Portraying Joy

♪♪ I got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart!  Where?
Down in my heart!♫

 I’m sure that most of you have heard this song at some point in your life, but are you portraying this joy the song speaks of or do you walk around like the “worldly”… defeated, depressed, hurt or angry?

 Jesus says in John 10:10, “I have come that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the fullest, until it overflows).  Are you enjoying your life?  I hope so, because there are people watching you every day to see if this “Jesus thing” is real or not.

Joy is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit.  Joy is in us, but we need to do what we can to cultivate it: laughing more, being thankful and content, keeping things simple and simply trusting God.  Did you know that you can even sing for joy?  Yes!  It says so in Psalm 33.

 We have Jesus Christ, God Almighty in us. When we begin to meditate on who He is and what He’s done and will continue to do, we can’t help but be overwhelmed with JOY!!

Nehemiah 8:10 says “Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Joy is a weapon to be used against the devil!
Jesus On You = JOY!

Let us sing for joy to God who is our Strength!  When we remain joyful and strong in the midst of the good times and the bad, we are portraying an awesome witness for Jesus.  So let your Joy Light shine…shine on Women of Joy!!

 

Interview with Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer Talks Power Thoughts, Life
(taken from beliefnet.com)

Affliate link benefits Beachside Fellowship church

Are you standing in the way of your success? Are fears holding you back from a more intimate relationship with God? Roll up your sleeves and prepare to challenge yourself with author and evangelist Joyce Meyer, who talked candidly on ways to overcome these struggles in her book “Power Thoughts.” We asked Joyce how she copes with everyday issues from wrestling with the coffee maker in the morning to walking in love. How is she off the stage, you might ask? Decide for yourself. The out-spoken preacher explained that she practices what she preaches in her everyday life.

Read the interview : BeliefNet Interview with Joyce Meyer

New Book Study - Power Thoughts by Joyce Meyer

We are entering into a new Book study at Women of Joy.  For those of you who live near, we start this study February 21 @ 6:00pm at Beachside Fellowship church in Panama City Beach.  Don't fret if you live too far away!  We will be studying right along here on our blog! 

If you haven't already purchased a book (through the church or on your own accord) please do so!  You can order through Amazon by clicking the pictures below.  Several options to choose from there...hardcover, kindle version, etc. 

Affliate link benefits Beachside Fellowship church

Overview from JoyceMeyer.org

Does your mind wander? Do you have trouble trying to get something out of your mind? You may be stuck in a mental rut. Well, it’s time to get out!

In her bestselling book, Joyce will help you…

• Take principles from Battlefield of the Mind to the next level
• Learn 12 specific thoughts to positively affect every area of your life
• Learn how to think right thoughts on purpose
• Become decisive, confident and productive
• Enjoy the powerful life God intended for you

You can read a sample from Power Thoughts here.  (Adobe required) 

14 Days of God's Love - Happy Valentine's Day!

We've spent the last 13 days in God's Love.  Here's a recap with links to each day's post:

See yourself through the Eyes of Love

Learn how He loves us in His

Love letters

Show love all year long

Love God for who He is, not what He gives 

Love others

with Mercy, Justic, and humbly

Enemies - Gotta Love em'

Love yourself because you are a Daughter of the King

Easy ways to hand out compliments

Give love and never run out

Smiling is free

Inseparable love

He thinks you are to die forEnjoying God's love

And finally....Day 14!!!

As you move past Valentine's day and all the chocolate is eaten and the flowers have died, after the cards have been tucked away to make room for Easter decor, after the bling has grown old, Love still remains.  Vow to spread the Love we know to the rest of the world!

 

 

Know God.  Know Love.

Love God. Love people.

 

 

The Following video is God's Love letter to us.  This is a compilation of nearly 50 scriptures from Genesis to Revelation.  

The greatest Love letter ever written....straight from God's heart.

 

Happy Valentine's Day Women of Joy!

