The Gift of Full Joy

Much of the cynical talk surrounding Christianity is centered on the idea that in order to be a follower of Jesus, you must strip away everything fun in your life.  Contrary to popular belief, this is a lie.  God doesn't intend for your life to be stripped of joy, in fact, he wants quite the opposite.  Rather than stripping us of happiness, God wants us to fill ourselves with Him.  He knows what true joy is because He understands what is true (John 14:6).  His love for us exceeds ALL things and because of this, He offers us the most pure form of joy there is.  He has designed us for far more than what is on this tiny earth and He knows that we can never be fully satisfied in anything but Him.  We may find temporary happiness in the small pleasures of this world, but we cannot even comprehend what else is out there for us.  In the Matthew 13:44,  a man found a treasure so valuable that he sold everything he owned just so he could have that treasure.  A treasure that is worth our entire life's earnings seems too good to be true, but this is is exactly what God promises us.

Unfortunately, because of our limited capacity, it is hard for us to truly trust that God has greater things than us.  The temptations of this world and the fault in our humanness is that we are constantly searching for fleeting pleasures.  Although there is a kingdom that we have inherited, we can't see it all right now so we tend to put it on the back burner. There are times where no amount of suffering really seems worth it because how can we suffer for something we can't see?

That's where faith comes in.  That's exactly the point where God prompts us to submit to His complete sovereignty and let go of trying to be satisfied in all of the shallow prizes of this world.  Not by "giving up" all fun things, but by allowing God to fill all the holes in our porous body and be filled with true joy.  God wants us to allow Him to strip away what is corrupting our hearts and taking away space for Him, so that in Him we may be fully satisfied.  God doesn't make empty promises like the ones we are used to; the Gospel is a vow that cannot be broken.  When we allow our relationship with Jesus to be the center of our heart, we will be filled with peace in all circumstances.  We won't need to rely on the imperfect world, but only on a perfect God.

Every day, I forget that God's plan is greater.  Every time I allow God to restructure my mindset, I am reminded of how great He is.  He couldn't disappoint us, and there is no way that life with Him could be boring.  His plans for us are so much greater than our feeble attempts, and when we let Him fill us up, we will find a peace and joy unlike anything else.

"These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full."  John 15:11