“Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The LORD God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds’ feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places.” Habakkuk 3:17-19
This need that God supplies goes along with what we talked about yesterday. Besides peace, God knows we need joy in our lives.
Have you ever risen in the morning and it seems like everything is simply perfect, that life is worth living, and your heart is full of joy? Then you get a phone call, or read an e-mail, or just start thinking about something that has happened in the past. Before you know it, you are stressing over things that really you do not have any control over. Your good feelings from earlier disappear, and instead of rejoicing in the day, you are feeling down and discouraged.
Most problems will resolve themselves. Those that need resolving, we cannot handle alone, but God will help us if we call upon Him. We must remember that joy is not depended upon our circumstances. There is a difference between happiness and joy. We may not be happy about what is going on at a particular time, but as we trust God, He will give us His joy.
There is a chorus that we often sing, “Don’t let anyone steal your joy.” The enemy would like us to be discouraged and feeling down all the time. The Lord knows that one of our greatest needs is joy, and His desire is that we let Him meet that need every day.
Remember our verse that we have been looking at every day:
“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, as we look around at our world today, there doesn’t seem to be much to be joyful about. But we are thankful that our joy comes from you and we ask you to meet that need in our lives today.
Devotion by Anne Johnston
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