John 16:24

“What’s a spiritual happy dance?” someone asked me after I mentioned having done one. I couldn’t help but smile. Then I realized no one except my husband had seen me do a spiritual happy dance. Why? Because it’s before God and comes from a heart flowing with joy.

Does our Heavenly Father care if we are joyful? Yes. Jesus said in John 16:24, “Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full.”

This does not mean we give Jesus our worldly wish list. Rather, it means we align ourselves to Jesus, who is filled with joy and is the giver of joy; as John 15:11 explains. “These things I have spoken you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.”

These verses may provide a clue as to why believers sometimes may not have joy. We may be able to quote Jesus, but are we living Him? Is His joy in us? In other words, if Jesus was on earth today, would His joy be tied to the worldly, temporal things that affect our countenance? Probably not.

How could Jesus’ joy not be tied to things of the earth? Jesus came from heaven where true joy reigns. He knew earth’s best and finest was temporal and passing away. Joy comes when our minds and lives are Spirit-driven, not earthly driven.

When was the last time you did a spiritual happy dance?

“You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy,” Psalm 16:11.

Lord, we praise You, the JOY GIVER. Thank You that in Your presence there is fullness of joy.

There are countless wonderful and praise-worthy attributes of Jesus. Download this FREE PRINTABLE to explore the attributes of Jesus listed in the book of John. 

“What’s a spiritual happy dance?” someone asked me after I mentioned in an email to my prayer team that I was doing one. I couldn’t help but smile. Then I realized no one except my husband had probably seen me do a spiritual happy dance. Why? Because it’s before God and it comes from a heart flowing with joy. Does our Heavenly Father care if we are joyful? Yes. Jesus said in John 16:24, “Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full.” This doesn’t mean giving Jesus our worldly wish list. Rather, it means aligning ourselves to our Lord’s will. Verses like John 15:11 where Jesus says, “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full” refer to Jesus as having joy and being the giver of joy.  These verses may be a clue as to why believers sometimes don’t have joy. We may be able to quote Jesus, but are we living Him? In other words, if Jesus was on earth, would His emotions be tied to the things to which our emotions are tied? To how people treat us, to  our success, to a certain standard of living? You see, Jesus held loosely to our world and His joy wasn’t tied to it because He had seen God’s KINGDOM, knew this earth’s best and finest is passing away, and that our eternal inheritance is more than we can imagine.

Joy comes when our head, heart, and motivation are Spirit-driven. When was the last time you did a spiritual happy dance? “You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy.” Psalm 16:11

Lord, we praise You, in whose presence there is fullness of  JOY!

Years ago our grandson asked if I’d take him on a ride on our Polaris. Soon he was seated beside me and we headed to the pond. After throwing food to the fish, he looked up at me and said three words that grabbed my heart. “I so happy.”  Looking at that sweet boy’s face, I realized how it must please our Heavenly Father when we’re happy. Understandably we aren’t happy when faced with problems. However, are there factors that affect our happiness? Does God care if we’re happy? Yes. In John 16:24 Jesus said we can ask in His name so our joy is full. If you’re struggling with your emotions, start writing your prayers and recording God’s answers in the journal, Prayers of My Heart. You’ll discover prayers are being answered and there are things for which you can be so happy.

“What’s a spiritual happy dance?” someone asked me after I mentioned in an email to my prayer team that I was doing one. I couldn’t help but smile, then realized no one except my husband had probably seen me do a spiritual happy dance. Why? Because it’s before God and it comes from a heart flowing with joy. Does our Heavenly Father care if we are joyful? Yes. Jesus said in John 16:24, “Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full.” This doesn’t mean giving Jesus our worldly wish list. Rather, it means our aligning ourselves as servants to our Lord’s will. Verses like John 15:11 where Jesus says, “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full” refer to Jesus as having joy and being the giver of joy.  These verses may be a clue as to why believers sometimes don’t have joy. We may be able to quote Jesus, but are we living Him? In other words, if Jesus was on earth, would His emotions be tied to the things to which our emotions are often tied: how people treat us, our success, a certain standard of living? You see, Jesus held loosely to our world because He had seen the KINGDOM and knew this earth’s best and finest is passing away.

Joy comes when our head, heart, and motivation are Spirit-driven. When was the last time you did a spiritual happy dance? “You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy.” Psalm 16:11

Lord, we praise You, in whose presence there is fullness of  JOY!

“What’s a spiritual happy dance?” someone asked me after I mentioned in an email to my prayer team that I was doing one. I couldn’t help but smile, then realized no one except my husband had probably seen me do a spiritual happy dance. Why? Because it’s before God and it comes from a heart flowing with joy. Does our Heavenly Father care if we are joyful? Yes. Jesus said in John 16:24, “Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full.” This doesn’t mean giving Jesus our worldly wish list. Rather, it means our aligning ourselves as servants to our Lord’s will. We also read verses like John 15:11 where Jesus says, “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” Jesus referred to Himself as having joy and in being the giver of joy.  These verses may be a clue to why believers often don’t have joy. We may be able to quote Jesus, but are we living Him? In other words, if Jesus was on earth, would His emotions be tied to the things to which our emotions are often tied: if we’re being treated like we want, if others are doing what we want, if we have the home, success, job, living standard we want. You see, Jesus held loosely to this world because He had seen the KINGDOM and the best and finest in this world is passing away.

Yes, we often get sucked into the rush and whirlwind of this world because we’re living in it. But Jesus said don’t store up on earth where moth and rust ruin. Many of us may not be experiencing joy because we have one foot in heaven and the other on earth and we’re wretchedly pulled and stretched. We struggle to make it through the day. Jesus explains in John 15:1-10 that the deep joy for which our soul yearns isn’t in money, the right job, or another person. Christ had no home, no spouse, and a job that was anything but glamorous. He was constantly talked bad about by religious people. Those closest to Him argued. He was in constant demand day and night. His family didn’t understand Him. So what joy is He talking about? It’s the joy we experience leading someone to the Lord. It’s the joy of leading a Bible study and seeing someone grow. It’s the joy of seeing God accomplish something through us that only He could do. It has nothing to do with money, clothes, homes, and other trappings that Satan has deceived us into thinking that when we get them, all will be right with the world and we’ll be happy. It’s a big fat lie. Joy comes when our head, heart, and motivation are Spirit driven. When was the last time you did a spiritual happy dance? “You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy.” Psalm 16:11

Lord, we praise You, in whose presence there is fullness of  JOY!

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