"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice." - Philippians 4:4

Easier said than done, isn't it Paul? And yet, that is not only our command, it is our privilege. And it is possible!

Today we are exploring the joy that is found exclusively in the person of God. Joy is not only able to bring us feelings of great pleasure and happiness, it is also able to get us through very difficult life circumstances as we look forward to the future God has prepared for us in Heaven. Even if we never experienced another good thing in our lives here on earth, we have an eternity of goodness to look forward to in Heaven with Jesus.

Jesus gave us the example of looking past the heartaches and the trials of life when he went to the cross and endured it's shame on our behalf. The reason he was able to do this is because of the joy that was set before him, the redemption of his bride; us!

One important thing we must understand is that joy is accessible to us 24/7 as well, even in difficult circumstances. Because we know that God will never leave us nor forsake us, that means his joy is always available, too.

We must choose to accept the gift of joy that is a fruit of God's spirit. Even when life is hard, whether because of God's discipline because of our sin or because of the curse of Adam on this world, we can still continue to walk in joy and allow it to fill us up with peace and happiness.

If you want to know the joy of the Lord, you must know the Lord for yourself. Seek him in his Word, learn about his nature and his character. Find out what He wants from you and then do it. When you walk with God and obey what He says, you will experience his joy in your life.

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There are many burdens in life. There are financial burdens, burdens of sickness, relationship burdens. Another kind of burden is the guilt for wrongdoing. With other burdens, there are things you can do to bring relief to yourself. You can go out and get an extra job, you can take vitamins or see a doctor, you can have conversations and make intentional connections, but what can you do to relieve your conscience when you have done wrong? The one and only remedy for this kind of burden is forgiveness.

We cannot live a joyful, prosperous life if we have a constant cloud of guilt hanging over our heads. Guilt wears us out, shuts us down, destroys our vision for the future. Whenever I used to do something wrong, I would find myself spending a lot of time playing my sins over and over in my head, condemning myself for the wicked or stupid things I have done, and it blocked my ability to move forward or live freely in the moment.

If you have experienced this, I want you to know that there is a solution. The only thing that can set us free from the feelings of guilt and shame are the forgiveness of God. God is the one we are ultimately accountable to. He is the one with the power of judgement toward life or death, of our eternal sentencing to Hell or entrance into Heaven. The good news is that He is "gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love." (Psalm 145:8-9) He is willing to forgive every sin you've ever committed, great or small. He is willing to wipe away your feelings of guilt and shame.

To receive this forgiveness, however, you must humble yourself before God. You have to turn from the sins that were once your death sentence, and follow the God and His commands that bring life. You must throw yourself on the mercy of God and let Him turn you into a new creature. It is my prayer that you would do that today. Call out to God. Admit your sin. Accept that Jesus died to pay for your sins and accept the free gift of eternal life that He offers you. Live for Him. Follow Him. Let His forgiveness fuel your future.

Thank you for listening to the Strengthened Hands Podcast!

Don't forget to send comments to strengthenmyhands@gmail.com for comments, questions or future podcast ideas!

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You are powerful. You are strong. You are an overcomer. These are not just nice thoughts to post on your bathroom mirror, they are promises from God himself.

"God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power..." - 2 Timothy 1:7

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong, and very courageous..." - Joshua 1:9

"[...] in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us." - Romans 8:37

In this episode we are looking at God's promise that he will give us power when we humble ourselves under his mighty right hand.

In life, we seek to achieve victories, to rise up and conquer challenges. Sometimes we are up to the challenge; other times we are not. When we face failure and we lose power and we cannot find a way through difficulty, what options do we have to persevere?

Some people just give up. They say, "this is too hard, and I am not enough to conquer this."

Some people will say, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." This is a much better attitude, but in the face of endless challenges, it is sure to fail at some point.

The only way for us to consistently conquer trials is to humble ourselves before God, admit our shortcomings, and allow "the power of Christ to rest upon [us], for [his] power is made perfect in weakness." - 2 Corinthians 12:9

Power is something we all want, and really something we all need. We need it to be courageous, to overcome sin, to perform acts of kindness and acts of faith. When we don't have it we can feel, well, powerless. But with God, you are never without power. In your weak moments, you can surrender your weakness to God and he will grant you the power you need to continue in the fight.

"But those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:31

"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may lift you up in due time." 1 Peter 5:6-7

Thank you for listening to the Strengthened Hands Podcast!

Don't forget to send comments to strengthenmyhands@gmail.com for comments, questions or future podcast ideas!

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