True Happiness Lies in the Lord

UV 3691/10000 True Happiness Lies in The Lord Yet I will (choose to ) rejoice in the Lord; I will (choose to ) shout in exultation in the (victorious) God of my salvation! Habakkuk 3 v 18 This uni-verse is a declaration of personal commitment to choose to rejoice despite adversity, despite famine, despite pestilence ( read Covid 19 pandemic), despite suffering, despite ill health, despite persecution, despite failure, despite sorrows, despite other concerns weighing on our minds. It is a choice to rejoice and not just rejoice but to exult ( a higher degree of joy bordering on ecstasy) in the Lord God, to delight in the person of Jesus, the work of Jesus, the Word of God, to delight in doing God’s will, to delight in abiding in the Holy Spirit, to delight in salvation, to delight in the victory the Lord gives. We need to acknowledge God, the Lord as the chief source of our joy, of our strength and courage. He is the One who strengthens my feet to walk steady on shaky ground, to climb the mountains we confront on the landscape of our lives, the challenges and responsibilities we need to handle. We rejoice in the hope of the provision, the victory, the salvation He provides through His Son Jesus. We rejoice in the grace of God. We rejoice not in the things that the world counts as prosperity and happiness. We are recipients of food that the world does not know of. We are participants in a race the world is unaware of. We are strengthened by grace for this race. It is not a race where we compete but one in which He completes us by grace. We do not delight in the strength of our own hands, the abilities of our own minds but we delight in the miracles done by the hand of the Lord. We delight not in our own strength but in the strength of the strong, invincible right hand of the Lord that rises in our defense. We are not depressed by the force of circumstances but we turn to the Lord for our comfort and our strength. Like the lotus, we rise above the miry world of sin, sorrow and suffering and stand as a joyful witness of God’s glory and greatness and grace. We are in the world but not of the world. We do not evaluate our success or failure by the standards or yardsticks of this world. Hence, neither prosperity nor adversity either boosts our spirit or depresses us. We are anchored in the Lord. He is the cause of our stability and our ability.