The Joy of the Lord Is Your Strength

I posted this on our church website May 24, 2009 Hope this encourages you and blesses you.

Nehemiah 8:10 …... And be not grieved and depressed, for the joy of the Lord is your strength and stronghold.

Isaiah 61:3 …..the oil of joy instead of mourning, the garment [expressive] of praise instead of a heavy, burdened, and failing spirit--that they may be called oaks of righteousness [lofty, strong, and magnificent, distinguished for uprightness, justice, and right standing with God], the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.

Have you ever noticed when you are sad, grieved, or depressed you feel physically weak and weary? Depression can be feelings of hopelessness, discouragement, and heaviness. You can become grieved, sad, or depressed when something you were expecting didn't happen the way you thought it should. Or you can become grieved and unhappy when you feel like you missed it. Or grieving and depression can come when you lose something or feel like you have lost something or someone. Sadness and grief are emotions that may often come into our lives for various reasons. Satan likes to use these emotions to defeat us and get us to quit and give up. The enemy would like to keep us down looking at the negative things or the loss. When we do that we turn our focus off of God and onto self. We can then end up in a pity party and become no earthly good for the Kingdom of God. Self-centeredness and a poor me outlook can be the result of having and staying in a pity party. The scriptures above give us the tools to fight sadness, grief, and depression. The Strong's meaning of the word joy in Nehemiah 8:10 means rejoicing. Rejoicing is your strength. And Isaiah 61:3 "the garment of praise" which tells me that I have to put on something. We have to choose to praise Him even if we do not feel like it. We can't live by our feelings because unless you have good control over your feelings they can be up one day and down the next.

I know some loss is legitimate like the loss of a loved one but Psalm 30:11 says "You have turned my mourning into dancing for me; you have put off my sackcloth and girded me with gladness," We can experience sadness and grief when we lose someone we love but we can't stay there. In 2001 I experienced the loss of my mother, I grieved and cried, the following Sunday at church I heard this scripture in my spirit. I stepped out and danced. I praised God through the dance and He gave me strength to get through the following weeks.

God will turn your mourning, He will give you joy and gladness but you have to take the first step and praise Him. You have to make the effort, you have to choose to let go and praise Him. You have to change your focus; you have to choose to look on the promises of God.