Don’t Let Anybody Steal Your Joy
Introducing the top-up system
Not alot of things gladden my heart these days. Especially in this country. Unfortunately, trying not to think about it’s affairs only results in the opposite.
These days my energy level drops so rapidly that I am hardly interested in anything in a matter of seconds; I am overtaken by boredom and even physically worn out.
Sadly, this poor state rubs off on those around me. And as I struggled to communicate earlier today, the Lord placed a short melody from my younger days in Sunday school in my heart. Simply, “Don’t let anybody steal your joy".
And that made me realize two things:
- I am responsible for my Joy. Choosing to remain dejected is a way of robbing myself!
- “Joy is a fetcher!" in the words of Dunsin Oyekan according to Isaiah 12v3 that says, “Therefore with joy shall ye draw out of the waters of salvation".
So the reason I feel tired and lacking is because I’ve lost my Joy... but it equally means that I can actually do something to keep my Joy intact!
Jesus said in John 15v11, “These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full".
This verse makes it clear to us that Jesus is aware of the power of circumstances to cause our Joy to deplete. So He shows us the way forward by exposing the top-up system which is only possible through His Words abiding in us.
In this we see that if He can refill our Joy, He can certainly preserve it! Even by the same means — His Word.
This, then, places an important task before us. And that’s the responsibility of knowing God’s Word.
Hey! Turn On The Text-to-Power Setting
All of our bible apps come with the text-to-speech option, but today I want us to move from plain text to living in it’s power to make our lives rich.
When overcome with a heaviness we may not even be able to explain, how do we appropriate God’s Word in our daily lives?
Mark chapter 4 shows us how to...
v39 says, Jesus stood up and commanded the wind, “Be quiet!" and He said to the waves, “Be still!" The wind died down and there was a great calm. ⁴⁰ Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Why are you frightened? Have you still no faith?” ⁴¹b Who is this man? Even the wind and waves obey Him!
In these short verses, we see how to snatch back our Joy-
- Ask; what does the Word say concerning me or this situation?: When faced with joy-killers, finding out what the Word says boosts our confidence. Jesus knew that it is said of Him in Matthew 28v18 that all power in heaven and earth belongs to Him, and so He was able to face the storm head-on! The disciples knew that, hence, their question in v41. They knew that outcomes are proportional to what a person embodies. You just have to fill yourself with the Word!
It is true that in those moments scriptures aren’t what would normally dominate our thoughts. But it’s expedient for us to consciously remind ourselves, or else the day would end before we realize that we dragged it on with a cheerless spirit.
- Faith; believe what the Word says and that it is possible through Christ: It is until we believe what the Word says before we can walk in it’s possibilities as Jesus did.
- Act; step out and see God work: Jesus took a step on His faith by commanding the waves. And then what happened? There was a great calm! Don’t be scared to take a bold step on what you believe about yourself in Christ. Burst out in singing in the face of that uncertainty, fix your eyes on Jesus and He’ll lead you out of that temptation with steady hands. If only we’ll dare to obey the Word and submit to the Spirit.
To the worker whose Joy is constantly zapped by an annoying boss and to the one waiting patiently on the Lord, to the depressed and even to the single mum struggling to accept the new normal; if you would take a few moments to flip through the pages of the Bible, you will see what God says about you and that situation. Believe it my friend, and align your thoughts, words and actions in accordance to it and see your Joy fill up and overflow!
With our Joy we will draw of the wells of salvation, lacking nothing in all our days!
With our JOY, we will see God.
The keys we have in this kingdom seem foolish to the natural eye but boy do they work! ~Mazino Malaka
To those who’ve lost their Joy, I pray for restoration. To those who are half empty, I pray the Holy Spirit brings the scriptures to life in you. I pray for believing hearts. In Jesus' name, amen❣️
If this built you up, kindly clap for Jesus by tapping on the icon (50x). Do share with your people. Highlight the parts that resonate with you too, it let’s me know you’re following the conversation 🤭
You’ll hear from me again next Thursday! Till then, hol' ya Joy jealously and visit this post as jara:
