Dancing my troubles away

I recently started a thread at my online community for Christian women about the Fruit of the Spirit- Joy.  One of the ladies at the group made this profound statement:

What our God doesn’t do when facing adversity is become doubtful, fearful, or anxious. He also never falls into discouragement, despair, depression, or self pity.

…this really made me think. I thought about all of the many times this past year that I have been doubtful and fearful and anxious and fell into discouragement and despair and depression and self pity.

Wow.
I have been a mess…and all because I did not understand how crucial the JOY of the Lord is in my life.

It was recently- about a month ago, that the Lord jolted me into reality.

As I was pacing about my house with a frown in my spirit, complaining and nagging and nit picking about what was NOT right about my current situation, He sat me down and convicted me of the Truth of His LOVE.
I felt ashamed to have been complaining when all along He loves me so much and is willing to give me His best.
Only, I must be patient for these things.
He wants us to have the desire of our hearts, but only when we delight ourselves in HIM first and foremost.

With delighting ourselves in Him, comes the spirit of Joy.
I began to praise the Lord at that point. I put on some praise music and began to dance before Him. I didn’t care that my children were watching. In fact, they joined in because mom was so happy!!!

I danced and danced and danced until those nasty chains of depression and bitterness and anger fell off my spirit.
I danced and danced until tears streamed down my face in gratitude for what Christ has done.

I am reminded that only through Christ and in Jesus-Yeshua the Messiah, can I find any true joy.
His JOY becomes our strength in times of weakness and keeps us strong even in the good times.

JOY- A Fruit Of The Spirit

Joy is a Fruit of the Spirit that is manifest along with other Fruits- such as peace and love.  Joy is such a beautiful fruit.  It is probably the one Fruit, along beside Love, that serves as an attraction to the world that we are indeed Christians.

We do have trials and temptations that we go through.  These circumstances oftentimes cannot be prevented, but as Christians the one thing that should set us apart is the Fruit of Joy that we bear, no matter the circumstance.

When Gods Joy is evident in our lives, we tend to smile more and frown less.

When we have Joy, we find the other Fruits of the Spirit seeping out, such as peace and love.  We find ourselves more at peace with what is going on around us and more loving toward those who may be difficult to deal with.

Having the joy of the Lord gives us strength to go through these negative circumstances unlike we would had we been deplete of joy and full of misery.

Nehemiah 8:10 “Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is
holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your
strength.”

What are your thoughts on joy?

How has God’s special Fruit called “Joy” taken you through the rough times in life?