14 Days of God's Love - Enjoying God's Love

 

Enjoying God's Love
by Joyce Meyer

The Bible says many times that God loves us.  But how many of God's children still lack revelation concerning God's love?  The truth is, very few of God's people really know how much He loves them,.  If they did, they would act differently.

Many years ago, I began studying how people can learn to receive God's love, and I realized that I was in desperate need of it myself.  The Lord led me in my study to 1 John 4:16 and emphasized the importance of being conscious of His love.  This means God's love should be something we are actively aware of.  But how does one find the awareness?

I studied this subject for a long time, and I became conscious of God's love for me through thinking about His love and by confessing it aloud.  I learned scriptures about the love of God, and I meditated on them and confessed them out of my mouth.  I did this over and over for a month, and all the time the revelation of His unconditional love for me was becoming more and more of a reality to me.

Now, His love is so real to me that even in hard times, I am comforted by the "conscious knowing" that He loves me and that I no longer have to live in fear.  This can happen to you, too.

I encourage you to know and believe His love for you.  Meditate on and speak about God's love that He expresses to you in His love letters--the Scriptures.  Why not start with 1 John 4:16!

14 Days of God's Love - He Thinks You Are Worth Dying For

 

14 Days of God's Love - Inseparable

 

 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.   Romans 5:5

Imagine with me...(I'd say close your eyes, but that wouldn't be wise since you are reading this)...imagine this: you pour a tall glass of water.  The outside of that glass has a label that reads "YOU" and beside the glass is a bottle of food coloring.  (This is your imagination so you choose your color...I would choose purple. ) There is a tag on the food coloring that says: Given through the Grace of God as a gift to You.  The brand of food coloring is Holy Spirit. 
The instructions on the food coloring say:  Add several drops to You.  So we add several drops to the glass of water. 

What happens to that food coloring?  It begins to mix with the water...and if you stir it a bit, it colors the entire glass of water. It doesn't change immediately.  You actually have to do something to cause a complete change in the water. 

 Can you  separate the food coloring back out from the water?  Nope.  Ain't happening.  The two elements have become inseparable.  

Like the water and the food coloring, when we asked Jesus into our hearts, we committed to a complete change in our lives.  That change didn't happen immediately.  We've had to work at it, and will always have to keep working at it.  The Holy Spirit is given to us by God, and he infiltrates our soul much like the food coloring in the water.  Not only do we need to hear the Word of God but we have be doers of the Word as well.  James 1:22  By doing we stir up the Holy Spirit inside of us, and He takes hold becoming inseparable.

Our Heavenly Father becomes one with us.  Christ now lives in us through the Holy Spirit. We become inseparable from Him. 

Am I telling you that since the day you asked Him into your heart, He has been there?  Yep.  I am not saying, however, that you have always been there.  Maybe you have strayed away...gone out on your own...tried things your way, fed the flesh, that sort of thing.  Guess who was there?  He promised He would never leave you or forsake you.  Hebrews 13:5  Nothing we do can make Him love us less...That's an amazing promise.  If someone says they love us, we expect them to never leave us or forsake us.  We are devastated when they do. 

We have a love that we will never be separated from.  He lives in us through the Holy Spirit...we call Him Heavenly Father.

 

 

 

14 Days of God's Love - Smile

The Bible is packed full of relationships...our relationship with God, Jesus, family, friends, and even strangers are mentioned in the Bible.  I'd say God really wants our lives to be about relationships. 

Where do relationships start?



Source: Raising Figure Skaters

Sometimes we find ourselves too busy to smile and greet the people we meet along our ways.  We are too busy checking our shopping list as we walk into the grocery store, never noticing the people who pass us.  We are in a hurry when we drive through McDonald's and don't smile at the employee handing us our food.  We miss opportunities every day to just simply smile a blessing into someone else's life.  We tend to think of those that don't look up and smile or say hello as rude.  However we don't hold ourselves to that standard because we know we aren't rude...just busy, just in a hurry, just pre-occupied.

