Joy is Faith

¹¹ Those the LORD has rescued will return. 
   They will enter Zion with singing; 
   everlasting joy will crown their heads. 
Gladness and joy will overtake them,    and sorrow and sighing will flee away.- Isaiah:51:11


At last night's Advent service, we talked about JOY.  One of the things said was that joy was not a synonym for "happiness."  No, joy is something deeper than happiness. Joy is more of a constant state of heart whereas happiness is more finite... an emotion that comes and goes depending upon the circumstances.  But if we have real joy, the circumstances don't  change that.  


Where does joy come from?  I don't think we can have real joy without faith.  Without faith, there is no purpose to the world.  There is no rhyme or reason and we cannot be sure that things will work out in the end.  On the contrary... if we didn't believe in a loving, compassionate God, we would have every reason to believe that things would NOT work out in the end and that hate, greed and violence would eventually overcome us.


Joy is the knowledge that God is in control and he will not - he cannot - let us down.  No matter what happens, and even if it means we will be unhappy for a time, we have that assurance.  So even in our unhappiness we retain that joy.


If I had to pick a synonym for joy it would not be happiness... it would be faith.


Father,
Thank you for providing our hearts with the certainty that you are in control so that we may have joy. Amen.


Joys:  Christmas wrapping done; Advent worship... a reminder in the midst of my busyness to slow down and reflect; one week until Richard gets home.