Thinking Differently

I don't know about you, but my mind has been one of my worst enemies at different seasons in my life.

No, not just because of my struggle with math.

Have you ever had a thought, a moment, or a subject that you absolutely hate to remember; yet your mind finds the worst times to focus on that very thing?

I can remember in Jr. High and High School having these really intense thoughts that I wish I could have erased. They were thoughts of self-hatred, shame, or a general despising of different parts of my personality. I hated when these thoughts would come flooding in, the moment they arrived I desperately wished they were gone.

In those teenage years, my tactic for avoiding these thoughts was to move at such a fast pace, to be so overly dramatic and loud, that it would drown out the thoughts I wanted to avoid.

It seemed to be a working model for a while.

Then it starting to become clear to me that the way I was acting, the persona I was portraying to the world, was completely wrapped up in my fear of these ugly thoughts.

I had become a person completely focused on avoidance. I couldn't stop or slow down, because the thoughts I had come to fear were always just two steps behind me.

I finally came to the realization that I had to face these fears, face these thoughts. I was wearing pretty thin. Truth is, I was so exhausted emotionally I just didn't care anymore.

During this time, God brought a Bible verse to my mind. You may have heard me reference it before.

2 Corinthians 10:5 "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."

Somewhere along the way, I started believing running from my negative thoughts was the best I could hope for.

I was wrong.

I had the answer all along. I was tired of being taken captive by each of these thoughts. So instead of letting these thoughts roam free in my mind, I needed to take each of them captive.

It may sound silly, but I pictured this whole process in my mind. Taking my thoughts captive, and locking them up. The great part was, I realized since I was the one locking them up, the only way the thoughts could come out, is if I let them out.

God never said in His Word, (the Bible) that life would be perfect. In fact it says pretty clearly that we will have valleys and mountains. We will have seasons of great things, and seasons of difficult things.

In Romans it says how we should respond to each of these seasons.

Romans 12:12 "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."

When affliction comes, it is easy to run. For me, it was especially easy to run. But God doesn't tell us to flee in affliction, He says be patient.

Allow me to encourage you with this. You have a lot more control over your thoughts than you give yourself credit for. If you can be patient, and take the time to try this, you will be glad you did.

If you have some fears, some memories, or some hurts, that have set up camp like an unwelcome guest in your mind; it's time to clean house.

Simply close your eyes, ask God for His help, and try this simple exercise.

Think for a moment on whatever thought that has been bothering you; now picture the ugliest, meanest, rustiest, looking cage your imagination can create. Then place that thought inside of that cage. Close the gate, and then place the galaxy's most durable padlock on that gate.

You don't need to run anymore. You don't need to distract yourself any longer.

Just choose to think a little differently, and remember you have the ability to take any thought captive.

A Kingdom Heart

A couple weeks ago we had a baptism service here at our church. 

I love Baptism Sundays because there is such a unique life and excitement in the air that surrounds these days. 

After service was over, I had jumped on Facebook and saw that the post I had written earlier about our Baptism service was being celebrated by friends and family all over. I was so encouraged.

As I scrolled through Social Media, I saw that some other sister churches had also had Baptism services. We had 6 Baptisms that Sunday, some had 12, some 20, and there was even one with over 140! 

I was so filled with joy. God had won the day. People were moving forward in their relationship with Jesus, churches were successfully fulfilling the Great Commission.

In the midst of this moment of reflection and celebration, I was posed with this question.

"Doesn't it bother you that all those other churches had more baptisms than you?"

In the midst of celebrating a great day, a great victory, something so starkly opposite was dropped in my lap. 

It is not a perspective I haven't heard before, in fact it is a mindset that, unfortunately, I hear all the time. 

The heart of this statement comes from a desire to compete, and even more, a belief that you are losing that competition.

Simply put, this type of statement is an indicator of lack of self worth. 

Many people cannot find it in themselves to compliment, or celebrate others accomplishments.

The reason for it, is they believe by celebrating someone else's victory, they are taking from themselves, and giving it away to another. 

They see open encouragement as an addition to another, and a subtraction from themselves. 

They cannot afford to celebrate with others, because they couldn't possibly risk feeling any lower than they already do.

This mindset is based on a lie. Lifting others, lifts you! Encouraging others, encourages you! Celebrating others allows you to be part of the celebration!