The past few years, I've really made it a mission to be friendly and speak to those I encounter at the store, restaurant, fast food joint, etc.  As I check out at Target, I make an effort to always say "Have a nice day" or reply "You too" when they wish me well.  I haven't always been that way.  I used to be too shy to speak, too caught up in my little world to acknowledge the other human being I was currently in contact with.  Speaking out to a stranger is really hard for me at times.  It gets easier and easier....and some situations are just easier than others (2 year old little girls with loud voices attract the attention of everyone in the check out line).  Sometimes the person on the other side of the cash register just isn't outgoing, or friendly, or seems to not be in the mood to talk.  It's those situations that I struggle with,  to be the first to speak.  But, the more I do it, the more it becomes a habit.  I now feel as if I forgot something when I don't speak...

You never know what joy a smile might bring to someone else. A smile could be the start of a great friendship. Maybe your smile will encourage "the grouch" you just encountered to smile a bit more. 

                                            Smiling is free, pay it forward.   

14 Days of God's Love - Give Love and Never Run Out

Give Love and Never Run Out
by Joyce Meyer

Loving and being loved are what make our lives worth living. Many people experience times in their lives when they feel unloved. During these times it's easy to dwell on those negative thoughts, but allowing it to continue leads to unhappiness and depression.

Love is the energy of life. It is what motivates people to get up each day and keep going. Love gives life purpose and meaning. Everywhere you look you see people searching for love…but they're looking in the wrong places. God is love, and they will never find what they're looking for until they find Him.

People look for fulfillment in life in different ways. These ways may seem good at first, but eventually the unsuccessful search will leave them feeling frustrated, disappointed and empty. The only way they can find the true fulfillment they are so desperately seeking is to choose to walk in love—to actually put love into action by reaching out and loving others.

As soon as I made a commitment to God, I began to hear people talk about the importance of loving others. Since I wanted to live my life according to the Bible, I wanted to walk in love, but I just couldn't. I had the urge…but no power to follow through. I always made elaborate plans but couldn't carry them out.

Unfulfilled desire is often frustrating. I felt very frustrated and wondered what was wrong with me. I was impatient with people. I was legalistic, harsh, judgmental, rude, selfish and unforgiving—and that is only the beginning of the list. The harder I tried to walk in love, the worse I became.

I began to understand that I could not love others because I had never received God's love for me. I knew in my head that the Bible said God loved me, but I didn't feel His love in my heart. I wondered how God could love us as imperfect as we are.

God loves us because He wants to—it pleases Him. God loves us because it's His nature to love, and He will always love us. He doesn't always love everything we do, but He does love us. God's love is unconditional. In fact, there's nothing we can do to ever escape His love. God's love is the power that forgives our sins, heals our emotional wounds, and mends our broken hearts.

Over time I came to realize that I am deeply loved by God simply for who I am, not because of any work I could do for Him. I could finally quit trying to earn His love by doing things I thought would make me more worthy of His love.

Once I began receiving God's awesome, unconditional love, I was able to start loving Him in return and reach out to others more freely in love. Because God's never-ending love was in me, I could give it to others without fear of ever running out.

Everyone in the world wants to be loved and accepted. And the love of God—that wonderful gift He freely gives us—satisfies that need. His love flows to us, and then it should flow through us to other people.

Now I see myself as a container full of blessings. I want to be the type of person who can pour out God's love into the lives of the people around me. I've found that I'm always happier when I choose to make others happy.

In the Bible, God calls Christians the salt of the earth (see Matthew 5:13). He expects us to "season" the lives of those around us. All of life is tasteless without love. Love is the salt, the energy of life, and the reason to get up every morning.

Every day can be exciting if we see ourselves as God's secret agents, waiting to sprinkle a little salt on all the lives we encounter. And we know that because we are deeply loved by God, we can never run out of love—no matter how much we give away.

