Philippians 4:4, “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, rejoice.”
God says through Paul that it is important that God’s children learn to walk in joy! Joy is one of the marks of a person who trusts in Jesus Christ. Nehemiah reminds us that “the joy of the LORD is your strength”. 8:9
Here is a workout for making your joy in the LORD strong. Let me share five exercises that will develop joy in our lives.
Exercise #1: First work on your relationship with God every day.
First, we must have that relationship with the LORD. But as many as received Him to them gave He the right to be the children of God. You must be born again into the family of God.
Then to grow in the LORD and to grow in joy you must do spiritual workouts.
Remember that joy is a Spiritual fruit. So being filled with the Holy Spirit is the way to be stronger in the LORD. Simply put, drink deeply from God’s Spiritual resources and cooperate with Him. That means Bible reading, prayer, worship, listening to God, and yielding to His instructions. It should be a daily workout! It is not just a visit to church once in a while.
Exercise your faith often and it will develop your joy.
Exercise #2: Develop the attitude of gratitude.
The basis of most discontent is comparison. Here is an example. We could be happy with our cars if the neighbors did not have better ones.
Once our basic needs are met, the issue is not “how are we,” but rather, “how are we compared to everyone else.” Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians, “…. give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
With God’s help we learn to give thanks to God in all things. Begin to focus on the good things rather than the negative things in our lives. Have you noticed that the people who are the most faithful are the people who have that inner joy? The people who have the ability to express thanks and gratitude over the smallest things are the people who are joyful. As we begin to develop a thankful heart, a heart of gratitude, it will increase our joy, and it will be the joy of the Lord.
Exercise #3: Cultivate inner joy by giving.
Becoming a giver is supernatural rather than natural. Someone has said that when it comes to giving, many people will stop at “nothing.”
You cannot truly experience joy apart from giving. Jesus taught that it is more blessed to give than to receive. There is a great blessing for people who are givers. They open themselves up to a blessing from God. That blessing is joy.
God is the source of Joy and He is a Giver. He gave his Son. He gives us His grace, mercy, goodness, kindness. As we become givers, we open the doors for God’s blessing.
Bill Gaither put it this way: “If you want more happy than your heart will hold–If you want to stand taller if the truth were told
Take whatever you have, and give it away
If you want less lonely and a lot more fun–And deep satisfaction when the day is done–Then throw your heart wide open and give it away
Become a giver and you will have more joy.
Exercise #4: Practice your Serve. Serve the LORD by Serving others.
Joy comes through service. Give your life to the purpose of helping others. Jesus was the epitome of Joy. Jesus said, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45
Paul says in Ephesians 6, “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does…”
The most joyful and positive people I know are the people who are focusing on the needs of others. When you are focusing on meeting the needs of other people you will find fulfillment and joy.
Joy comes as result of Serving. Chuck Swindoll got it right when he wrote “Improve Your Serve”
Exercise #5: Share Jesus with those around you.
Joy comes as you share Christ with other people. Jesus said there is incredible rejoicing that takes place in heaven whenever a person comes to Christ.
The greatest joy in my life came when I discovered that God loved me and had a wonderful plan for my life. I surrendered to His plan.
The second greatest joy of my life is sharing the good news of Christ with people who do not know Jesus and helping them discover God’s wonderful plan for their life.
God wants us to exercise our relationship, exercise our gratefulness; exercise our giving, exercise our serve and exercise our evangelistic efforts. This will develop the muscles of JOY. The strong Joy of the LORD will be our strength to face all the challenges of this life.