Max Lucado wrote in the Inspirational Study
Bible “that Sarah was in her golden years when God promised her a son. She gets excited and plans her shower and
remodels her tent…but no son. Even
though Sarah doubted, God demonstrated his faithfulness by providing a son for
her. God will fulfill his promises, no
matter how difficult our problems. Even
when we don’t know how God will act, we must trust that he watches over us.”
“God also said to Abraham, as for Sarai your
wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a
son by her. I will bless her so that she
will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” Genesis 17:15-16
“With
joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. In that day you will say: Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name,
and make known among the nations what He has done, and proclaim that His name
is exalted. Sing to the Lord, for He has
done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion Israel
How can you receive this promised joy that
Sarah knew? Through Jesus Christ for He
came as light, joy, and peace. He is
precisely what the world needs. We may
receive this “great light, joy and peace,” however it will take a disciplined
life transformed daily by the Holy Spirit.
Happiness is a choice but joy is a promised
gift of the Holy Spirit! When you lose
your joy depression, pain, and misery can come in to your spirit.
At first, the light will start to flicker,
then dim, and sooner or later it will completely go out. Darkness sets in and until the light comes
back on, there is no life. So hold on to
your joy! If you lose your joy, you also
lose your strength.
How can you keep from losing this joy? Isaiah 12:3 states plainly:
1)
Give thanks to the Lord
2)
Call upon His name
3)
Make known to the nations what He has
done
4)
Proclaim (shout aloud) that His name is
exalted
5)
Sing for joy
Joy is the fruit of your spirit, but it has
to be cultivated. Learn to resist the
enemy; if he can get your joy, he has your strength. Some folks spread gloom and despair. They will walk in the room and it’s like a
dark cloud is hanging over their heads.
They don’t speak and if you speak to them, they may not answer. They need to recognize the enemy, resist him
and then begin to speak positive, instead of negative thoughts.
SMILE and let joy be a part of your life so others may see and believe. Learn to laugh at your problems. As long as there is life, there will be problems.
If you carry the burdens of others, you will
lose your own. Everywhere you look there
are others worse off than you. Pray for
them, love them, and help them.
Visit a nursing home, a hospital. Do something for someone else and get your
mind off your self. Enjoy the abundant
life and have fun. Learn to live above
the circumstances. So what if things are
not going smooth, accept them as is and move forward. Read a book, go for a walk, get busy, write
in a journal, and spend time in the Word!
If you spend the first part of your day in
prayer, Bible study, and meditation, you will produce joy in your inner
life. However, you are going to meet
people who have been doing everything but putting God first. Don’t allow them to shake you. If anything, let the peace of Christ that is
ruling in your life change them.
Laugh at yourself! Medical science now acknowledges that the
best resistance against disease is laughter. “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a
crushed spirit dries up the bones.” Proverbs 17:22
Sarah reminds us of the need for our
complete obedience to God’s will. What
good would it have done for Sarah to have been blessed with the fulfilled
promise and then have her husband fail to fulfill all the aspects of God’s
covenant?
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