14 Days of God's Love - Compliment Someone

Today we are going to challenge you.  We want you to compliment as many people as you can today!  Family, friends and strangers alike...hand out the compliments like they are a matter of life or death!  The words we speak bring life, or they bring death (Proverbs 18:21).  Fill your day with life giving words...then report back to us about your day!

Below is something you can print out and post somewhere in your house, on a bulletin board at work, on the bathroom wall at the grocery store, at the post office, gas station.... get creative.  Choose the one that works for you...cut along dotted lines (don't cut the strips off) and post somewhere!  Send us pics!

You can find all of these in PDF format at Kindovermatter
Scroll through until you find the one you want, click on pick or the PDF link.  Print or save the file.  She even has a "fill in your own" version! 



source:  kindovermatter.com



For the workplace:
source: kindovermatter.com





source: kindovermatter.com

14 Days of God's Love - Love Yourself

Loving yourself… for some of you that may be hard to do, because your not seeing yourself as God sees you.  You may look at yourself and see ugly, sin, past mistakes and failures.  You might not feel like you are good enough, worthy enough, pretty enough, smart enough and so on.

      God says you are beautiful and precious in His sight.  He made  you worthy, righteous and accepted through His Son, Jesus.   He knows about all of your past, present and future sins.  There’s nothing that surprises Him about you,  yet He still loves you the same.  As a matter of fact ,  He loves you the same yesterday, today and forever.  Nothing you can do will make Him love you any more or any less.

 

     In Psalms 103:12  it says that as far as the east is from the west, He will remember your sins no more. The Lord forgives us and forgets our sin. We need to let go of the past, forgive ourselves and see ourselves the way He sees us : worthy, righteous, accepted, beautiful and mighty!  If your having a challenge loving yourself then I dare you to look at yourself in the mirror daily, and say God loves me unconditionally therefore I will love myself!   By doing this, you will begin to see yourself as He sees you, “a daughter of the King”  and you’ll begin to love yourself.

     ….and keep in mind that He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.   Philippians 1:6

14 Days of God's Love - Love Your Enemies

The Bible tells us that we are to love our enemies.  “Love my enemies?”, you might say, “but you don’t know what he/she did to me!”  Jesus clearly says in Matthew 5:44 "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you"  Yes, it’s difficult to love them and pray for them. Our enemies have hurt us because they lie to us, call us names, gossip about us, steal from us, and endless other things that are not edifying to our soul. Joyce Meyer said "God requires us to love people, even when we don't like them."

     Several years ago, a new girl started coming to a church I attended during my time in Destin, FL  She was not only new to my church, but she was new to the area.   I befriended her and did as much as I could to make her feel welcomed.  We soon became good friends, however, it was not long before she betrayed me.  I was devastated.  In my heart, I knew I was suppose to forgive her,love her ,and pray for her, but it was hard.  I did began to pray for her and had to confess that the love of God be shed abroad in my heart by the Holy Ghost over and over. Every time I thought about her I made this confession until eventually, the hurt went away. Doing this allowed me to reach a place of love, forgiveness, and acceptance rather than remain in anger. I soon found myself walking in love towards her once again.

     It wasn’t long after that that she came to me crying and apologized for hurting me.  She told me that she looked up to me and that I was such an inspiration to her.  She couldn't understand how I could still be nice to her after what she had done. I told her  the love of God is shed abroad in my heart by the Holy Ghost.

 He loves and forgives US, therefore we can love and forgive our enemies.  Pray for those who persecute you. Pray for their lives and their families. Pray for their well-being and their happiness. No, it means nothing to them, but it will to God, and it will to you.  Let go of your hurt and watch God move on your behalf!

14 Days of God's Love - Love Others

Micah 6:8 tells us exactly how to treat others....justly, with mercy, and humbly. Well, what does that mean exactly? It might help to see how God treats us and we in turn can treat others the same.

