Love, Joy, Peace – Yes Please!
Galatians 5:22-23 –
‘But the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE, JOY, PEACE, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.’
John 15:9-11 –
‘As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.’
John 14:27 –
‘My peace I give to you.’
Love, Joy, Peace, the shiniest most luscious fruit of them all.
The evening before his sister’s wedding, George Matheson, a blind 19th century preacher, experienced a terrible resurgence of the heartbreak of twenty years earlier, when his fiancée rejected him because of his impending blindness. In the midst of that agonised memory, George found himself writing a hymn that would bring comfort to thousands. Two memorable lines are:
O Love that will not let me go…
O Joy that seekest me through pain
Whatever place you’re in right now, whatever you face in your future, you are gripped by the love of God: his love for you, and in you, is permanent, unshakeable, rock solid. And because of Jesus’ love for you shown supremely on the Cross, the Holy Spirit will show you how to love others, how to give yourself away.
Joy through pain? For a long time I didn’t get that. The thing is, joy isn’t the same as happiness. Happiness depends totally on nice circumstances. Bad circumstances, I’m unhappy. Divine Joy goes much deeper, into the depths of your soul where Christ is.
Author Rick Warren says: “Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright and the determined choice to praise God in every situation.”
There it is, self-control/choice again! If we choose to worship God whatever the circumstances, we’ll know joy.
And we’ll experience peace too. Not peace that is the opposite of noise, not peace that is the cessation of war but Divine Peace that comes through a right relationship with God, the relationship that Jesus restored by dying on the cross for you. God is for you, not against you! Live in that peace.
Prayer – Holy Spirit, I know I’m a work in progress. Please grow in me your fruit of everlasting life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. AMEN!