Let the Joy of The Lord be your Strength

  • I’ve been thinking a lot lately about “the joy of the Lord is your strength”. (See Nehemiah 8:10). In fact I find myself singing it in my head often! (Yes, it is a song by Rend Collective:)But what does that mean? What does that look like in my day to day living? How can His joy be my strength? 
  • I think of people like Elisabeth Elliot and Corrie Ten Boom. Their lives were full of loss; pain; trials and struggles, yet their joy was in the Lord. Their hope was in Him not their circumstances. 
  • Psalm‬ ‭59‬:‭16‬ ‭(ESV‬‬) says, “But I will sing of your strength; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress.”
  • When David wrote this Psalm, he was being pursued by Saul as well as friends of Saul, they were watching his every move so they could kill him. Saul was very jealous of David, I think because after he had disobeyed God, God chose David over him to be the next King of Israel, and because he(Saul) couldn’t accept the reason God took the kingdom from him and gave it to David, he allowed his desire for revenge and his jealousy to overcome him. But David, instead of cowering in fear of Saul and his pursuers, trusted himself to God.  
  • David sang of God’s power, strength and mercy. He remembered that God had always been faithful. He was his defense; his refuge in days of trouble. David trusted in God to rescue him; to save him from his enemies. David’s joy was in the Lord. 
  • I’ve always loved the story of Jehoshaphat found in 2 Chronicles chapter 20. Jehoshaphat was King of Judah, he was made aware that an army was coming against them to make war, yes he was afraid, but verse 3 says, “he set his face to seek the Lord”. And God reminded them, through Jahaziel, not to be afraid, because the battle was the Lord’s not theirs. So instead of cowering in fear, they sang and praised the Lord…their joy was in the Lord! 
  • There’s also Nehemiah, he had organized and helped with the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem, the people had returned from exile in Babylon and Nehemiah had Ezra read from the Book of the Law of God to the people, I love how Nehemiah encourages the people not to grieve but reminded them that the joy of the Lord was their strength!(Nehemiah 8:10)
  • And I can’t forget about Paul and Silas! They had been arrested, beaten and thrown in jail for freeing a woman who had a spirit of divination, costing her owners the money they had been making off her “gift”. But what do they do? Around midnight they are praying and singing hymns to God!(Acts 16:25), not feeling sorry for themselves, why? Because the joy of the Lord was their strength! 
  • Then Paul of course, reminds us in Philippians 4:4, to “rejoice in the Lord always”, and he was in prison, chained to a guard at the time!
  • Proverbs 17:22 says, “a joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones”. So how do I have a joyful heart? Perhaps it’s by thinking on things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise, as Paul instructs us to do in Philippians 4:8. Or, when you’re feeling down, look up! Delight yourself in the Lord!(Psalm37:4). Remind yourself of His faithfulness, goodness, and love. Let Him be the desire of your heart. (See Psalm 75:25)
  • When worries or anxieties overwhelm you, give your burdens to the Lord and He will sustain you, (Psalm 55:22). 
  • So how can we live from a place of joy? Perhaps Joy can be seen as thankfulness for His many blessings in your life, even in the midst of trying circumstances. Remembering His past faithfulness and goodness to us. Singing praises to Him even in the midst of the storm. Remembering He is in control; His plans are for good and not for harm, and His promise to never leave us or forsake us. 
  • Memorizing Psalm‬ ‭59‬:‭16‬ ‭couldn’t hurt either:) as well as remembering, His joy is “good medicine”; His joy is your strength!


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