I find myself reflecting more and more on the song by Twila Paris, "The Joy of the Lord", based on the above passage.
The joy of the Lord will be my strength.
I will not falter, I will not faint.
He is my Shepherd, I am not afraid.
The joy of the Lord is my strength.
The joy of the Lord, The joy of the Lord, The joy of the Lord is my strength.
The joy of the Lord will be my strength.
He will uphold me all of my days.
I am surrounded by mercy and grace.
And the joy of the Lord is my strength.
The joy of the Lord, The joy of the Lord, The joy of the Lord is my strength.
The joy of the Lord will be my strength.
I will not waiver, walking by faith.
He will be strong to deliver me safe.
The joy of the Lord is my strength.
The joy of the Lord, The joy of the Lord, The joy of the Lord is my strength.
I will not falter, faint or waiver... because He is my Shepherd, and Strength, upholding me all of my days...surrounding me with mercy and grace. It's difficult not to be overcome by such disply of affection on the part of our Savior. Terry O'Brien, Administrative Pastor of the church I attend, will often make the statement that "God is ALWAYS all of His attributes ALL of the time." God is always just AND merciful. He is always firm AND gentle. He never drops one characteristic for the sake of the other. While this is not a concept pioneered by Terry (because God says this is true in His Word), it has recently become more and more evident to me as I've gone from being the recipient of His provisions, to the benefactress of His mercy, and now I am learning that His joy provides me with the ultimate strength. It is difficult to express in words what this means to me. I am at a low point in life in that I have loss of mobility, no vehicle, finances are tight, etc., but at the same time, I find myself in a place where I can honestly say that I am the most at peace, the most joyful and the most content that I have ever been. I feel FULFILLED because "...the joy of the Lord is my strength." All rests in His hands and though that does not free me of personal responsibility, it does mean that I am taken care of - FOREVER!
Safe in the grace of God my soul finds rest,
Strong from a confidence that He knows best.
Following where He leads my heart is blessed.
CHORUS: Evil makes its plans,
but my faith still stands,
I am in God's hands.
Gone are the lonely fears of former days.
Jesus is always there to guide my ways.
Gladly I offer Him my thankful praise.
Evil makes its plans but my faith still stands,
I am in God's hands.
In His hands, peace comforts my life.
In His hands, I see a path I can walk through the passage of time.
Angels will greet me when I leave life's pains.
Sent there to guard me at that final change.
Bearing me up to where my father reigns.
- Steve Green
I Peter 1:8 says, "Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy." The King James version says that we are filled with "joy unspeakable and full of glory." Maybe that's why I'm having such a difficult time composing this blog post; His joy is UNSPEAKABLE!
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