THE JOY OF THE LORD

O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. Psalm 95:1-3  KJV

A joyless Christian is an oxymoron. There’s no lack of joy to be found in Christianity. As we learn to live in the joy of the Lord, we find renewed strength during hard times. We find happiness during blessed times.

   Christian joy is not a worked-up emotion. It comes as a gift from the Lord himself. In Him is fullness of joy. The package deal of salvation contains more than enough joy to meet life’s demands. Therefore, come before His presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise with psalms.

   Why? Because He “is a great God and a great King above all gods.”

Augustine wrote:
“There exists a delight that is not given to the wicked, but to those honoring Thee, O God, without desiring recompense, the joy of whom Thou art Thyself? And this is the blessed life, to rejoice towards Thee, about Thee, for Thy sake.”

A MAN’S BODY

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?   1 Corinthians 6:19   KJV

For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church:   Ephesians 5:29   KJV

When we came to Christ in faith, along came our bodies. We surrendered all to Him, body, soul and spirit. Our bodies that we once Pizza Huts are now God’s temple.

   In the past we may have been less than kind to our temples, but it’s never too late to refurbish a weathered structure. Treat your body with respect. Eat right, get some exercise, sleep well, and maintain a positive attitude. Our body is one of god’s great gifts.

Martin Luther wrote:
“It is the part of a Christian to take care of his own body for the very purpose that by its soundness and well-being he may be enabled to labor for the aid of those who are in want, and thus the stronger member may serve the weaker member.”

(The above were taken from one of my daily devotional books.)

May these “Words of Thought” be a blessing unto you.
Troy Chandler
Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi