Psalm 51:12. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.

How are you feeling today?  Are you full of despair or are you full of God’s joy?   If you are not feeling full of joy, trust me, no one here is condemning you for it!  I’ve had many a day that were not overflowing with Joy, unfortunately.

What I am here to tell you though is that being full of God’s joy, doesn’t require good circumstances, in fact, His joy often shines through best when everything around you feels as dark as it could possibly be!  God’s joy is given by Him when we allow Him to consume and fill our lives with Him.  When you focus on just how great our God is and you ask Him to fill you with His presence and joy, the darkness takes a backseat.  Take the time to listen to some praise and worship music and see how quickly your mindset changes. I love the song “Sing Wherever I Go” by We The Kingdom and “I Speak Jesus” by Here Be Lions and also “WayMaker”. When I am struggling those songs and reading my Bible and spending time in prayer just seem to help put things back in perspective.

Being filled with God’s joy doesn’t necessarily mean that your circumstances have changed, it just gives you perspective.  The easiest and best way through your struggles is to hang on and focus on Him.  Allow His light to shine on you and all that you are facing so you can have His peace and be filled with that same joy you felt when you first accepted Him as your savior and you just knew inside that all things were possible because of Him!

Remember that it is “darkest just before the dawn”, so hold on to your hope and ask God to fill you with His Joy and hold you up until you get to the other side of all you are facing!  He loves you!  He wants you to be filled with Joy and Hope today!  The best is yet to come!

Quote: “It is in the struggle itself that you define yourself.”  Pat Buchanan