ACCESS INTO THE FULLNESS OF JOY

“For You have made him most blessed forever; You have made him exceedingly GLAD with YOUR PRESENCE” – Psalm 21:6                     

Our Heavenly Father is ever-ready to grant His children ACCESS INTO the FULLNESS of JOY: “…You have made him exceedingly glad with Your presence” (Psa.21:6). This reinforces Psalm 16:11, “…in Your Presence is Fullness of Joy; at Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore” (Psa.16:11).  The key theme of Psalm 21 is ‘Joy in the Salvation of the Lord’! The entire Psalm speaks about the King rejoicing in the Lord's strength: a prophecy of Christ as the King of kings, but also of His Church, as we are each kings and priests of God (1Pet.2:9; Rev.1:6; 5:10).  But even here, it speaks of God's presence as our Joy. One very powerful reason therefore why we must foster a strong relationship with our Creator, is to have Access in His Presence to the Fullness of Joy:

What difficulties and challenges are you having in your life? Are you experiencing such stress that is breeding anxiety within you? You may need to reflect on your relationship with God! When you are close to your Father and abide “in His Presence” you will have such joy that will diminish or overshadow the troubles. Never forget this: Joy is different from and more than happiness. Joy is something that resides and abides inside of you, even though you may be going through tough trials. Joy is part of the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22). Once you have been baptized, believed in the gospel, and received the Holy Spirit, you have access to the divine Joy of God! In contrast, happiness is determined by what happens to us, and on transient emotions and fleeting feelings!

Joy is complete in God’s Presence! Many Christians tend to keep themselves so busy that they seldom make their spiritual life a priority. This is an enormous error. Fulfilment, comfort and understanding come from knowing God and what His Word says. As we talk with Him and fellowship with His Spirit, He will carry us through whatever trial we may be facing. We only need to commit to our relationship with Him, through consistent personal devotion. Praying is our opportunity to talk to God; while studying the Scriptures is how He talks to us.

There is grave danger in staying away from personal communion with the Lord.  Just few days of not meditating in the Word and praying could cause one to begin to backslide or go astray. Anxiety easily sets in when we have neglected to tap into the Giver of Joy and Peace or to drink from the Fountain of Life: “For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light” (Psa.36:9). It’s only as we spend quality time with friends that enduring relationships are built. It works the same with our relationship with God. We can only strengthen our relationship with God when we are actively working on it. It is apparent that David always made God his Priority: “I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved” (Psa.16:8). “Always” implies not just in a time of need or of trouble, but at all times. That’s the guarantee of unending Joy!

God’s plan of redemption for all humankind is so uplifting. His Kingdom is a Kingdom of Righteousness, Peace, and Joy: “for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom.14:17). We can experience these eternal virtues today by deepening our relationship with God; by knowing Him and talking to Him. King David experienced divine Joy so deeply that he shared it with us in the Psalms. We, too, can experience the Joy of the Lord when we are in God’s presence submitting to Him. We build our relationship and access His presence through prayer and study or meditation in His Word. Every blessing flows from being in His presence – as we seek Him, we shall experience joy, gladness, fruitfulness and fulfilment.