God is a God of addition and multiplication, not of subtraction and division.

Be encouraged today, and know that you have so much worth! 

Look carefully at what King David says here in Psalm 139:13-16 "Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother's womb. I thank you, High God - you're breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration - what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Like an open book, you watch me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, The days of my life all prepared before I'd even lived one day."

You are so valuable! You were crafted by God, which makes you a beautiful creation! 

So let me encourage you, you beautiful creation of God! Rest in the truth of your great value, and take time to remind others of their worth as well. 

Change From The Inside Out

I have had a couple really great conversations over the last week that have got me thinking.

It seems to me, that we can all become so fixated on exterior visible change, that we end up neglecting, or failing to show value to the change that happens internally.

What I mean by that is, rather than celebrating, or encouraging each other in our journey of surrendering our hearts to Jesus, and allowing Him to change how we feel and think, we are constantly scanning and making judgements based on the outward results we see.

Whether in a coffee shop, or church on a Sunday morning, people scan the room watching people, and making decisions; looking for exterior things to motivate, or squash the idea of connection.

In 1 Samuel 16:7 God is talking to the Prophet Samuel about choosing the new king. When Samuel arrived to the place God sent him, he saw a large powerful man, and immediately assumed, this must be the new king, yet God had a different plan. "But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.'"

Upon appearance alone, Samuel had made a judgement call, yet he was incorrect in his assessment. The future king was King David, a man of smaller in stature than his brothers. It was not King David's physical size that captured God's attention, rather it was the size of his heart.

Please allow me to encourage you in two different areas.

First, let me encourage you, if you are trying to look like the kind of person you feel people would accept, love, or receive, it's time to change. Rather, ask God to give you the heart of a King, a heart after God's heart.

Second, let me encourage you, if you are depending on outward things to determine what kind of people you surround yourself with, it's time to change. Appearance and outward shells are fleeting and can be deceptive. God looks at the content of the heart, so should we.

Battle for Acceptance

I remember in 1st grade, working on an extra credit assignment over the weekend. We could earn extra points if we wrote out on sheets of paper counting by 2's or 3's. I took several sheets of graph paper, and I went home and filled my pages by counting by 2's. I don't remember exactly what number I had counted up to, but it was in the high hundreds. That next Monday, I walked into class with such confidence, and such excitement. Certainly I was among the intellectually elite, not to mention hard working and quite the go-getter.

I walked up to my teacher when she called out for those who had done extra credit. I proudly stood up and walked to the teacher to turn in my papers. She showed me a big smile, and congratulated me for my efforts. Yet as I turned to walk away, Andy Harris turned his papers in. I overheard him telling the teacher he had counted up to the thousands, and by 3's.

It was the strangest thing, but in that moment I was crushed. Hearing that my best efforts were nowhere near as impressive as Andy's, hit me hard. Andy was a great guy and a friend, he didn't rub it in, and I am certain he doesn't even remember that moment. Yet, I was so deeply wounded.

At that time in my life, I was really struggling because of some hurt I had experienced, so I was pretty emotionally damaged. Because of this I had at a very early age become quite dependent on the praise and acceptance of others. A compliment or acceptance would send me soaring, and a word of criticism or non-acceptance would send me crashing to the ground.

I have learned that so much of what is ugly and painful in this world is fear disguised as something else. Deep desire for acceptance of others is a great example of fear disguising itself. This type of desire for acceptance from others, is simply the fear of rejection.

Deep desire for acceptance from others, is fear of man.

In Proverbs 29:25 it says, "The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe."

The only way we are victorious over fear, or specifically fear of rejection, is by trusting in the Lord. Our focus changes from other's opinion, and rests instead on God. Then we begin to hear and meditate on what He says about us.

So if you are struggling with the fear of rejection; if you are hurting because you are feeling less, or unworthy, please hear me.

The only place you will find true peace and real acceptance, is in God. In Him, you will find all the acceptance and love you will ever need.

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

Just over a week ago, the beloved Pastor of my youth, Rev. John Egerdahl passed away.

Pastor John is the brightest mind I have ever encountered, but that is not what I think of, when I remember him. I sat under him for countless sermons on countless Sundays, and learned many biblical concepts.

Yet the moments I remember most fondly, are the moments we sat in his office at the church, or the office at his house.

