Joy vs. Happiness and Psalm 9:1-2 (MSG)

Lord, thank You for these verses. They have certainly blessed my socks off. And, that is putting it mildly.

I can live these verses for the rest of my life and I want to do so.

If my tombstone was large enough, I would want to include these verses on it. But, this would also do: "A woman of joy, who lived Psalm 9:1-2 (MSG)." So, until then, I want to try to live this verse every single day, moment by moment.

What incredible verses to live each moment.

Joy can be found in every moment. Happiness cannot. Joy is not contingent on anything. Happiness depends on choice and often times on outer circumstances and emotions, both of which change with the wind. Joy is inner and is deeper. It depends on nothing but faith. Joy is eternal while happiness changes by the moment and mood.

Joy is not something we can intentionally gain. It is given to us by the Holy Spirit:

Galatians 5:22-23 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.

Therefore, joy is not something we manufacture. Rather, it is given to us when we believe in Jesus Christ.

Psalm 9:2 The Message (MSG)
9 1-2 I’m thanking you, God, from a full heart,
    I’m writing the book on your wonders.
I’m whistling, laughing, and jumping for joy;
    I’m singing your song, High God.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Joy: Psalm 9:2 The Message (MSG): My new life verse

Psalm 9:2 The Message (MSG): My new life verse

Every now and then, a verse will come around and ruin me. This is one of those verses.

Let me explain, though, what I mean by ruin. It grabs my attention so much, so hard, so powerfully, so awesomely that I cannot think or do much of anything else after I read the verse. I become obsessed with it, in the best form of the word, where I memorize the verse, pray on it, meditate on it and think on it as much as possible. I spend as much time thinking on it and praying on it as possible and I also journal about the verse or verses. 

When a verse grabs me, my heart and mind, it is  challenge of me to look at any other verses for a while. The verse becomes what I eat, drink, and breathe. It becomes part of me and a way of life and living. 

Sometimes my focus on a verse like this lasts days. Sometimes, it lasts weeks. Sometimes, it lasts months. Sometimes, it lasts years. 

This is one such verse. So, stay tuned. I will write a great deal more about it at least in the next blog post.

This is my new life verse:

Psalm 9:2 The Message (MSG)

A David Psalm

9 1-2 I’m thanking you, God, from a full heart,

    I’m writing the book on your wonders.

I’m whistling, laughing, and jumping for joy;

    I’m singing your song, High God.

The Message (MSG)

Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

The Blessing of Repeated Mistakes

I keep making the same mistake. Repeatedly. Over and over. I am a woman of redundancy with this error. I am constant with this wrongdoing.  (Have I made my point yet? I ask with a mild grin.)

The worst part is how I know I keep making it. I learn from my wrongdoing. I have my eyes opened. I repent and turn from my wicked ways. It works for a while. I even excel with doing it right. For a while.  Then, I slip and fall into my own ways. 

Ugh. 

It gets worse. I have repeated the exact same mistake off and on for over two and a half years now... Actually, it has been since Wednesday, November 06, 2013. 

I hang my head as I make this confession. 

How can I be such a fool?

How can I keep hurting myself in such a way and so deeply? 

When am I going to learn and apply what I learn? My life would be drastically different if I did. Is it because much is required for me to do so? Do I keep slipping because I realize how much I need to change in order to live in such a manner?

The previous paragraph is an important one, I realize I need to think and pray on for a while. And, I shall. 

I keep forgetting to count my blessings. This is my thorn. This is my error and repeated mistake. It is the one I have made since November 2012. 

The Bible says repeatedly and in different ways to always give thanks and to be grateful for everything.

This is how I should live. 

It is a blessing to make this mistake repeatedly because I know what it means to not count my blessings. I know the difference of what my life is like if I do count them. 

It is how I want to live.

I want to live a life of infinite blessing.

How Will We Choose to Handle Each Moment?

Life is a challenge--and that is on a good day and in a good moment. Our days and moments are not perfect. They never have been. Nor will they ever be. 

What sets us apart is how we handle every moment.

What matters is how we choose to handle each moment. 

Are we going to choose to complain, throw a fit, cry, holler, go numb, deny, ignore, regret, yell at God, or something else that does not help?

Will we search for, find, and count the blessings of every moment of every day? And will we try to remember them?  This what sets apart the wise from the foolish, the mature from the immature, and the godly from the ungodly. 

The Purpose and Meaning of Life: Be blessed with who and what we have now

All of us have a purpose. This purpose is what brings meaning to our lives. 

We all have the same purpose and the same meaning. It is what defines us as individuals and is what unites us. It is the appreciation of life as it is today and in this moment, no matter what is or is not happening.

If we cannot count our blessings for what we have now, we will never be satisfied and will always want more. If we cannot be trusted with the blessings we have now, why should we be blessed with anything more? We surely do not deserve more. 

If we are not thankful for what we have in our lives today and in this moment, there is nothing and no one that could possibly make us happy. 

What we have should be all we want or we need. And, if we are blessed with something or someone new or different, we need to count them as a blessing we did not anticipate. We should realize how blessed we are because what we had we already counted ourselves as blessed. With the new blessing, we are even more blessed and even less deserving. 

Infinite Blessings

Life has infinite blessings.

Each day.

Every moment.

No matter what. 

Whether times of sunshine or storm, we are still infinitely blessed. 

What separates a foolish mind from a wise mind is the realization of how through it all, we are blessed. The wise find blessings, and count them, in every situation. The wise know how no matter what happens, we are thoroughly blessed.