“Lord Jesus, we thank You that You are calling us to rejoice in You, in all our circumstances. In Your name, we pray. Amen.”
Acts 3:8 So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God.
Just as the lame man was set free and rejoiced in the presence of the Lord, the same is what happens as we come into the habitat of God. This is a great victory that our Lord provides. This is the miracle of victory and deliverance over whatever has been holding us in bondage.
Isaiah 35:3-8 Strengthen the weak hands, And make firm the feeble knees. (4) Say to those who are fearful-hearted, “Be strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, With the recompense of God; He will come and save you.” (5) Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. (6) Then the lame shall leap like a deer, And the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, And streams in the desert. (7) The parched ground shall become a pool, And the thirsty land springs of water; In the habitation of jackals, where each lay, There shall be grass with reeds and rushes. (8) A highway shall be there, and a road, And it shall be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it, But it shall be for others. Whoever walks the road, although a fool, Shall not go astray.
Rejoicing in the presence of the Lord is the inheritance of His saints. As we have been saying, though physical healing may not take place always, let us not allow the devil to rob us of our treasure of rejoicing in Christ.
Being strong and rejoicing in the Lord will ensure that we do not go astray for the devil will sow doubts in our minds. He will make us look at our circumstances and cause us to be dampened in our spirits but our eyes ought to be always on our Lord, rejoicing in His presence.
Psalms 107:19-22 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses. (20) He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions. (21) Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! (22) Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, And declare His works with rejoicing.
Our life must be one of thanksgiving for His goodness. God works all things for the good of those who love Him. II Corinthians 4:15-18 For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God. (16) Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. (17) For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, (18) while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
We rejoice in the Lord always. Romans 5:2-5 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. (3) And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; (4) and perseverance, character; and character, hope. (5) Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
As we rejoice and give glory to the Lord in all our circumstances, we grow in perseverance, character and hope. It is as we hope in the Lord in all our situations that the love of God is poured into our hearts by His Holy Spirit.
Deliverance, rejoicing, and thanksgiving cause great changes to happen in us and it causes others also to be impacted around us. We live in a world filled with sadness. Our rejoicing in the Lord causes a ripple effect.
Matthew 9:32-33 As they went out, behold, they brought to Him a man, mute and demon-possessed. (33) And when the demon was cast out, the mute spoke. And the multitudes marveled, saying, “It was never seen like this in Israel!” / Luke 18:42-43 Then Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.” (43) And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
Rejoicing and giving thanks to the Lord is the place where His church is nourished and built. We are called to be people in whose hearts the peace or Shalom of God, rules. Colossians 3:15-16 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. (16) Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
Let His people rejoice always.