John, the greatest giant of the faith I have ever known, poured personally into my life. He spoke to me about my role as a man, my role as a father and husband, and my role as a Pastor. Our encounters usually looked like me sitting down, with paper and pencil, and him speaking about whatever he felt led to share with me that day.

I would ask questions as he quickly listed off books and authors and Greek and Hebrew words to research. He would list Bible passages so quickly, I would rarely be able to write down all of what he said.

I still have those lists, and many of the books I have bought and read are at his recommendation.

But that is not the part of the conversation I remember most fondly.

In our conversations, there were always moments where as John was speaking, he would begin to become overwhelmed with something God had done in his life, or a truth from God's Word would come flooding over him. Pastor John, my hero, would begin to cry.

Even in our most recent visits where his health was failing, his love for God, his love for God's Word, and his love for me had not faded.

I have struggled this last week in continuing on with my daily tasks, because I have so frequently been fondly remembering these moments.

This is what I believe God has been showing me in this time. I pray it speaks to you, as it has spoken to me.

Don't ever lose your hunger for God's Word.

Don't ever allow knowledge of God's Word, to replace your love for God and His people.

Always find time for people, and invest in them.

Freely share with others, what you have learned, and what has been shared with you.

Don't be afraid to allow others to see on the outside, what God is doing on the inside.

Take time, to stop and cry.

My life will forever be changed, because Pastor John was in it. I like to believe that if you look closely, you can see bits and pieces of him in me. It means the world to me, that he expressed his love for me, and his pride in me. He encouraged me by saying he saw that I was growing, and would continue to grow into a great Pastor.

I guess this is the heart of what I want to share. God has likely placed people by each of us that we could learn so much from. Don't be afraid to ask for time to sit with them. Bring your paper and pen, then listen and write.

Each of us are capable of doing great things; but if we humble ourselves and submit to the wisdom of those around us, we can gain so much more. In short, we can do even greater things while standing on the shoulders of giants.

I love you Pastor John, thank you for pouring into my life. You were indeed a giant of the faith.

When the Right Words Are Hard to Find

I have come to grips with the fact that no matter how hard I work at growing and changing, I will always have room to grow.

We can realize that change will always be needed, then as a result, give up on changing. 

But that would be a terrible idea. 

I have this little exercise I walk through, in order to help me in my journey. I simply picture myself in High School, or shortly after. I think about the things I said, the things I did, and how I treated people. 

That is all the motivation I need. 

I had a couple conversations this week that have served as reminders, that continual growth is needed. These conversations were with people I care about, and in the end, I felt good about where the conversation went. 

Even still, I was reminded how my words and my actions directly affect all those around me. 

As hard as it is to accept this, we need to. 

Our growth benefits others just as much, or even more, as it benefits us.

Let me encourage you, don't get discouraged in the small steps along your journey.

Proverbs 21:5 says, Careful planning puts you ahead in the long run; hurry and scurry puts you further behind.

When we neglect the need to grow long term, the best we can accomplish is moments and seasons of temporary change. When we only pay attention to the day to day improvements we are making; we can miss the magnitude of growth we are experiencing over time.  It is the diligent work of long term effort that really shines through time. 

When we live that way, we can look back further, and learn to appreciate how far we have come.

So when the right words are hard to find, learn to be grateful. 

The wrong words you use today, are certainly better than your best effort ten years ago. 

We All Have Room For Improvement

One of my favorite things to do, is have long conversations about the areas of my life where I am weakest.

Not really.

I think the only thing worse than focusing on my weaknesses, is the stress associated with pretending they aren't there.

We all feel pretty comfortable saying we aren't perfect. Yet to talk about our areas of weakness is a totally different conversation.

I remember an interview where they asked me, "what is my greatest weakness". I thought for a second, and then said, "I get bored really fast."

The half confused, half blank stare on his face was pretty telling; he wasn't expecting that kind of an answer. He was looking for an answer like, "sometimes, I just care too much." or, "I have a tendency to try a little too hard in my tasks."

He was not expecting my confession of frequent boredom.

Truth is, a lot of times we ask questions when we don't expect an honest answer. We ask how people are doing, and when they answer with, "not good.", we get really uncomfortable, and feel a bit inconvenienced.

