciples received the Holy Spirit the Word of God tells us they were filled with joy!  Acts 13:52 “And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”

Romans 15:13 tells us, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”

I love this scripture.  Let’s break it down to get the meat of this thing….

May the God of hope…God is a God of hope?  Yes!  The believer’s hope is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. – Hebrews 11:1.  This type of hope is similar to faith, because it cannot be moved by situations or what we see because of the concrete evidence that God is faithful.  

Hebrews 6:18 says, “So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us.”

Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?”

So we now have identified that among many other attributes of God, He is a God of Hope and Promise.

Second, God desires to fill us with all joy and peace in believing.  So, filled…complete in joy and believing.  What are we believing?  The Promises in God!  In the previous scriptures, we’ve identified that God keeps His Words.  His hope is an assurance…a guarantee…of the promises He has provided to us in His Word.  We are believing He is the Great I AM….we are believing He is well able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we could ask or think…we are believing He is a God of wrath to those who walk in disobedience…we are believing He is a God of love to those who will answer His call and receive Him as Lord of their life…we are believing God is sovereign!

Third, So that by the power of the Holy Spirit, you may abound in hope.

Lets look a the third person of the Holy Trinity which is the Holy Spirit according to scripture.

The Holy Spirit brings revelation knowledge – John 14:26 “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

The Holy Spirit is an intercessor – Romans 8:26 ” Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”

The Holy Spirit bears fruit – Galatians 5:22-23 ” But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”

The Holy Spirit is a gift from God – Acts 2:38 ” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

The Holy Spirit brings wisdom – Isaiah 11:2 “And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.”

The Holy Spirit gives us hope!  – Romans 5:5 ” And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”

So, now we have revelation of how this all ties together.  We abound in hope because the Holy Spirit has imparted divine hope into our hearts.  We can now walk in the conviction of assurance that God’s Word is true and that we are living in the joy of the Lord daily because by His Spirit we are filled, complete in Him!!

Be strong and courageous, God never fails!

Meditation verse – 1 Peter 1:8 “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,”

Blessings!!

Keishana