Thought of the Day !!

Always be joyful.
1 Thessalonians 5:16 (NLT)

I shared this verse with the children for children's sermon on Sunday morning and again that afternoon with the folks at a local nursing home. It doesn't matter if we're 2 or 102 or anywhere in between, this is good for us to hear.

I shared that whooping cranes migrate every year. And sometimes they have to light to rest. But when they come down to the ground, they start jumping up and down. For a long time scientists tried to figure out if this was a kind of ritual or something. But the conclusion that they came to was that the birds were simply dancing. They were being joyful.

King David came home with the Ark of the Covenant. And the Bible states that he danced before the Lord. The Psalms teach us to sing out and make a joyful noise. Abraham was so happy at times that he built altars for God. People that Jesus healed were so thrilled at what happened that they told everyone they saw about what had happened.

How do you show your joyfulness? Do you feel that you've had much to be joyful about lately? Let me point out that joy and happiness can go hand in hand at times. But happiness and joy are not the same. I've come to love a song called "Sunshine" by a Christian group called Stellar Kart. In it the singer says that the day can sometimes steal his happiness, but he still has joy. This is because real true joy is what comes from God and is placed in our hearts. It's what assures us, comforts us, and at times brings us happiness. It's a glimpse of Heaven right here on earth.

I read from another devotional that happiness depends on happenings, but that joy goes much deeper. Instead of coming from things outside, it comes from within where our dear Savior lives. Allow Him to bring you joy today. Always be joyful. Then share this joy in a variety of ways. As a matter of fact, I urge you to see just how many ways you can show joy today.

In the love of Christ,
greg