What an amazing and seemingly impossible
command from the Lord! We have no
problem obeying this command when "the Lark's on the wing and the snail's
on the thorn and all's right with the world". Natural joy bubbles up
inside us and we're good. But it's so difficult when we're going through the
trials of our life and when we face much distress and opposition and we can but
see darkness all about.
Christian life is not always smooth
sailing. There are storms of our life which we have to face. There
are rough waters. But the promise of the Lord is that He is always with us. We
can face the challenges in partnership
with our Lord.
The same passage reminds us:
(Phil 4:6-7 ) Do not be anxious about anything, but in
everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to
God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your
hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
In Rom 14:17,
we understand that the real fruit or characteristic of the Kingdom of God is
the values of Righteousness, Peace &
Joy in the Holy Spirit. When we are part of this kingdom, these values
become part of our very being. These values represent the Lord himself. And the
Lord wants us to be as He is.
Now, What happens when we come before the
Lord with a sad
and dejected face? When we appear before the Lord with
a sad face? He takes it personally. Let's see the example of a man (Nehemiah)
who appeared before the King Artaxerxes with a sad face. Neh 2:1 says: Nehemiah was the wine bearer for the
king and had never appeared before him with a sad face but now he comes before
the King and he notices the sadness of his face.
Neh 2:2 And the king said to me, “Why is
your face sad, seeing you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of the
heart.” Then I was very much afraid.
Nehemiah was afraid, because, to
be sad before a king implies that you are sad to be in His kingdom. You are
disgruntled to be his subject. But as Nehemiah explained his burden to the
king, we see the king passing a favorable edict which led to the will of God
being done for Jerusalem's walls.
If that was the state of an earthly
kingdom, how much more careful should we be as we are in the Kingdom of our
dear Lord! Friends, the Lord is not
asking us to fake it! He just wants us to be full of trust in Him and be fully
aware that He has a plan for us, and that peace and that assurance has to translate into the fruit of the
Spirit of Joy in our lives. (i.e. when we are able to
be joyful with the help of the holy spirit even in the adverse circumstances).
The key, dear friends, is to let your
heart cry be known to the Lord. Cast your burden on the Lord for He cares for
you. Let your prayers and petitions be known to the Lord - don't take the
anxiety. The Lord has heard your case. As it says in Ruth
3:18 , Wait, dear child, till
you learn how the matter turns out. For
the Lord will not rest, till He settles the matter today!
God bless you! 
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