Weakness is a part of our mortal character. We are all here for a limited window. We work hard to understand and grow, but that takes time.

The irony isn't lost on me; that the never changing God, described in Hebrews 13:8 "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today..."; commands me to change, described in Romans 12:2 "... be transformed...".

The difference between me and God is, I still have room for improvement.

So let's embrace the reality that we are indeed imperfect. Let's be willing to talk about those weaknesses with those who love us and can help us grow in those areas.

After all, we all have room for improvement.

Hope Is Now

Hopelessness is such an overwhelming feeling.

I don't know if there is anything more difficult to hear, than someone who is heart sick sharing their feelings of hopelessness.

It is one thing to worry how things will work out, or to struggle to see the light at the end of the tunnel. We all struggle from time to time, wondering how things will come together. We all have issues that may scare us, discourage us, or stir fear and doubt.

But to lose all hope that things will ever get better, that is a feeling I pray no one would ever experience.

In Proverbs 13:12 it says, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life."

When we lose hope, or when we set our hope on something over and over and it seems to fail us, we become heart sick. We get to a place of desperation, and we cry out, "if there has ever been a day I needed this to work, today is that day!" Then the day ends, and still no change.

Truth is, our trouble is going to last longer than we would like it to. Hardship comes more frequently than we prefer, and we will likely experience hurt that seems greater than we can bear.

Even still, do not lose hope.

In Romans 15:13 it says, "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him...

I think sometimes we wait for our hope, joy, and peace to be found when the relief or the answer comes.

God wants us to experience hope, joy, and peace even in the trusting, even in the waiting.

So if you have been waiting on an answer, hear me please. If today is one of those days when, "if there has ever been a day I needed this to work, today is that day!", I encourage you to pray this prayer.

"God give me hope, joy and peace, as I wait."

This is a difficult prayer to pray, but it also moves our focus back to truth.

Our hope is not found in our circumstance, it is found in Jesus.

I Caught a Fish That Was THIS Big

I am not a fisherman, but I have been fishing three times.

Once as a young boy with my best friend Wally, he managed to hook my back with his hook, tearing both my shirt and my flesh. My second time was with a group of youth leader friends in New Mexico. On the way I told them the story about Wally. This made the moment Cameron managed to firmly snag the side of my head with his hook on his back swing, even more ironic. The third trip, I sat in my friend Josh's boat freezing in the rain for a few hours, so although there were no fish involved, we did have fishing poles, so I guess it counts.

The one thing I know about fishing, is that every good fisherman, has a great fishing story. One of the main components to a great fishing story is how the story changes over time. It starts out as a 5 pound bass, and 20 years later, it is a 40 pound shark.

The thing is, as a general rule, everyone believes stretching the truth or lying isn't a good idea. Yet, for fishing stories, this rule gets a pass.

Reality is, there are quite a few places where truth stretching, or truth shrinking are accepted. I'm convinced it really isn't a good thing.

The area I want to talk about today is, truth in our relationships.

Somewhere along the way, we have defined love and acceptance as avoidance of tough truths. For the sake of the relationship, or out of love for the person, we don't talk about difficult things. We don't tell  them when we are hurt, frustrated, or disappointed; because we don't want them to feel bad.

I think part of the difficulty with this, is many of us have used the Bible to explain our approach.

For instance, in 1 Peter 4:8 it says, "Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. "

We say, since I love this person, I will avoid the issue, cover it up, or say it isn't a big deal. Trouble is, that isn't what this verse is saying. When paired with other passages like, Matthew 18:15-17, James 1:19, and Romans 12:17 we see that we are supposed to work out our issues through conversation. We talk about it, with respect for each other, and we do our part to live in peace.

Once we take all these verses into consideration, and then apply 1 Peter 4:8, we see the bigger picture. We are to be open and honest in our dialogue with each other, talking about hurts, offenses, or misunderstandings. The reality is, that is hard to do, so we need to make sure we are committed to loving each other; and that love will help us get through the conversation without bitterness or unresolved hurt.

So let's commit to the hard work of building relationships and encouraging each other, making sure that it is all covered with the growing love we have for each other.

Get Busy, But Not Like Before

Ever since I began in ministry, I have struggled with feeling like I wasn't doing enough.

Only problem was, I wasn't necessarily feeling like I had much more to give. In fact, there were many times I felt like I didn't have anything to offer at all.

