Mar 20, 2026 – Joy
Streams – What Cowman shares from Tried by Fire reminds me of the year the boys were born when I was on bedrest while we were adding onto our house. A few or so weeks after they were born (still living in a construction zone), we found out that Alex had to have major surgery to correct a vascular ring around his esophagus and trachea. We waited a few months for the surgery for Alex to get a little older and for the construction dust to be more settled, but before it was complete, the house caught on fire! “It is said that springs of sweet, fresh water pool up amid the saltiness of the oceans, that the fairest Alpine flowers bloom in the wildest and most rugged mountain passes, and that the most magnificent psalms arose from the most profound agonies of the soul….Therefore, amid a multitude of trials, souls who love God will discover reasons for boundless, leaping joy.” Indeed, despite the mounting hardships, I felt very peaceful and carried through that season. I did almost feel a sort of joy anticipating and receiving God’s guidance and peace through each trial.
JC – “As you bring Me the sacrifice of thanksgiving, regardless of your feelings, My Spirit is able to work more freely within you. This produces more thankfulness and more freedom, until you are overflowing with gratitude.”
Prevail #80 – 2 Kings 3:16 – “This is what the Lord says: This dry valley will be filled with pools of water!” That is indeed what joy despite the circumstances is like. Larson writes, “At every turn, our enemy seeks to steal what’s ours, kill what God is birthing in our lives, and destroy what God is doing in our lives. And sometimes he gets away with it. If you’re staring at a drought-ridden valley, don’t despair. Just whisper a prayer.”
Max – 2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV – “We walk by faith, not by sight.” Faith makes joy despite the circumstances possible.
JA – “Inviting Me into your activities increases your Joy and helps you to be more effective.”
Power – Joyce points out that, “Worry creates an opportunity for the enemy to torment us, but worship (reverence and adoration of God) leads us into His presence, where we will always find peace, joy, and hope.”
Utmost – Genesis 18:17 – “Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do?” Chambers explains that, “This chapter brings out the delight of real friendship with God as compared with occasional feelings of His presence in prayer. To be so much in contact with God that you never need to ask Him to show you His will, is to be nearing the final stage of your discipline in the life of faith. When you are rightly related to God, it is a life of freedom and liberty and delight, you are God’s will, and all your commonsense decisions are His will for you unless He checks. You decide things in perfect delightful friendship with God, knowing that if your decisions are wrong He will always check; when He checks, stop at once.” Though I have had seasons of closeness with God and rock solid confidence in His guidance, I am still a work in progress so I relish the idea of living in that kind of constant liberty and delight.
