JOY
BREAD
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-25 (NIV)
10 Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 (NIV)
16 Be joyful always; 17 pray continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV)
11 Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart. 12 Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name. Psalm 97:11-12 (NIV)
6 Surely you have granted him eternal blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence. Psalm 21:6 (NIV)
9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” John 15:9-11 (NIV)
24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. John 16:24 (NIV)
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Philippians 4:4-5 (NIV)
12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12 (NIV)
11 You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Psalm 16:11 (NIV)
13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 (NIV)
BUTTER
“Seeking with faith, hope, and love pleases our Lord; and finding Him pleases the soul, filling it full of joy.” Julian of Norwich
“Happiness depends on what happens; joy does not.” Oswald Chambers
“The best way to show my gratitude to God is to accept everything, even my problems, with joy.” Mother Teresa
“If there is joy in the world, surely the man of pure heart possesses it.” Thomas a Kempis
“Circumstances do not have the power to steal your joy. Joy is the by-product of experiencing God’s sovereign grace even in the midst of seemingly impossible circumstances.” Anonymous
“Joy is the most infallible sign of the presence of God.” Leon Bloy
“They that deny themselves for Christ shall enjoy themselves in Christ.” John Mason
“God delights in His covenant and so we are sure He will not turn back from it. It is the joy of His holy heart. He delights to do His people good. To pass over transgression, iniquity, and sin is the recreation of Jehovah. Did you ever hear God singing? It is extraordinary that the Divine One would solace Himself with song, yet a prophet has thus revealed the Lord to us: ‘The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.’ (Zephaniah 3:17). The covenant is the heart of God written out in the blood of Jesus.” Charles Spurgeon
“The surest mark of a Christian is not faith, or even love, but joy.” Samuel Shoemaker
“True glory and holy joy is to glory in Thee and not in one’s self.” Thomas a Kempis
“By the enjoyment of the love of Christ in the heart of a believer, we mean an experience of the ‘love of God shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us’ (Rom. 5:5)… because the Lord has made himself accessible to us in the means of grace, it is our duty and privilege to seek this experience from Him in these means till we are made the joyful partakers of it.” John Flavel
“Hard work is a thrill and a joy when you are in the will of God.” Robert A. Cook
“O love that wilt not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee. I give Thee back the life I owe, that in Thine ocean depths its flow, may richer fuller be. O light that followest all my way, I yield my flickering torch to Thee. My heart restores its borrowed ray, that in thy sunshine’s blaze its day, may brighter fairer be. O joy that seekest me through pain, I cannot close my heart to Thee. I trace the rainbow through the rain, and feel the promise is not vain, that morn shall tearless be. O cross that liftest up my head, I dare not ask to fly from Thee. I lay in dust life’s glory dead, and from the ground there blossoms red, life that shall endless be.” George Matheson
“Solid joys and lasting treasure none but Zion’s children know.” John Newton
“Peace is not found when you get into perfect circumstances. Peace is found because Jesus Christ, the Price of Peace, has gotten into you. Joy is the perfect partner to peace and is found in the same way as peace. Joy is never found in what you have or what you do, but in who you have living in you.” Roy Lessin
“Blessed are the single-hearted; for they shall enjoy much peace.” Thomas a Kempis
“When faith has the upper hand in my heart I am satisfied with Christ and His promises. This is what Jesus meant when He said, ‘He who believed in Me shall never thirst’ (John 6:35). When my thirst for joy and meaning and passion are satisfied by the presence and promises of Christ, the power of sin is broken. We do not yield to the offer of sandwich meat when we can smell steak sizzling on the grill. The fight of faith against lust is the fight to stay satisfied with God.” John Piper
“You can’t get to joy by making everything perfect. You can only get there by seeing in every imperfection all that’s joy. The joy is in having the Beloved, not in loving what we have.” Ann Voskamp
HEART SAVOR
• Joy is the second Fruit of the Spirit and is to be evidenced in the child of the King.
• Joy comes from having Jesus in the heart.
• The joy of the Lord is our strength.
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