For years I just assumed it was because I was weak.

I don't about you, but I am one of those people that likes to learn a simple lesson. One that is easy to understand, easy to explain, easy to apply. God knows that about me, and He is so gracious to package His lessons for me in such a way.

One of those lessons God taught me, and frequently reminds me of, is this; God loves me. He loves me right now, He loves me no matter what I did today, or what I didn't do today. He loves me if I am feeling down, or if I am feeling like I could take on the world. He loves me when I am focused, He loves me when I struggle to put half a thought together. He loves me when I make great choices, and He loves me when I make really terrible choices. God loves me.

I would like to re-word that last paragraph for you...

God loves you, He loves you right now, He loves you no matter what you did today, or what you didn't do today. He loves you if you are feeling down, or if you are feeling like you could take on the world. He loves you when you are focused, He loves you when you struggle to put half a thought together. He loves you when you make great choices, and He loves you when you make really terrible choices. God loves you.

This lesson, although simple in nature, can be difficult to receive.

After God showed me this, I looked at my original question again, "Am I doing enough?"

It allowed me to see something I had not seen before. If I am feeling like I have nothing else to give, then something isn't right; because God loves me, and He doesn't want me to feel that way.

If God calls me to step out in a new venture, and I struggle to believe I am the right guy for the job; I take comfort knowing that God loves me, and He wouldn't tell me to go unless He would give me what I needed to accomplish the work.

I am not saying the answer is, do nothing. God loves us, and He loves us far too much to allow us to be useless. He made us effective and powerful.

Romans 8:37-39 says, "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Look at the heart of this verse, you and I, we are conquerors; not observers or spectators. There isn't anything that can stop us from fulfilling the call God has on our life.

Look carefully though, at where the source for all of this to be done comes from... "the love of God, that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." 

We are powerful, we are conquerors, we are effective, when we are connected to the love of God.

So don't live like I did, don't become consumed by the task; yet, also don't become ineffective sitting idle waiting for time to pass.

Pastor Bill Johnson once said, "If you're not overwhelmed by your assignment (from God), then you are not seeing your assignment clearly."

Not overwhelmed by the work, not overwhelmed by the walls that stand in front of you. Overwhelmed by the love of God, and the greatness of His plans for our life.

So get busy... get busy receiving and embracing the love of God. Yes, get busy, but not like before.

Religion Won't Get You There

One of the most common misconceptions I find people have of Pastors, is that "Pastor" is who you are all the time.

Perhaps I am the minority in this thinking, but I don't think so. Fact is, most of the time I am operating as either Dad or Husband, and sometimes friend, or even Son and Brother.

Which means there are many occasions where I am in the mindset of one of these roles, and that uncomfortable moment comes up where someone asks me what I do for a living.

I am not ashamed at all of God's call on my life, but I really don't like the awkward moments that follow my answer. I try to say it in the least spiritual way I can think of, "I work at a church" or, "I minister at a church in town."

No matter how I word it, the inevitable follows. They either shut down the conversation and walk away, or begin to explain to me why they don't go to church anymore. I don't ask them, they just start explaining. There is also often a great increase in the use of the phrase "Lord knows...".

It's kind of funny, but mostly sad.

The most common explanation people give me is, they tried church, but it just wasn't for them. Maybe they went as a kid, or were part of a youth group in High School; but somehow they went from an attender to a non-attender.

It is my experience that these people are the hardest to reach with the truth of the Gospel, or the Good News about Jesus.

I think the reason it is so difficult to reach someone in this position is they have tried church, and it didn't work for them. It is hard to convince us to try something again, especially when you are convinced it won't make a difference.

Trouble is, just attending church won't change your life, not really.

I think this stems from the fact that many believers have made the mistake of pushing church attendance, and not emphasizing relationship with Jesus.

In 1 Peter 1:8,9 it says, You never saw Him, yet you love Him. You still don't see Him, yet you trust Him - with laughter and singing. Because you kept on believing, you'll get what you're looking forward to; total salvation.

Relationship with Jesus is something no one can give you, it is a journey we each need to walk on. And although we don't see Him, with relationship, there is no doubt that He is there. It is a genuine affection and love that grows in us as we get to know Him more.

