7 Secrets to Keeping Your Joy 
By Joyce Meyer
Are you enjoying
your life? If not, God wants you to.
Jesus said in John 10:10 (The Amplified
Bible) that Satan comes to steal, kill and
destroy, but He came that we "may have and enjoy life, and have
it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows)."
I believe this
means God wants us to enjoy every part of our lives-not just little bits and
pieces here and there.
Many people today
live their lives in a constant state of stress and turmoil.
But as Christians,
we don't have to live that way. Why? Because God's Spirit lives in us, and a
fruit of His Spirit is joy.
Now this joy is
not just a "happy feeling" based on our circumstances or on the
things we possess - it is an unshakable stability in our inner man (spirit).
Joy can range
anywhere from a calm delight to extreme hilarity, and it is the joy of the Lord
that is our strength (see
Nehemiah 8:10)
Many years ago, I spent
most of my time uptight and upset about something. The reason for this was
because my happiness was based entirely on circumstances. If things were going
my way, I was happy. If we had money in the bank, I was happy.
If it was Friday
night, a holiday, or if we were on vacation, I had joy. But since these things
accounted for only a small part of my life, the majority of the time I was sad
and discontented.
As my relationship
with God grew, I got tired of being happy only if and when things were going my
way. I was weary and
God's Word said
that I could live my life with joy, and I finally decided that I was going to
do whatever it took to have it. As I really started to seek God about this
issue, He began to reveal to me several important principles that are critical
to receiving and keeping our joy. Following are seven of these life-changing
essentials:
1. Be led by the
Spirit. One of the most dynamic ways to keep
our joy is to allow the Holy Spirit to lead us in the way we should go.
Proverbs 16:9 says, "A man's mind
plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps and makes them sure."
Probably one of
the hardest things in the world for people is to walk away from doing something
they have done for a long time. In many ways, I can't stand to do the same
thing for too long.
For example, I
have several pairs of pajamas because I just don't like to look at the same
ones all the time. But in certain areas I'm not like that-I would probably be
happy with the same hairstyle until Jesus comes!
If we do the same
thing the same way too long, it just becomes old and stale, and it means nothing.
But one of the things I have learned about the Holy Spirit is that if we follow
Him, He keeps everything fresh. Life does not get stale when we follow the
Lord.
The Holy Spirit
will lead us to change things on purpose just to make us pay attention to Him.
God may lead you simply to take a different route home from work. He may want
to show you a new tree or something beautiful on your way home.
Don't just keep
doing things the same way if you are no longer joyful when you do them. You
will lose your joy if you are not willing to get out of the boat.
2. Simplify your
life. Don't try to do too much. Satan works
hard to complicate your life so he can steal your joy. If you want to live a
less complicated life, you may have to simplify it by not doing so much.
I used to whine
and grumble about my schedule saying, "How can
anybody do all this? I never have any time to rest. I never take a
vacation."
God finally told
me one day, "You're making the schedule. If
you don't want to do it all, then just don't do some of it."
If you're too
busy, I suggest that you take an hour or so and write down everything you are
doing or want to do. Then look at which events are not bearing any fruit and
mark them off your list.
Before I
uncomplicated my life, I never had time to enjoy my
I encourage you to
spend time with your family and friends. Enjoy your relationship with God. Many
people are too busy to even take a walk. Take a little bit of time to look at
some of the things God has created.
Learning how to
simplify your life is possibly one of the most important principles to
understand because Satan wants to steal your time. He steals your joy by making
you too busy to enjoy all God has given you.
Take time to
laugh. Take time to enjoy your life!
3. Pray with
Boldness.
Jesus said, "Ask
and keep on asking and you will receive, so that your joy (gladness, delight)
may be full and complete." (John 16:24)
I believe there
are people who are not receiving from God what He wants them to have because
they won't ask boldly of Him.
Hebrews 4:16 tells
us to come "boldly" before God's
throne that we might receive grace and help in our time of need.
Many Christians
feel as if they need to "clean themselves up" before they can come to
God in prayer.
But our
righteousness is in Christ alone, and no amount of good works will make us
right with God. If we are in Christ, God sees us as righteous right now!
A few years ago, I
stepped out in faith and prayed, "God, I'm asking You to let me
help every single person on the face of the earth."
My mind said, Now
that is stupid. But I kept praying that prayer anyway, and our television
ministry has expanded greatly since that time.
The Bible says we
do not have because we do not ask (see James 4:2). I would rather
ask for a lot and get part of it than ask for a little and get all of it!
Be bold and
confident in God when you pray; don't be double-minded when you ask for His
blessings. Don't think, I wonder if I have been righteous enough for God to
grant my request.
Just ask for what
you need, boldly and in faith, without wavering, hesitating or doubting,
knowing that your righteousness is in Christ.
