JOY by Katy Moffitt
“Living Loved” by Kaylin Parrock
Christmas Joy by Tiffany Moore
Happy Monday! 2 MORE DAYS of November!!! Time is flying by! This week’s devo is “Christmas Joy” written by Tiffany Moore! Please take the time to read as she shares her heart with us today! I hope you have the BEST week ever!!!!
Christmas Joy – Tiffany Moore
Do you ever watch those cheesy Christmas movies? I love them! At some point, every movie seems to have a family decorating a beautiful Christmas tree with twinkling lights. Then, you see that loving family singing Christmas carols and drinking hot chocolate with a fire blazing behind them. Have you ever contrasted that with how decorating your house for Christmas really goes? First, you clean your house because it is nearly impossible once all the Christmas knick knacks get put up. Then, you have to go to the storage shed or attic hoping to be able to locate red and green boxes and totes. Then, you drag them to your living room. If you have an artificial tree (even a brand new one that you got on clearance the prior year), you might let it air out on the porch so no mama rodents and her offspring come inside with it (yucky true story.) Then, you will probably scratch your arms all up while assembling and fluffing the tree because you don’t have on long sleeves. You might even have to pause during all of this multiple times and remind your children that some ornaments will shatter if you drop them. You might answer what feels like a million questions from your children about the decorations through which they are pilfering. Can you say tiring?! Where are the Christmas carols? Where is the sweet family drinking hot cocoa and the blazing fire? At my house, it does not look like a Hallmark movie! Oftentimes, reality DOES NOT equal Hallmark fantasy. You might get discouraged that your life does not resemble that perfect “Christmas Moment.”
There are several things that can steal your joy: comparison, anxiety, discontentedness, grief, pain and busyness. It is so easy to get caught up in what is going on in your life that you realize you are just “going through the motions.” The Christmas season becomes another item on your “to-do” list. It’s not fun or even special. It’s definitely not sweet like a movie! Comparing your life to those around you (or even a movie), being discontented, feeling anxious about events, physically, hurting, losing a loved one and just being so busy can overwhelm and overshadow the enjoyment of your holiday season. Sometimes, we have to purposefully focus on having JOY during the holidays. He wants you to have joy. In fact, the Bible says in 1 John 1:4 that our “joy may be full.” Living miserably or without joy during any time of the year is not what we are supposed to do. To ensure you don’t lose your joy this Christmas, you need to remember what JOY means.
J- Jesus
Christmas is about Jesus coming to earth as a baby to save us from our sins. It’s not about having perfectly decorated tree or having all your presents wrapped in the same trendy paper. It’s not about the parties or caroling. It’s about remembering and recognizing Jesus. He came to earth so we can go to Heaven. He’s the reason for the entire season.
O- Others
Christmas is about sharing Jesus with others. Yes, we do that some by all the activities we do during this time of year. However, if we will keep our eyes focused on Jesus and the goal of sharing His love with others, we will have more JOY. So, as you’re making cookies, wrapping presents, or even decorating your Sunday School classroom, don’t forget to share Jesus with those around you.
Y- You
Christmas is not about you. 😊 However, it is a wonderful time of year to refocus your spiritual life. It is a good time to put more energy in your relationship with Jesus. Renew your relationship with God by maybe reading your Bible more instead of binge-watching holiday movies (gasp!) Truly reflect on the goodness of God in your family’s life this past year. Thank Him by reorganizing your priorities each day to start the day with Him in prayer.Having JOY in this Christmas season is your choice. Lower your expectations of “Hallmark movie perfection” and just focus on Jesus, the Reason for the season. There is a little chorus that might help you when you start to lose JOY this Christmas. It is sung to the tune of Jingle Bells.
