Joy Is a Gift

Admin Sat 22 Nov 2014, 10:42 am

Joy Is a Gift
"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you,
I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the
first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in
you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
(Philippians 1: 3-6 (NIV))

Paul uses the word "joy" sixteen times in just four chapters of Philippians. At the time of his writing, he was in a Roman jail waiting to be executed. Yet, under these circumstances, he was inspired to write the Bible's most positive book.
The joy is still available today if we seek it prayerfully, but we need to cultivate a positive attitude and focus on good thoughts:

"Whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report: if
there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." (KJV)
We have a choice: Our mind can be focused on positive things or negative thoughts--good or bad. We can look for the silver lining of purity or the black one of negativity.
Our response tells others as much about ourselves as it does the person being discussed. If the picture is really that dark, our response could be our version of how this person could be helped. The more one kicks a dog, the more he's going to snarl at us. If we say a few kind words of invitation, soon the dog will literally be eating out of our hand. In the same way, love, positive thinking, and open friendliness can work wonders with those we know.
Joy is like a bank account. The more one adds to it, the faster it grows. The more joy we add to others' lives, the faster we grow. Joy also promotes growth in the other person. The money we place in the saving account multiplies slowly. Kindness to others brings instant gratification. Meeting needs helps both individuals to grow.
Use joy as a gift and see how quickly it multiplies.

…..Ivie Bozeman by way of Eternal Ink (eternal_ink@associate.com) and “Christian Voices” (ChristianVoices@att.net)