ACT JUSTLY  We have all encountered people who have been abused in some way or another. It is our job to see that justice is done in their lives. No, that doesn't mean head to the courthouse. It means see to it that their lives are filled with Jesus. When Jesus takes over, there is nothing that can hold them back, keep them down, and no past that can steal their joy. When we show them the love that Jesus showed us, they too will desire the same.  

LOVE MERCY   You've experienced it, whether pressured by others or by yourself, the need to be perfect can be a daunting task. We cannot be that pressure in someone else's life. People will fail. We fail God daily. He still loves us no matter the sin. We must act in love toward others, no matter their faults. As Christians we accept every person....not every person's actions.

WALK HUMBLY    Putting ourselves above others is not walking in love for others, but love for oneself. We are all one bad decision away from devastation. We are no better than the homeless, we've just made better choices. God loves them just as much as He loves us. 

14 Days of God's Love - Love God For Who He Is

Joyce Meyer has put out a new devotional book titled "Love Out Loud" (Check it out here).  The book is a 365 day devotional focusing on loving God, yourself, and others.  It looks fantastic and from the sample I got to read, I think its perfect for Valentine's Day! It will get you jump started on your 365 days of love that we are attempting here on Woman of Joy.  Valentine's Day should be every day for believers because we know the greatest love to exist!

Joyce Meyer attempts to answer the question "what is life really about" by helping you to focus on major commandments given to believers: 

1. LOVING GOD
(Greatest command given and foundation of the Christian belief)
2. LOVING YOURSELF
(to quote Joyce Meyer "you can't give away something you don't have", in order to love others you must love yourself)        

3. LOVING OTHERS
(expressing God's love means we cover others in love)

Loving God means we enjoy being in His presence.  Could you spend an entire day just enjoying God and all he has presented before you in His creation and not ask for ONE single thing from Him?  What about a week?  Joyce mentions in her book that God asked her at one point not to ask for any earthly things until He told her otherwise.  Can you imagine?  As Joyce did, you would have to retrain your thoughts to focus on who God is and not what He is doing or not doing in your life.  Joyce came out of that time spending more time praising, thanking, and loving God than she had before. 
God promises that He will give us all that we need, He knows before we ask.  And if we diligently seek Him, not what He can give or do for us, but seek Him and who He is, He will give us the desires of our hearts. 

As you continue in your day, week, month...ask God to remind you to seek His presence above all else.  Before you ask for earthly things, spend time worshipping and thanking God for who He is. 


                   

14 Days of God's Love - All Year Long Gift Idea

It gets harder and harder to find gifts for our Valentines.  I came across this idea several times and thought I would share with you.  You don't have to be married to share a Valentine's present with someone.  Maybe you want to make this family or kid friendly... or choose items that cater to a great friendship (think BFF), this is a great way to show someone you care and want to be intentional all year.  This would also make a great birthday gift, or cater it toward a certain couple and give to them as a wedding or anniversary gift. 

The idea is from several bloggers who have made their own "All Year Long" gift.  Shannon Brown and Desiring Virtue and Friday We're In Love,  have pictures and ideas you can use to add to your own. 

You will need a container to hold 12 envelopes. 
Shannon Brown used a simple basket....


Desiring Virtue used a wooden box she found at Hobby Lobby!

Next you will need to fill 12 envelopes with "date" ideas...or family night ideas...or girl's night ideas. Whomever you are gifting this to, you are committing to one night a month with them. 
Here are some ideas:
Date nights: Dinner and movie (include gift cert to restaurant and movie tickets)
Movie night in (include coupon for Redbox rental or buy a copy of their fav. movie)
Blizzards (gift card to Dairy Queen)
Bowling Date
Coffee Date (include Starbucks Gift Card)
Bike Riding
Relaxing Night at Home
Family Nights: Game night 
Bowling
Ice Cream (include recipe to make homemade ice-cream)
Movie Night (include tickets to movie theater)
Pizzarie Night (make homemade pizzas together)

Girl's Night Out  for your BFF :)
Manicure/Pedicures (include Spa gift card)
Dinner and movie (include gift cert to restaurant and movie tickets)
Coffee & People Watching (Include gift card to coffee shop)

You will create and envelope for each month.  Inside the envelope write a short letter with your date idea and any coupons or gift certificates you are including. 

