How you can experience joy to the fullest

You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
 with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

Psalms 16:11

Years ago, the Holiday Inn hotel chain was looking for 500 new people to fill positions in a large new hotel. The applicants found the first cut was the easiest to make as it was simply based on smiling. If a candidate smiled fewer than four times during the interview, no matter what job they were applying for, they were eliminated from consideration.

It would be interesting to see if the group who made the first cut had a proportionately greater number of Christians than those who didn’t. After all, joy is a fruit of the Spirit of God within a believer, so we would reason that joy would automatically be more evident on the faces of those who are believers in Christ.

But sadly, many Christians miss out on the gift of joy God gives them because they pick up so much excess baggage throughout their lives that gets in the way. I’m talking about things like anger, sadness, bitterness, and cynicism that many allow to overcome the joyful life that God wants them to have.

God gives us the gift of joy so that we may experience fullness in Him. So don’t miss out on this incredible gift by letting negative emotions get in the way. Let the joy of the Lord shine through in all circumstances and experience the fullness of His blessings for you!

PrayerChallenge

Pray and ask God to let His joy shine through any dark circumstances you’re facing so that you can experience Him to the fullest!

Questions for Thought

What negative emotions do you feel are getting in the way of you experiencing God’s joy to the fullest?

How might your demeanour around others be different if you let God’s joy truly shine through?