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Nehemiah 8:10
Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

Ezra and the Levites were teaching the people the Book of the Law that God had given Moses and the conviction was so great for how they had been living they were mourning and weeping in the streets. Nehemiah, Ezra and the Levites wanted the people to understand that their repentance was an occasion to rejoice and to consecrate the day as Holy to God!

When our hearts are right with God, we have reason to rejoice and if you are looking for extra strength for the day today, you will find it in the Joy of The Lord. I remember a little song we used to sing when I was a kid called the Joy of the Lord that went like this: The Joy of the Lord is my strength, Haha; The Joy of the Lord is my strength, Haha, The Joy of the Lord is my strength, Haha, Oh the Joy of the Lord is my strength, He fills my heart with laughter, ha, ha, ha, haha, He fills my heart with laughter, ha, ha, ha, haha, He fills my heart with laughter, ha, ha, ha, haha, Oh the Joy of the Lord is my strength and the last verse was Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, haha, ha, haha, Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, haha, ha, haha, Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, haha, ha, haha, Oh the Joy of the Lord is my strength! (I may have missed a few ha, ha’s) Okay, there was no way to sing that song as a kid, no matter how “down” you were without cracking up by that last verse!

If you need some joy and laughter today, seek it out and you will find that you will feel refreshed and God’s joy certainly does give you the strength you need to face whatever you may be facing! Your problems may not disappear but it may give you a fresh outlook if you can have a break from feeling so weighed down by it all! The key is to find godly things to laugh about and godly music, not music that is going to make you focus on problems but music that will lift you up! Music that gives praise to God and reminds your heart of just how wonderful He is and how able He is to bring you through to the other side! God is always good, allow Him to be your focus and fill you with His joy! And, I highly recommend, if you haven’t checked out her videos on youtube yet, Jeanne Robertson ~ she will crack you up and she is a very godly woman! Sometimes I will listen to a few different recordings of her to get through a day ~ hey, whatever it takes! Just try it…… CLICK HERE!

Ladies, let’s face it there are just times when life can really beat you up and get you down, but you have a choice of whether or not you are going to spend your day there. You may think that you want to wallow in your frustration or self pity for a little while but trust me, it won’t help you feel any better. Don’t waste a day that could turn out great by missing the opportunity to have the Joy of The Lord! Turn on that praise and worship music when you get in the car or while you take out your frustrations cleaning the house and find something that will make you laugh! Hold onto His joy ~ the best is yet to come!

Quote:
“Life begins when you do” Hugh Downs