So if up to this point, church is what you are trying, it is time to change your focus. If you tried church before and it didn't work for you, I understand. Instead build a relationship with Jesus.

It's always been about Relationship, Not Religion.

If you are in relationship with Jesus, He will bring you to a place of joy, peace, comfort, and understanding. Please hear me when I say, no matter how frequently you go, or how committed you are, Religion won't get you there.

He Is So Good

At times over the years I would hear people talk about how they are, "looking forward to heaven" or how they, "wish they were in heaven now". I did not agree with their sentiment.

In fact, for a long time, I was pretty upset with the idea of heaven. Partly because of the enormity of eternity, it scared me when I tried to imagine it. It felt like I was falling.

The main reason I was not real excited about heaven was because heaven was described as worshipping God all day long.

With my viewpoint of worship at that point... heaven sounded more like a punishment.

I grew up in a pretty traditional church, where we sang mostly hymns led with a piano and organ. I have since found other styles that I tend to prefer, but I still love many of the classics; however, my issue was not the style of worship.

The issue was my perspective of worship; or more accurately, my perspective of God.

I viewed God as big, powerful, holy, angry, and terrifying. My interactions with God, started and ended with, a long list of profuse apologies.

Worship for me, was trying to sing God's anger away. It was not pleasant for me, and I am not so sure God was super excited about it either.

Worship, much like Christianity, is much simpler than many make it out to be. Christianity is about relationship; a relationship with Jesus. Worship is one part of that relationship.

When you sing a song about how good God is, that should reflect your observation of God's goodness. When you sing about God's love, that should also reflect your appreciation for the love God has shown you.

God is not self conscious, needing your affirmation to remind Him He is doing a good job. God is not angry with you, and the purpose of your worship is not to sing God's anger away.

Worship is about your response to God in your life. If during worship you find yourself awkwardly standing there mumbling through the words, hoping they do 4 songs instead of 5; I would suggest this is not a style issue, it is a you issue.

The real issue is your perspective of worship; or more accurately, your perspective of God.

Follow me on this thought.

When we walk with Jesus daily, we are constantly reminded of the goodness and the love of God. His work in our life leads us to talk to others about Him, and causes us to sing about His goodness.

Worship when done from a viewpoint of relationship, becomes so easy and freeing, regardless of the style of music. Heaven becomes an exciting reward. It's an eternity of worshipping God!

That sounds good to me, because He is so good to me.

Wouldn't You Rather Be Happy?

I know we are approaching the season of celebration, family, and giving. Yet, it seems that during this time, some of us struggle to even crack a smile.

For many of us, there are days where smiling would take as much effort as running a marathon.

Let's be honest though, those days are not every day.

So if you are struggling to get happy and stay happy, I hope to help.

Let me start off by saying, smiling is not happiness. People who smile when they are unhappy, look like someone who is lifting something very heavy.

You aren't fooling anyone.

You aren't helping yourself either. In Proverbs 17:22 it says, "A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." 

God isn't asking us to fake it. Joy is more than just the impression we give those around us. Our end goal is not to make people see us as a joyful person. Joy is for us too.

As this verse in Proverbs eludes to; joy builds us up physically, emotionally and spiritually. A lack of joy has the reverse affect. It kills us from the inside.

Part of the difficulty in finding joy in our life, is many of us attach joy to circumstance. If things are good, we feel good, if things are bad, we feel bad.

That is not a good way to live.

We are putting the control of our health in the hands of chance and circumstance.

Chance and circumstance are not your friends, they don't care about you.

In the Bible there are quite a few verses that instruct us to be joyful whether in all kinds of circumstances; Romans 12:2, James 1:2, Philippians 4:4, and 1 Thessalonians 5:16.

God wants us to detach our happiness from chance and circumstance.

Why?

True joy, true happiness comes with being close to God. We can be close to Him regardless of what's going on.

In Psalms 16:11 it says, "You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. 

Joy comes from being in God's presence. As we walk through life close to Him, we are constantly reminded of the love of God. We are never alone. When we can remember that, when we can keep that on our mind, we will have joy.

So stop trying to force a smile, it isn't working; and stop looking for happiness in circumstance. Circumstances change all the time.

Find your joy in God's presence, He will give you perfect joy.

Sure, control over your circumstances would be nice, but when you think about it, wouldn't you rather be happy?