"Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:48)

Saturday, October 11, 2014

Outer and Inner Joys

        The public in general enjoys watching sports. Look at the cheerleading and exciting fans at sport events. I attended a university that was a football power and wouldn't think of missing a game. Even when the weather was freezing, I and other rooters did not mind wrapping ourselves in thick blankets and shivering for over three hours through the entire game. Of course, when our team won, we felt great joy and celebrated wildly. This is the kind of outer joy that takes over one through the senses. 
        God gives us great joy too, but he does it completely in the opposite way. For God, our heart is the primary target. When we are open to him, only he can gain access to it. He wants to shape our heart because what it is, we are. When the Lord deposits joy in our heart, it's there, bypassing all the senses. And this joy bursts forth like a fountain, infiltrating our entire being. This is the inner joy that only God can give, surpassing all other joys. It's definitely heavenly!  

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