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Recently our family endured a challenging time. Overcoming the unexpected obstacle we faced felt like plowing through a concrete wall, and admittedly, during that time, my JOY was displaced by fear. I had feelings of anxiousness while my mind raced around trying to strategize our “next move”.
Thankfully, God’s Word was hidden in my heart – so, I knew better.
Knowledge is one thing, but the application of that knowledge is another.
I knew I had to make a deliberate choice to release the anxious thoughts that clouded my mind and choose to believe God’s Word instead. So, I chose to believe I was to rejoice in the Lord always as Paul encouraged the Philippians while he himself was in prison (Philippians 4:4). But the question was, “How could JOY be restored in the midst of the challenging time our family was facing?”
Paul (as a prisoner), as well as David and Nehemiah (who both had instances of being distraught because of an onslaught by the enemy), knew what to do in their own various circumstances. In my quiet time with God, He helped me recognize three very important points in Scripture that aided these men in their times of turbulence:
- They encouraged themselves in the Lord (1 Samuel 30:6).
- They set their gaze on the Lord’s face— where the fullness of JOY is found (Psalm 16:11).
- They strengthened themselves in the Lord as they rejoiced in Him. (Nehemiah 8:10).
So, in the midst of my family’s trying situation, I knew the only way for me to return to JOY was to set my gaze on Jesus and His promises. I made a deliberate decision to turn off anxious thoughts and replace them with worship.
As I worshiped, my gaze was redirected to the King of kings and the Lord of lords. This very act filled my heart and mind with JOY and strengthened me to “let go and let God”. I “ripped up” the strategy I had been revising over and over again in my mind and chose to trust God— that He would fight our battle as I put my trust in Him. And you know what? In the end, God worked everything out so much better than I could have ever imagined!
(Rejoicing in the LORD always) is a deliberate action of our will. It is sometimes easier said than done, but even so— push through, persevere, and never give up! You can do it!
The next time you or I face a challenging circumstance, let’s continue to hold on to JOY by fixing our gaze on Jesus! As we do, rejoicing in the Lord always won’t seem like some far-off pursuit, but rather a reality that is obtainable for those who put their trust in Jesus.
Rejoicing in the Lord is a significant key to persevering through life – it is our strength in the midst of trials! And as we rejoice, God will see us through. He works all things together for the good of those who love Him and who are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).
Now that’s a reason to rejoice!
“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” -Romans 8:28 (NKJV)
We are happy you are here and are standing with you in the war room!
Written by Evangeline Njelesani
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Bloom and Reed
Featured Image by Mariya from Pixabay
