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IBS 65 - Psalm 9:1-2

Psalm 9:1-2
“I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart. I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and rejoice in you: I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.”


The Bible is full of verses that talk about being glad (joyful) and rejoicing.
  • Psalm 100:2 “Worship the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.”
  • Psalm 33:1 “Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him.”
  • Habakkuk 3:18 “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”
  • Romans 12:12 “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

These are just a few of the verses that I’ve found that have convicted me. It’s easy to put on a smile and fake a laugh, but it’s impossible to put on the joy of the Lord that people see and desire. Christians who are truly devoted to Christ have the joy of the Lord in their hearts. They may have bad days and be sad or upset, but they have a joy deep down that will never leave. Joy is not a feeling you, it’s not “happy”. Joy lasts forever. When someone has joy, you can see it on their face. 
Growing up, being joyful has always been really easy. I was always smiling, knowing I had that joy. But recently, that joy has been fading. People haven’t seen that look of a godly joy on my face in a while. They’ve seen that smile that you can put on and that laugh that you can fake, but they haven’t seen the joy that I once had. 

This past week, God’s revealed to me in several different ways that I’ve been lacking joy. I don’t want to be lacking joy, so I’ve been praying and seeking God on this matter. The more that I read verses about joy, studying it, and asking for it, the more I can see that I’m gaining joy back. God’s been faithful in providing a change of heart and new eyes to see things differently. He’s been placing joy back in my heart and it’s been sweet. 

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