Joy

The joy of the LORD is your strength.

~Nehemiah 8:10.

The word translated as "joy" here is chedvah (חֶדְוָה). It comes from the word chadah (חָדָה), "to rejoice." The pictographs heth (fence), dalet (open door), and hey (revelation) provide a helpful insight into what rejoicing may mean. Remembering that man was sent away from the garden of Eden [1] (which means pleasure), could I suggest that rejoicing is connected to finding a door back to the garden through God's revelation?

When God draws me to Himself, accepting me and loving me, when I call Him my Father, my friend, and my helper, I enter a new land, in which He rules, and I rejoice in His power, wisdom, faithfulness, grace, love, and holiness, which never change. This joy is God's gift to me.

When I serve God doing good, taking care of the sick, comforting the mourner, aiding the poor, instructing the ignorant, I participate in expanding His Kingdom, and I rejoice in fulfilling my true purpose in life. This joy is my gift to God.

When my love, gratitude, obedience, and joy bring Him pleasure, joy returns to me multiplied and gives me strength, no matter what my circumstances are. How simple is that? Yet, so many of us keep looking for joy in the common and fleeting pleasures of life and avoid our purpose, that is obedience to God. No wonder that so many of us are joyless and weak.

And what is your source of joy and strength?

[1] Genesis 3:23