I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”
- Lamentations 3:24 (NIV)
The LORD is our portion! How wonderful is that? Jesus is more than enough for us. In Him, we have everything. Without Him, we have nothing! No purpose, no hope, no salvation, no healing, no peace. We need to seek Him to be healed, fulfilled, joyful. Any other source of these things are only temporary. The world pursues happiness in money (money is not evil; the LOVE OF MONEY is), alcohol, drugs, parties, fame, premarital sex... They pursue happiness in a variety of sinful things, never looking to JESUS. They are looking for LOVE in all the wrong places, looking EVERYWHERE except to our Creator. Psalm 43:4 teaches us that God is the source of all our joy.
There I will go to the altar of God,
to God—the source of all my joy.
I will praise you with my harp, O God, my God!
- Psalms 43:4 (NLT)
In HIS PRESENCE, there is fullness of joy (Psalm 16:11).Worldly happiness is circumstantial & always leaves you empty. The joy of Jesus? -- It comes with no regrets, only benefits. We see this in Psalms 103.
Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
- Psalm 103:2-5 (NIV)
So today my question for you is this:
Are you allowing God to be the source of ALL your joy? Or are you still seeking happiness in sin or in idols? Remember that:
"No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him."
- 1 John 3:6 (NIV)
Idols are not just other (so called) "gods" like Buddha or Muhammad. An idol can be anything. An idol is anything you put before Jesus. It can be sin or addiction, yes, but that isn't always the case. It can be a spouse or a boyfriend/girlfriend.It could even be something as simple as spending too much time on Facebook. I've said it before, and I will say it again: If you have time for social media, you have time to read your Bible. We need to spend time with Jesus daily in prayer, in His Word, & in worship. We need to renew our spirit daily just like we need to renew our bodies with sleep, food, and water.
My prayer for you:
Dear Heavenly Father, I pray that everyone reading this would seek their joy in You alone. Help them allow You to fill any voids in their hearts. Help them
Hide Your Word in their hearts, that they may not sin against You. May they never be lacking in zeal, but keep their spiritual fervor, serving The Lord. Show them
If There are any idols in there lives & if so, help them give them up. Help them put You first always. May they make time with You their top priority every day. May they hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall Be filled. May they relentlessly pursue You. May they realize You are their portion. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
Your right hand upholds me.
- Psalm 63:8 (AMP)
This is my lock screen. It reminds me daily to chase hard after Jesus! :)
Fall In Love with Jesus,
Rachel Marie
