The world, Eyeore, and Piglet

                                                     (Photo from Disney.com)

Are y'all kinda worried about me? Because I am telling you we can emulate Piglet? (Grin) Hang in there, and I will clarify things . . .
Remember what I mentioned about how the current world situation has a lot of peeps on edge? Nervous? Fearful?
I think it's up to believers to show peace and calm -- and joy. It's our testimony!

It's sad, but many people disassociate joy and gladness from Christianity. They think of our faith like healthy food . . . it doesn't taste very good, but it's good for you so you endure it. You get accustomed to it. Joy and gladness reminds them of a party or a night at the pub. Not a church meeting or even a believer in prayer.
But wait!
The Bible declares to us that in God's presence is fullness of joy -- we are His people, and so if we are to reflect His image, we must become joyous people.

You will make known to me the path of life;In Your presence is fullness of joy;In Your right hand there are pleasures forever. (Psalm 16:11, NSAB)

When we studied the eighth chapter of Nehemiah last week, Ezra and the scribes were reading and explaining the Word of God to the people - from dawn until noon! The people realized just how badly they had failed in keeping their side of the covenant with God. They repented and wept for their failures. Now, repentance is indeed necessary; it is a realization of our sin and a turning away from it. But Ezra, Nehemiah, and the other leaders saw that the people repented and so they told them not to mourn anymore, but to enjoy the feast day and observe its significance.
They told the people:

Then he said to them, “Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” 11 So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.” 12 All the people went away to eat, to drink, to send portions and to celebrate a great festival, because they understood the words which had been made known to them. (Nehemiah 8:10-12)

To apply this to our lives today, I believe that we need to experience the joy of the Lord, because it will (as declared in the verse above) yield spiritual strength in our lives.
Now, I realize that God has made all of us differently. There are those who have temperaments that are naturally more upbeat and cheerful. Some of us are mellow and laid back; we find it difficult to share in the swings that other people experience because we are "on an even keel." Others by nature are more like Eeyore, and are a bit more melancholy. God doesn't expect all of us to be "bouncy, flouncy, trouncy, pouncy" Tiggers (excuse my A. A. Milne reference), but we can look to be balanced in our worldview and our outlook on life.
You see, the joy that we are talking about this week is not the joy of natural temperament. Nor does it mean that we have to walk around with a maniacal grin pasted on, or giggle at the least provocation! We are talking about the joy of the Lord.
Does anyone else remember the book (and the movie) Pollyanna? In Eleanor H. Porter's novel, Pollyanna would tell the story of her father searching the scriptures for happy, joyous texts:

“... if God took the trouble to tell us eight hundred times to be glad and rejoice, He must want us to do it—SOME.”

It's true! There are numerous commands to rejoice and be glad in the Lord! In the Old Testament, and in the New!

But let all who take refuge in you be glad;    let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,    that those who love your name may rejoice in you. (Psalm 5:11)

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4)

It's possible. It's even necessary. We CAN experience the joy of the Lord. It's available to all who know God's abundant salvation.
But where do we find it?
First, in His Word . . . .
You see, as we alluded to above, the joy of the Lord is neither the joy of circumstances or of our temperament.
Well, duh.
It IS called the joy of the Lord, right? (Grin)
Human beings can be joyful when they win a lottery. Or get a promotion at work. Or go on an awesome, fun trip (people did that before the coronavirus, and they will again soon). All of those joyful things can be experienced by both unbelievers and believers. But the joy of the Lord is something that only those who know the Lord can enjoy -- in spite of circumstances.

Let's look at King David. More specifically, let's look at his words in Psalm 13. Four different times, in six short verses, David calls out, "How long?" mentioning his ongoing sorrow and suffering. He even asks, "Will You forget me forever?"
But by the time we get to the end of this short Psalm, David is affirming his trust in the Lord's love and care. He states by faith:

But I trust in your unfailing love;    my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing the Lord’s praise,    for he has been good to me. (Psalm 13:5-6)

This is a man who is not talking about the joy in his circumstances, but instead the joy that comes from keeping his eyes on God. It's the joy of trusting in the Lord and in His salvation.

Let's look at Paul. Specifically, the fact that Philippians was written (like many of his epistles) from prison in Rome. While he was in jail, fellow Christians were poor mouthing him. People called "Judaizers" were using subtle (and false) messages to draw away and astray many believers in churches that he had planted. But Philippians is full of joy! It's full of reminders to believers to rejoice in the Lord!
Was Paul just turning a blind eye to the issues of the day? Nope.
Was he oblivious? Naaah.
He was REALLY in tune with reality. He CHOSE to rejoice in the Lord.
Joy in the Lord is not the result of our bouncy personality. It's not the result of our circumstances. It's a choice we make to focus on our Lord and His salvation and care.
More tomorrow!