Joy Is Our Strength

“…for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”  Nehemiah 8:10 (b)

After 70 years of captivity in Babylon (modern day Iraq), the Israelites were allowed to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple and the wall which had been destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar.  After the wall was completed, Ezra, the priest, called for the people to gather together so that he could read before them the book of the law (the first five books of the Old Testament also known as The Torah).  The people wept as they heard God’s Word for the first time in a long time.  For many, this was their initial introduction to the words of the God of Israel.  Ezra urged them not to weep and mourn but to celebrate because once again they were together to worship and honor God who had brought them home to Jerusalem.

Israel had much for which to be thankful.  God had not abandoned them because of their prior disobedience, but had given them another chance.  His mercy and love for His creation allowed Him to bring them back to Him more than once.  Their joy and commitment in the LORD had given them the strength to carry on.  When I read how the people wept to hear God’s Word, I can’t help but think how His Word is taken so lightly or not at all in our day.  We have every opportunity to read and study the Bible, yet many ignore it.  They think it is not relevant to our day and age, but scripture becomes more relevant as each day passes.  Perhaps it is the folks who neglect God’s Word who are the ones out of touch.

Every so often we hear of the suicide of some famous person.  I think back to when Robin Williams took his own life.  We never really know why a person, whether he or she is a celebrity or just one of the good old down-home folks, takes his or her life.  The world believes that wealth and fame are the main sources of happiness and fulfillment, but too many wealthy and famous people have committed suicide to give any truth to that idea.

My life is certainly not perfect, far from it.  No one’s life is perfect.  However, it makes me sad to think of all the people who have not experienced the true joy and contentment which is found in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  Until one experiences that joy in Him, one cannot understand what it means to have Christ living inside of one’s soul.  It is not just a feeling, although there is a feeling of comfort and hope in one’s heart and mind, but it is a knowledge that one who is in Christ has a real purpose in life; that life is not just a day to day existence.  It is knowing that there is a future for those who know Christ; that we will live on throughout eternity and leave all the hassles, problems, and fears behind.  And I think that we will have some important work to do in eternity.  We will not just be sitting on a cloud and playing a harp.  But until the day when we reach our final destination, we can experience true strength and joy despite our daily trials as we abide in a personal, intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.