Romans 14:17

“Great joy, especially after a sudden change of circumstances, is apt to be silent, and dwells rather in the heart than on the tongue.”

      Henry Fielding

I remember an old chorus from when I was a child.  It went something like this:  “The joy of the Lord is my strength” (repeated 4 times).  This simple children’s chorus explodes in the spirit of man when he truly understands that joy is available to all.  Joy is not something conjured up through our emotions, but joy is a by-product of the kingdom of heaven.  Joy is a fruit, not a feeling.  Its roots are in choice, not emotion.  Emotions come and go, but the principle of joy lasts forever.  If you only had joy when your emotions were high, and if joy is the source of your strength, your emotions would dictate how much strength that you possess.  Joy is a fruit, not a decoration.  It is to be shared, not observed.  Joy is meaningless if all you do is hold it inside of yourself.  In fact, joy will disappear from your soul if you try to horde it and not share it.  God designed joy to spread by person-to-person contact.  It is the reason that He told the disciples to go into the entire world preaching the gospel.  The kingdom of heaven (the fulfillment of the gospel) is righteousness, joy and peace in the Holy Ghost.  Joy is a fruit, not a fancy.  It endures, and is not fleeting.  In the midst of the storm, while life’s boat is rocking in the swells of life’s ocean, joy can give you calm.  While soaring on the clouds of life’s highest dreams, joy is the wing that allows you to defy gravity.  Joy is a fruit; it is not a gift.  The price for joy is demanding; it is not free.  The cost was the sacrifice of a sinless man upon a tree that He created.  The cost was thorns, nails, scourging; but most of all, love.  For you and I today, it cost us everything.  The laying aside of all our dreams, goals and aspirations will usher in His dreams, goals and aspirations.  I ask you, “Which dreams would you rather possess?”  You see, joy is a fruit; it is the work of God’s Spirit.  It is not something that you can manufacture, but it is something that dwells in you by the infilling of the Holy Ghost.  True joy is a sweetener for our souls and a celebration of God in our lives.  How strong are you today?