The Joy Of The Lord Is Your Strength

If you've lived long enough in this world, you know that the world and the people in this world are great at sucking out the joy in you. So when this happens, where do you draw your joy from? There is only one source of joy that will leave you stronger, and that is of the Lord. The joy of the Lord is your strength.

There I was laying on my bed, crying endlessly. I'd stop crying for a couple of minutes, but then the thought of the hurt would come back again and force more tears out of me. 

How could such a good and loving person that I depended on lead me to where I was? Instead of that person leaving me stronger, I found myself weaker with no joy at all. I prayed and asked God for words that would heal my wounded heart. It was at that moment when I heard the words "the joy of the Lord is your strength". 

What a beautiful truth that was. A truth that I desperately needed and maybe a truth that you need to hear as well. 

Maybe you've found yourself pondering at the thought of why good things in this world just don't seem to leave you stronger or fill you with joy. When we rely on things of this world to be our source of joy, it robs us of the very joy we wanted in this first place. Only God was made to fuel us with joy to strengthen us through the imperfections of people and life. 

This world was made to rob our joy, but the Lord was made to fill our joy. 

Nehemiah 8:10 says, "...This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." God knew that this world would only rob us of all joy and peace, which is why he reminds us to rely on his joy as our strength. God's joy will never fail and will always leave us stronger. 

Immerse yourself in God's truth and presence during your broken times and you will find yourself filled with joy that will only leave you stronger. God's joy has the power to move us beyond our pains, worries, doubts, and fears. 

God made this day for you to see his beauty and be filled with joy. He didn't make this day for you to be filled with sorrow and hurt. Psalms 118:24 says, "This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Don't let satan rob you of the joy that God originally intended for you to experience this day. Rejoice because the Lord has given you this day to glorify him. 

Do you find yourself being robbed of joy? If the answer is yes, then ask yourself, where are you drawing your strength from? Who are you relying on for joy? If the answer isn't God, then know that whatever you are depending on will leave you with temporary joy. You will find yourself chasing after joy when God intended for his joy to chase after you.

Chasing after joy will not leave you stronger, but rather tired and weak. That's where I found myself at - chasing after joy through the things of this world. However, God wants you and me to draw joy from him because he desires to pour out his joy on us. You don't have to chase after joy because God wants to constantly fill you with his joy. Don't let anything rob you of the joy of today that the Lord has made. So remember, the joy of the Lord is your strength. 

Getting Help From The Lord

"Lord my God, I called to you for help, and you healed me." Psalm 30:2

A lot of us are quick to point our fingers to God when things are tough and no sense of help is coming our way. Where is the God who is supposed to help us? How do we get help from God? 

Instead of making accusations that he isn't real or that he isn't helping, have you tried calling on him as if he's your only hope? God will not help those who don't ask for his help. 

So how do we get from the Lord? By simply calling on him. 

Just as if you were to ask help from a lifeguard, school teacher, or even your family, it all starts with you making the request for help. A lifeguard won't come down to save you if you don't cry for help. 

The good news is, you have a God who wants to help you, save you, and be real to you, but you must first accept him and call for his help. God is not just a God - he's your loving father who cares for you and has abundant blessings for those who are ready to accept it. 

The first step to getting help from God is to acknowledge that you are God's and God is yours.

  The order of psalm 30:2 is worth noting. David first says "Lord my God", then he calls on God for help, and then God healed him. For God to help you, you must first call for his help. But before you can call on God for help you must believe that you belong to God that he is for you. God loves you and is the only one who can save you.

God will never neglect the call of his children. Peter, a disciple of Jesus who was drowning in the sea cried out to Jesus and Jesus immediately saved him. Matthew 14:30-31 says, "..Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him."

Just as Jesus reached out his hand to help Peter, he also wants to offer his hand to help you. Call on God and you will find his helping hand in your life. 

Call upon the Lord because he is strong enough to save. 

Romans 10:13 says, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Call on your heavenly father because he longs to be there for you. Only God can be your savior.

Get help from the Lord. 

Your Past Doesn't Have To Hurt You

We all have a past and a story. We may be proud of some stories, while other stories we may be shameful of. We try to forget the hurt of our bad past by hiding it in the bottom pile of our memories, however, your past doesn’t have to hurt you. 

I was worshipping and thanking God for the opportunity I had to share my clothing line and blog at a conference not too long ago. In the middle of my worship and praise, God reminded me of my past. 

A past that once hurt me, broke me and left me to shame. 

But to my surprise, as I was reminded of my past, it no longer hurt me but brought tears of joy down my eyes. Remembering my past reminded me of how much God loved me because I couldn't have been where I am today without his love and grace. 

