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Archive for joy

GSBC: Week Four

Posted by Sara Horn on Thursday, April 22nd, 2010 in GSBC | Comments (1)

This week we’re reading and talking about Chapters Seven and Eight in GOD Strong. God knows my hurts and I can have joy in my circumstances. Those are two ideas that we can sometimes have trouble understanding. But what helps me most when I am going through hard times is to remember that Jesus went through hard times too and that we have the Holy Spirit to comfort us when we are going through them.

It’s easier I think sometimes to ask “Why” rather than “What?” We like having reasons for why things happen and sometimes we like having reasons so we can blame something else or others for it. I hope you’ll pay special attention to the section in Chapter 7 on pages 156 and 157. It will explain this next thought: I don’t believe God uses deployments or any other struggles in our lives to punish us, I think He uses these challenges to bring us closer to Him, to remind us over and over that we can’t do anything without Him in our lives.

When we can realize that each obstacle we face can be an opportunity for us to grow closer to God, we can embrace joy in any of our circumstances. That doesn’t mean we walk around with happy faces like Stepford Wives or something, we will still experience sadness and heartache and disappointment. Having joy within means displaying peace on the outside. And if there was anyone who was a great example of having joy despite his circumstances, it was Joseph. Be sure to check out pages 175-177.

So here are your questions for this week:

1. Almost all of us who visit this site have been through at least one deployment and if we haven’t, we can expect to at some point. Instead of looking at the Why’s of why these deployments happen, let’s look at the What’s. What are you learning or have you learned through deployment? What has God taught you? What incredible tings have you discovered about Him and/or about yourself?

2. How do you keep joy in the midst of tough circumstances (like deployment)? What encouragement would you give another military wife who is struggling with this today?

There are thousands of wives who read this site and I heard from one just the other day, overwhelmed with the responses and support she’d received from others in response to a comment she’d made. Share your thoughts and share God’s hope with someone else today.

Blessings -Sara

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Joy in All Circumstances

Posted by Nikki on Wednesday, February 17th, 2010 in Hope | Comments (1)

“Unless the Lord had given me help, I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death.
When I said, ‘My foot is slipping,’ your love, O Lord, supported me.
When anxiety was great within me, your consolation, brought joy to my soul.”
Psalm 94:17-19 (NIV)

Recently I went with some others from my Sunday School class to take food to a homeless shelter and participate in a Bible Study. There was a snowstorm outside. We made dinner, took it to the shelter, served everyone there as well as some people on the street, and then sat down with everyone who wanted to join in a Bible Study led by one of our group. No one was forced to participate.

The people staying at the shelter have had some very difficult lives. They have dealt with unstable families and substance abuse, loss of material possessions and loss of loved ones. They have dealt with plenty of troubles which could have led them to become bitter.

And yet, these were some of the sweetest people I have ever met! They were grateful that we brought food, they were welcoming, they were gracious. Some of them were believers in Christ, and during the Bible study when they shared what God had been putting on their hearts, I was so impressed by their faith and trust in God! They knew His hope and trusted Him for their futures. They had joy in their circumstances.

I was humbled when we left that night. Certainly, we all have hardships. But to be honest, I have been blessed by God BIG-time, and I know it! So why do I sometimes let myself get bogged down in a pity-party because I have a bad day or because my husband is gone for a few months? Is my God not still with me? Yes. Is He still blessing me? Yes. Do I have hope and joy through Christ, guaranteed for eternity? Yes! Okay…so why do I sometimes indulge in my pity-parties? Because I’m selfish, and sometimes I just lose sight of the big picture.

My husband is actually really great at keeping a big picture perspective. When I’m with him, I can always count on him to bring my focus back to the big picture, a more “eternal” point of view. With him gone, I am learning to look to God for this perspective. I am grateful that He has made clear to me yet another strength and admirable quality in my mate, while at the same time showing me that HE is the one that truly provides this perspective, this wisdom. Recognizing what God has done in my life goes a long way towards helping to rekindle the joy James 1 tells me I should be aware of in difficult circumstances, because this joy is from God – regardless of my circumstances! So the next time I feel down because I am missing my husband, I am simply going to focus on God and count my blessings! And remember those joy-filled homeless people praising God in the snowstorm.

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Nikki is married to an amazing man in the Navy.  She works in international affairs and adores warm weather.

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