4. Be quick to
forgive. Joy is restored to your life when you
learn how to forgive and forget, and these two virtues go together.
God tells us He
forgives our sins, puts them as far as the east is from the west, and He
remembers them no more (see
Psalm 103:12; Isaiah 43:25).
Frequently, we try
to forgive people, but forgiveness can't do
Remembering a past
offense reopens the wound and feeds anger-then anger in turn feeds
unforgiveness.
Why do we need to
forgive other people? Because our faith won't work if we don't. Unforgiveness
is like dirt and mud on our spirit. It blocks our fellowship with God, and that
prevents our spiritual growth.
Actually, we end
up torturing ourselves when we hold grudges and don't forgive others. While we
are miserable and upset, the person who hurt us is out enjoying his or her
life, not even thinking about it. I often say that holding unforgiveness is
like taking poison and hoping your enemy will die!
Have you lost your
joy because of unforgiveness? If so, I suggest that you start forgiving people
right away. Make a list of people you need to forgive. Ask the Lord to give you
the power to forgive these people, then let it go.
5. Obey God. I can tell
you from experience that walking in obedience to God is one of the best ways to
have a joyful, outrageously blessed life.
Psalm 37:4 (NIV) says: "Delight
yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart."
Every day we need
to submit our will and our plans to God. We need to learn to wait on Him and
listen to what He is telling us to do-then simply obey Him. God knows what is
best for our lives, and He will lead us into His perfect plan if we give Him
permission to do so.
When we are new
believers, we have our own plans and walk in our own ways. However, as we
surrender to God to really follow Him, there will be things He will ask us to
do that we may not want to do-at first. But if we really love Him, we will let
Him have His way in our lives (see
John 14:15).
Are you in a
position right now in which God is asking you to do something you don't want to
do? I strongly urge you to submit to Him. Your joy depends on it!
I believe that as
we obey God more, it will bring such outrageous blessings that our love for Him
will grow deeper and deeper. As our love grows, we will want to do what God
wants us to do, and our obedience will give us great joy.
6. Be yourself. Being
satisfied and happy with yourself is a very important key to enjoying your
life. It was so liberating to me when I discovered that I did not have to be
like anyone else.
I used to try to
be easygoing like my husband, Dave. I even tried to be soft-spoken and sweet
like my pastor's wife. But all of that was only making me frustrated because
God didn't anoint me to be them-He anointed me to be me!
Many people think
they must become what another person is. That kind of thinking will steal our
joy. We don't have to compare anything about our lives to another person's
life. All we're required to do is be who God created us to be.
God has made every
one of us unique. He personally made you and gave you gifts, talents and
abilities. Just think about it: Nobody else in the world is exactly like you.
That means what is best for someone else may not be best for you.
So, when you are tempted
to say to God, "I wish I looked like someone
else," or "I wish I
could do this or that like them," don't say it.
Be satisfied with
who God made you to be. Remember that He made you exactly who He wants you to
be. If you try to
7. Let God invade
every area of your life. A major change that God helped me make
years ago was to stop dividing my life into what I thought was spiritual and
non-spiritual.
Somehow I had
fallen into a religious trap of feeling like the only time I was pleasing God
was when I was doing something spiritual such as praying, reading the Bible or
ministering at church.
But the Bible says
that whatever we do, we are to do it as unto the Lord (see Colossians 3:23).
This means that
God wants to be included when we are shopping for groceries, pumping gas and
combing our hair just as much as when we are praying or reading the Word.
The truth is none
of us can live in a church service, a Bible study or on our knees in prayer.
There are many practical aspects to our lives, and God expects us to take care
of them too.
In fact, I believe
He anoints us to live ordinary, everyday lives in victory and with joy.
When we decide to
let God out of our "Sunday morning box" and into every area of our
lives, we'll begin to experience His joy and peace more than ever before.
Remember, enjoying
the abundant life Jesus died to give you is based on a decision you make-not on
your circumstances (see
John 10:10).
Joy is God's gift
to us, but some of us have never even opened the package! God is just waiting
for you to do so. He is the glory and the lifter of our heads (see Psalm 3:3).
Satan wants to
pull us down, but Jesus came to lift us up!
Start celebrating
your life. Don't just endure your days-enjoy your days. Smile. It will give
your face and your spirit a lift.
Find some good,
clean entertainment or get with some Christian friends and cut loose and laugh."A
happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing." (Proverbs
17:22, The Amplified Bible)
Every morning when
you wake up, before you even get out of bed, I encourage you to declare out
loud, "I am going to enjoy this day!"
Decide to be happy
right where you are and to enjoy the life you have right now - on the way to
where you are going.
Make a firm
decision to enjoy your journey. When you do, you will begin to experience the
abundant, joy-filled life that Jesus died to give you.
Joyce Meyer
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