Shannon Brown envelopes


Write the month on the outside of the envelope and place in container, in order of course. 

I suggest getting together at the beginning of each month with calendars in hand, and nail down a date to fulfill that month's idea.  Then you both have something to look forward to.  If you don't plan it, it probably won't happen.  And always be flexible if for some reason you can't do everything on your plan, some plans just go awry..... go with the flow.  Maybe the weather is not cooperating for the bike ride you planned, jump in the car instead and ride around a neighborhood you've never driven through before!

If you make your own "All Year Long Gift" we'd love to see it!  Send me a picture and few ideas you put in yours! 
1coreydaustin@gmail.com

14 Days of God's Love - Love Letters

We dream of romantic poems and love letters written by someone who loves us deeply.  God wrote us a love letter about His never ceasing, unfailing, unconditionally deep love for us.  Verse after verse, the Bible tells us how He loves us.  As we read and reread the tattered pages of the most magnificent piece of literature, we fall more and more in love with Him.  The more we read, the more we understand, the more we trust.

Below is my favorite song. Ever.  It brings me to my knees every time.  This is the version my husband sings in church.  It's almost impossible for me to hold it together when he sings this song.  I love my hubby.  And as much as I love my hubby, I know my Heavenly Father loves me so much more.  Imagine that kind of love as you watch this video...and, um, grab your Kleenex :)

How He Loves Us - David Crowder Band

14 Days of God's Love - The Eyes of Love

Via papercraftmemories.com

It's easy to fall short in life because we believe what the world would tell us about our dreams, our passions, our life. Satan would love nothing more than for us to believe there is no chance for us to fulfill the dreams in our hearts. He'd rather see us settle for being too weak, too poor, not ambitious enough, not a leader...etc etc etc. However, God sees us through the eyes of Love. He is Love and we posses the strength to face whatever in life we come against. We posses that strength because Jesus lives inside of us...we don't have to wait for the strength to be over comers, we've been given everything we will ever need.

Joyce Meyer states in a devotional I am reading of hers: "Seeing yourself the way God sees you leads to a life of overwhelming victory" (You can check our the reading plan from J.Meyer here). 

As believers of the Word, we know in our minds God loves us.  Do you believe it?  Do you trust that He loves you?

I heard a story recently with a Biblical analogy that really sparked something inside of me.  The story is about a tight rope walker who stretched a tight rope across Niagara Falls.  Many times he tight roped back and forth across Niagara Falls, never falling.  Each time he crossed he added a more daring obstacle, first a tricycle, then he pushed a wheelbarrow across.  Then he placed a flour sack the weight of a human in the wheelbarrow and pushed that across successfully.  The multitudes of people cheered him on, each time saying "he can do it, we believe he can do it!"  Then the tight rope walker announced he'd do one more act of strength, he'd place a man in the wheelbarrow and push it across the tight rope stretched across Niagara Falls.  The entire crowd cheered and said he could do it...but not a one volunteered to get in the wheelbarrow.  You see, there is a difference between believing God loves you and trusting God loves you.  The ones who trust get in the wheelbarrow. 
1 John 4:4 says "He who is in you is greater than he who is in the wold"   He has given you all you will ever need to succeed.  Jesus is all the courage, strength, ambition, and love we need.  We don't have to wait on Him to give any of it to us, He loved us enough to have gifted it all to us many years ago on the cross.  It's up to us to stand on our Faith and Trust that he Loves us that much. 

He loves you. He loves you.  He loves you.