Be Joyful Always
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 & Philippians 4:4-9
Rejoice in the Lord always
I will say it again, Rejoice
Not an easy decision
But we all have a choice
You see, joy is not about being happy
Take it from Paul
Used to be Saul
A ‘holier than thou’ man of religion
Thought he was a good man
Raised in the faith
Until Jesus met him face to face
He saw the error of his ways
And turned to God to give Him all praise
But conversion was not easy
His life became hard
Rejected by his friends
Always on his guard
Not received by the Christians
He was a murderer
In a state of repentance
Looking for acceptance
He was beaten and bruised
Stoned, shipwrecked, even abused
Thrown in jail and put in chains
Told he would fail, and nothing else remains
He found a secret that carried him through it all
He said, “I have learned to be content in all situations”
And all life’s stations
In plenty or in need
So what is this secret
I need to see
Can’t stand to live in want
But I can’t get free
No matter how much I receive
It never satisfies
This life is born in lies
So what does Paul say?
What’s this secret that so few seem to find?
Be Joyful Always!
That’s the start, but it doesn’t end there
If it did, it wouldn’t be fair
Paul gave us instructions
On how follow this command
Pray Continually!
Like streaming On Demand
Your conversation with God
Should never end
Like a chat stream blowing up by the minute
It’s always exciting when God is in it
Like wigglesworth said
“I rarely spend more than a half hour to pray
But I don’t go more than a half hour
without something new to say”
So keep that prayer line open
And continue to share
Cause God’s always listening
And will always care
Then take time to listen as He talks to you
Prayer is a conversation between you two
If your prayer time is like a monologue
Something is wrong
Your talking too long
It’s time to stop
And now we can move on
But before we do
Let’s recap from the start
Be Joyful Always
This comes from the heart
Pray continually
Is the second part
So to wrap up this story
The final piece, gives God the glory
Give Thanks in any and all things
And what does this Thankfulness bring
A new focus is the first thing I see
Takes our eyes of the negative
Going on around me
And allows me to thank God
For the blessing he brings
As Corrie said
“Thank you for the fleas!”
I may not always see a reason
It may seem like the wrong season
But many seasons of growth
Begin with seasons of pain
God uses the circumstance of the world
To teach us new things
He doesn’t bring the pain
I want that to be clear
But He’ll use the pain
To guide us through the fear
“What doesn’t kill me
Makes me stronger”
Since I’m not dead
I must stay on the path longer
Pain produces perseverance
Because it puts faith to the test
Without facing struggles
We would never see God’s best
Think about the cross
Ultimate pain and loss of Hope
Jesus was dead and in the grave
His friends facing the most horrible pain
But Joy comes in the morning
So don’t give up now
And find reason to give thanks!
Like Christ’s death brought ultimate life
Your struggle will be bring new things
So, Rejoice in the Lord, for he is near
Pray all the time, even through your fear
Present yourself to God
With thanksgiving in your heart
Then comes the most amazing part
His Peace that passes all understanding
Will guard your heart
and mind
And you find
The final passage
Phillipians 4, verses 8 and 9
Whatever is true, noble and right
Whatever is pure, lovely and admirable
Anything that is excellent or praiseworthy
Think about these things!
Focus your mind on the good
And find yourself in the Lord
And contentment will come
No matter what you can afford
And Paul wraps up this verse with this:
Whatever you have learned or heard from me
Put it into practice
So Be Joyful and always pray
Give thanks in all you do
And all you say
And the God of peace will be with you
Now and always!