J-O-Y, J-O-Y
Having JOY means
Put Jesus first,
Yourself last and
Others in between!
https://www.sappsolutely.com/devotions/christmas-joy-tiffany-moore
Think on These Things…Whatsoever things are…JUST
But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith. Galatians 3:11
KJV Dictionary defines JUST as In a moral sense, upright; honest; having principles of rectitude, or conforming exactly to the laws, and to principles of rectitude in social conduct; equitable in the distribution of justice; as a just judge.1
Webster defines JUST as 1a: having a basis in or conforming to fact or reason : REASONABLE b: conforming to a standard of correctness : PROPER 2a(1): acting or being in conformity with what is morally upright or good : RIGHTEOUS (2): being what is merited : DESERVED b: legally correct : LAWFUL2
The apostle Paul wrote this letter as an encouragement to the Christians at Philippi. The book of Philippians is a blueprint on how to have joy in all circumstances.
Paul dedicated his life to following Christ. His desire to know Christ above all else is best expressed in Philippians 3:8-10: “Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;”
The Greek word for Just is δίκαιος, ία, ιον (dikaios)3 which means correct, righteous, by implication innocent: a state of being right. It can simply mean someone who is righteous in their ways.4
Paul is admonishing us to keep our focus on things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous, and praise worthy (Philippians 4:8). You’ve heard the old adage: “garbage in, garbage out”. The same is true for applying good things in our lives. What we allow to go into our minds will determine what we dwell upon and therefore what comes out in words and actions.
Many times we choose to focus on things that can bring happiness, and pleasure. We frequently think about things that serve our self will. Though we say that we desire to live a righteous life, our minds are usually focused on things that feed fleshly desires (Galatians 5:19-21). Would your thought life be described as just?
We must train our minds to focus on things that are wholesome. We must pay attention to what we allow to enter our minds through television, internet, books, movies, radio, etc. Spend time in God’s Word and pray. Ask Him to fill your life until your heart and mind only dwells upon that which is in harmony with God’s standards as stated in Scriptures.
Sources:
- http://www.kingjamesbibledictionary.com/Dictionary/just
- https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/just
- Strong’s Concordance – https://www.biblehub.com/greek/1342.htm
- https://misfitministries.org/word-just-hebrew-and-greek/
- Life Application Study Bible KJV
Joy
These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. John 15:11
Webster’s dictionary defines joy as “the emotion evoked by wellbeing, success, or good fortune by the prospect of possessing what one desires.” That definition by the world’s standards leaves something lacking; however, Theopedia defines joy as “a state of mind and an orientation of the heart. It is a settled state of contentment, confidence, and hope.”
The word Joy appears 155 times in the Bible. It appears 82 times in the Old Testament and 73 times in the New Testament. Joy is the keynote of Philippians “Joy in Prayer” (Philippians 1:3-11).
“Joy” and “Rejoice” are repeated multiple times throughout Scripture. Joy is not to be compared to happiness. Happiness is an emotion based on your circumstances. Just like holding your child for the first time or making a final payment on your car or moving into your first home – these things make you happy. As long as things are going well in your life, you are happy. As soon as circumstances are out of our control or things aren’t going just so, we become irritated and disgruntled and lose the emotion of being happy. Joy is being contented in whatsoever state you are in whether it’s good or bad (Philippians 4:11).
Man has an inexplicable desire to seek Joy in all they do. We seek out happiness through all we do. Some seek to climb the ladder of success thinking that if they’ll obtain joy when they reach the top. Some look for joy in seeking out fame, but they find no joy
“Joy isn’t a passing moment of happiness, but rather, an entrenched anchor that keeps our hearts from descending into the deep pit of bitterness, because thankfulness is what keeps us afloat.” True joy is found in having an ongoing relationship with God. It is knowing that our lives originate from the True Vine – Jesus Christ (John 15).
Abiding in Christ
I enjoy how Christ uses tangible illustrations in Scripture to helps understand what He is trying to teach us. In John 15, Christ uses the example of the relationship of the vine to the branches to portray how our relationship with Christ should be.
Our Christian life can be successful as long as we are obedient to Him. As a result of our obedience, we will be have the following fruit in our lives: we will have abiding love, full joy, love for one another, a personal relationship with Christ, exemplify the fruits of the Spirit, and have an answered prayer.