Flashes of memories of what God has done for me in the past 2 years started to come in my mind. It was at that moment when I saw a loving father reach out to a lost girl to help her find her way out; bringing people into her life that she needed to have, putting a passion in her heart for God's purpose, and opening doors to make it happen. That lost girl was me and I could only have what I have today because of a loving father.

You too have a loving father who longs to transform your life into something beautiful. It doesn't matter who you were or what you did - God's love has the power to change your past that once hurt you to heal you. 

Ephesians 2:3-4 says, "All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh..we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive in Christ..it is by grace you have been saved." God loves you so much that your past doesn't even determine his love for you. He saved you not because you were worthy of saving, but because of his grace and love for you. 

You have the opportunity to have a fresh new start and live the life to the fullest through Jesus. God's hands are open, but you must give up your life to the hands of God for him to change your life. God has the power to use your shameful past for his glory. God can turn your pain into gain, your shame into his fame. 

Paul, an apostle of God who wrote most of the New Testament of the Bible had a bad past. He persecuted the church of God and killed many believers of Jesus. Despite all of this, God called him out to carry the gospel of Christ and to be the light to the world. Paul says in Galatians 1:15 "But when God, who set me apart from my mother's womb and called me by his grace..to reveal his son in me so that I might preach him.."

Just as God called Paul, he also calls you. God wants to transform your hurtful past into a beautiful story that will testify of his goodness. God wants your past that used to hurt you to now remind you of his love for you. 

God's love is what changed me, and it's his love that will change people. 

My past that once hurt me now heals me. My past now only reminds me of God's greater love and grace upon my life. Satan wants us to stay bounded by our past and will plant lies in our head that we can only be what we are. But God wants us to know that he has the power to use what once harmed us to bring light and hope to the lost - to further his kingdom here on earth. 

 Your bad past will not invalidate God from using you. 

1 Peter 2:9 says, "But you are a chosen people..God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." God went out of his way to pull you from the dark into his light. God is calling you to a greater life full of purpose that will leave an eternal impact to people. Will you answer to his call? Will you walk into the light he has prepared for you? God has plans to use you - everything you are including the good and the bad. So remember, your past doesn't have to hurt you. 

It's Not All About You

We live in a world that encourages us to have an "it's all about me" mindset. While living a life that's all about you and making decisions that only revolve around you may not seem bad, it will not open the way for you to live life to the fullest. The best of life can only be experienced when it's not all about you. 

When life gets busy, it can become very easy to be preoccupied with your own needs and live in your own bubble. That's where I found myself at. 

With a busy work schedule, bible classes, and my own personal projects going on, my mind was preoccupied with my own life and the things I needed to do. Finally, the weekend had come and I was able to attend the Propel Women's conference. 

One of the speakers there said something that touched me, and it was at that moment when God reminded me of a person who I had been praying for, but recently stopped because I was too busy with my own life. God poured a heavy burden on my heart for that person and I wished I had invited that person to the conference with me because I knew she would really need it. 

If only I had opened my heart and mind outside of my own world would I have remembered to pray for her and invite her to a conference that could have possibly impacted her life. 

Without me realizing, I had an all about me mindset and attitude. 

When our lives are focused only on ourselves, we blind ourselves from seeing the opportunities that God has to use us in this world. 

Living an all about you life stops you from living up to your full potential and purpose from God. Matthew 5:14 says, "You are the light of the world.."The verse doesn't say you are the light of your life, but the light of the world. We were created to shine in this dark world; to touch lives and point others to the hope of Jesus. 

Our purpose in life goes far beyond ourselves - our purpose is to be the light of the world. This world teaches us that we will have the best of life when we go after selfish ambition, but selfish ambition will only leave us empty and wanting more. Why do selfish desires leave us empty? Because God created us to be givers. True joy and fulfillment happen through serving others with the gifts God has given us. 

Our purpose in life is found in what we can give to others. 

Jesus said it himself that "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35). God is not working towards making us perfect trophies for our own glory, but for his glory alone. When life becomes all about you, it draws you away from your true purpose and potential in life. Satan wants to keep your eyes on your own life so that you miss the potential and purpose you have in others' lives. 

Your calling will always revolve around others and not yourself. God is preparing you to be used to touch lives that only you were created to touch. He commissions each of us to go and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). We are all called to share the good news of Jesus to wherever God calls us to. 

Have you made life all about you? Will you open your heart and ask God where he wants you to go and to whom he wants you to share the gospel to? Ask the Holy Spirit to direct you into God's bigger plan for your life because it is only then that you can experience life to the fullest. True fulfillment lies in the investment of others, rather than ourselves. So remember, it's not all about you.