Thursday, August 16, 2012

More Joy in Him

You have put rmore joy in my heart
than they have when their grain and wine abound. - Ps. 4:7
It's easy to look around us and compare what we have with what others have, isn't it? He has more money, she has more friends, more people like him, she is much prettier, the list of things that we can be discontent and upset about just goes on. I often find myself comparing who I am and what I have been given to who others are and what they have.

The problem is that my comparisons don't change anything but my attitude, and that not for the better. It doesn't change what I have...all it does is make me question God's goodness and grace. And then I read this verse from Psalm 4 earlier this week. I have reread it many times because it is so convicting to my heart.

If I truly know the Lord and what He has done for me, none of that matters. Sure, it might be nice to have a car with AC - but my debt before the Lord has been paid! Who cares if I have cool air? Maybe I don't feel as popular as some of my friends. But God has looked on me with favor because of Jesus Christ! I ought to have more joy in my heart than those who have everything that one could desire on this earth.

Tullian Tchividjian explains the impact that the gospel as like this: "When we understand that our significance and identity are in Christ, we don’t have to win - we’re free to lose. The gospel frees us from the pressure to generate our own significance and meaning. In Christ, our identity and significance are secure, which frees us up to give everything we have, because in Christ we have everything we need."

What a glorious gospel this is! We have more joy through Jesus Christ than we could ever have in anything else. In Him, we have everything and that is so very precious.



2 comments:

  1. first of all, I love Psalm 4:) second i love the way u wrote this:) so good. and yeah ya know i read the same thing just a few days ago, and it just hits u sometimes. For me, to have that joy and be more content than those who have the material that i dont... amazing. the only time ive ever felt full of joy, and that joy being true, was in Him. but untill i realized this, it was just so easy to get sucked into comparing myself to others, and how much they have, or how much other people seemed to love them, popularity... and really all it did was upset me. then when i figured out, God doesnt compare us to our friends. He compares us to His son. and realizing how horribly short we fall, yet in the end, it didnt matter how popular we are, how much more we had or didnt have then others, thats not what is measured of us. What is counted is that relationship with Him, that wonderful gift of salvation, and the glory of sanctification... i could go on:)

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