Showing posts with label Joy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Joy. Show all posts

Sunday, January 24, 2016

Hallelujah Blues

You say that your tired, kinda let down
A little bit broken, wearing a frown
no joy, feeling blue, alone, set afloat
let down, Kinda sad, or sunk like a boat

Your get up and go has got up and gone
Your feet lost their dance, your voice no more song
Your emotions are raw, and blinking back tears
Your days feel like months, and the months feel like years

You put on a smile, trying to hide
The sad lonely feeling your feeling inside
you tuck them away, but you know they are there 
Like the beat of your heart, and with each breath of air

Who understands, who feels your pain
The one who made sunshine, also made rain
Who knows your suffering, what you've been through
There is one who knows, Because He suffered too

He hung on a cross, felt the disgrace
carried the burden for the whole human race
betrayed and alone, battered and bruised
Jesus knows what its like to be used.

You may feel alone, but he’s always there
You may think no one does, but Jesus, He cares
Your smile can’t hide the pain from Him
Jesus sees all that is outside, and in

He is the answer for every tear
Every heartache, and every fear
He can reach the darkest place
Infuse it with light, fill it with grace

So don’t be ashamed to carry a cross
Its okay to be sad, feel alone, suffer loss
Feeling down in the dumps, alone, kinda blue
That is okay, Jesus cried too.

But joy in the morning, comes after the night
The grave in the darkness was answered with light
The blind man was blind, before he could see
And jesus will answer the sadness in me

Saturday, February 14, 2015

The Joy Of Holiness

When holiness is mentioned to the vast majority of people in the cultural milieu of today the mental images that emerge are cold and gray. The stereotype of straight laced stern faced individuals populate the imagination. However, Scripture, and experience both paint a very different picture. When confronted with his sin, king David asks for a clean heart, with the hope that his joy would be restored (Psalm 51:10-12). In the days of Nehemiah, when the people read the Word of God and began to understand their sin, they were filled with sorrow, but because they turned their hearts from sin and turned to God, they were told to share good food and celebrate for the joy of the Lord was their strength (Neh. 8:9-10). In the book of Acts, the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit at the same time they were filled with joy (Acts 13:52). The righteous and upright in heart shall exult and shout for joy (Psalm 32:11, 64:10). Jesus calls those who are pure in heart blessed (Matthew 5:8). Anyone who has had their heart cleansed from sin by the Holy Spirit knows the testimony of Scripture to be true. They have found the joy of holiness.

Just as false as the joyless face of the “holy roller” is the stereotypical face of those who revel in sin. The person who indulges in sin is often portrayed as fun loving, playful, and having the time of their lives. Many a ruined life, however, matches more closely to the testimony of scripture. Sin kills (Gen 2:17; Rom. 6:23). A sinful lifestyle has unhappy consequences. Sin is a poison that seems sweet (Job 20:12-14), but in reality it crushes us (Psalm 51:8). Those who give themselves to sin may find it pleasurable for a while, but they find themselves in bondage (Prov. 5:22; Heb 11:25). It is a trap to be avoided (Psalm 141:9).


In the end the wicked are cursed, but the righteous are blessed (Prov. 3:33). “Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” (2 Corinthians 7:1, NIV)