| Good morning everyone, Our theme for this month: “Laugh Again” Our Bible verse for today: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy …” Galatians 5:22 (CSB) Our thought for today: “Cultivate joy” In Galatians 5:22-23 the Apostle Paul lists for us the fruit of the Spirit. These are character traits that the Holy Spirit develops in a Christian’s life as that person grows in spiritual maturity. The passage reads, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Joy is one of the attributes the Holy Spirit brings out in us as we mature in Christ. But we have to want it and we have to cultivate it in all the ways we’ve been considering this month – prayer, Bible reading, blessing others, surrounding yourself with happy and upbeat people, worship, counting your blessings, listening to Christian music, enjoying good clean comedy, and other activities that lift your spirit and cause you to laugh and be joyful. Also, true joy is usually found in the simple things in life. In his book “Laugh Again” Pastor Chuck Swindoll observed, “The happiest people are rarely the richest, or the most beautiful, or even the most talented. Happy people do not depend on excitement and ‘fun’ supplied by externals. They enjoy the fundamental, often very simple things of life … they savor the moment, glad to be alive, enjoying their work, their families, the good things around them. They are adaptable; they can bend with the wind, adjust to the changes in their times, enjoy the seasons in life, and feel themselves in harmony with the world. Their eyes are turned outward; they are aware, compassionate. They have the capacity to love.” Joyful people are usually intentional about being that way. They pursue joy rather than waiting for it to come to them. They cultivate and maintain a bright and sunny disposition. They are lighthearted and they laugh easily and often. Also, joyful people find humor even in situations that might otherwise cause frustration or discouragement. Pastors do this all the time. We try to laugh about and sometimes make fun of the silly and frustrating aspects of church life. For instance, have you ever wondered why casual Christians even bother to change churches? I mean seriously, does it really matter which church you stay home from? (Okay, that’s a bit of dark Pastor-humor. It’s a little snarky but it’s still funny. Lol) I encourage all of us to intentionally cultivate joy. Look for the humor in situations and make it a point to laugh a lot. God Bless, Pastor Jim |
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