There's a fundamental difference between happiness and Joy.
Happy is contingent upon earthly circumstances; but Joy comes from the LORD!
Joy
Christian Living
Encouragement
0
Well, Galatians chapter 5 tells us the fruit of the Spirit is joy, and joy is something very different than happiness. And it's very important for us as believers to be able to differentiate between happiness and joy. And it's not that happiness is a bad thing. Happiness isn't a bad thing. I pray that my people find happiness all the time. I want to be happy. I want my wife, my kids to be happy. Happiness can be a wonderful thing, but happiness is 100% contingent upon outside circumstances. Things happening around us, our favorite sports teams winning, getting a raise, eating your favorite meal, whatever it is. And again, it's not that happiness is bad. It's that when your favorite sports team loses, or you get demoted, or you burn your favorite meal, happiness goes away. The difference between happiness and joy is that joy is a specific gift from God that transcends our external circumstances. It's an inner peace and kind of an excitement of our relationship with Christ, and how that can move us through those times of unhappiness. When life gets hard, not if, but when life gets hard, in the midst of those times, we can be people of joy. And then sometimes joy looks like to be joyful, to be excited, to smile, and in happiness. Sometimes joy can be just a sense of peace, and calm, and purpose, and endurance through those hard times. Everybody experiences and expresses joy differently. The one thing they all have in common is the source, and the source of joy is the Holy Spirit. And that's why it's so important for us as believers to be people of joy, especially in hard times, because that's when the world will see it. When they know, and it's okay to be honest about the fact that you're going through a rough time, because it gives the world the chance to see the joy that we have through the power of the Holy Spirit. So I want to encourage you today, I hope you're happy. I hope there's happy things happening in your life, but if there's not, find your joy in your relationship with Christ. Think about your grace and your mercy, everything that Christ has given you. Pray. Pray that he gives you that joy, that inner peace and calmness, so the world can see the Spirit within you, and moving in you, to be able to shine glory on Jesus. Listen, if I can pray for in any way, if there's anything that I can do for you, please don't hesitate to shoot me a message and ask. God bless. Have a great day.
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