This week at church, we continued lighting the advent candles with the candle that represents Joy. In Luke 2:10, the Angels proclaim: “I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.”
That word Joy is an interesting word. Often times we treat joy and happiness as if they were the same. But the truth is these are two completely different things. Happiness is an emotion we feel when we experience something good or pleasing. It’s a feeling that’s based upon the circumstances around us.
Joy however goes beyond circumstances. Joy is supernatural. Joy is a gift from God. It’s something that we experience through the power of the Holy Spirit. I love what Dwight L. Moody once said about joy:
“Happiness is caused by things that happen around me, and circumstances will mar it; but joy flows right on through trouble; joy flows on through the dark; joy flows in the night as well as in the day; joy flows all through persecution and opposition. It is an unceasing fountain bubbling up in the heart; a secret spring the world can’t see and doesn’t know anything about. The Lord gives His people perpetual joy when they walk in obedience to Him.”
We can experience this joy because of Christmas. We can experience this joy because of a Savior who came to this earth and made a way for us to have life in and through Him. That’s what Christmas is all about and that’s why we can experience the Joy of Christmas.
And something I’ve learned over the years is that JOY was meant to be shared. This past Sunday I referenced an old song titled “Go Tell it On the Mountain”. This song is a reminder that we get to go into the world and share with others the Joy that we’ve experienced through Christ—in hopes that they too will experience His Joy.
My prayer is that all of us will experience the Joy of Christmas this year and that we’ll take time to share that joy with others.
thesimplemindedpastor.com 