Christian-Living
Living in Joy: A Final Reflection
Posted on Tuesday, March 24, 2026 at 6:30 AM
We’ve spent time together exploring what the Bible teaches us about joy. Not the world’s version — fragile, circumstance-dependent, here-today-gone-tomorrow. But the joy Jesus spoke of. The joy that Paul wrote about from a Roman prison. The joy that survives suffering, loss, uncertainty, and still stands. Now the question becomes: What do we do with this? What We Learned Here are the truths we’ve uncovered: Joy is not happiness. Happiness says, “I’m glad because things are good.Joy: Day 2 - The Joy of the Lord Is Your Strength
Posted on Thursday, March 19, 2026 at 12:00 AM
Joy: Day 2 - The Joy of the Lord Is Your Strength “Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” — Nehemiah 8:10 (NIV) The Context: A People Rebuilding To understand this verse, we need to understand the moment. The Israelites had returned from 70 years of exile in Babylon. They came home to Jerusalem in ruins — walls broken down, gates burned, the temple destroyed. Everything their ancestors had built was gone.Joy: The First Day - A Different Kind of Happy
Posted on Wednesday, March 18, 2026 at 12:00 AM
Joy: The First Day - A Different Kind of Happy “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” — Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) The World’s Joy vs. God’s Joy We live in a world obsessed with happiness. Scroll through social media for five minutes and you’ll see it everywhere: #blessed captions over perfect sunsets, carefully curated vacation photos, milestone celebrations, and the endless pursuit of “living your best life.Gentleness: Strength Under Control
Posted on Sunday, March 8, 2026 at 11:35 AM
Gentleness: Strength Under Control When we think of gentleness today, we might picture someone soft-spoken, timid, or easily pushed around. But biblical gentleness—Greek word prautēs—paints a different picture entirely. Biblical Gentleness: Strength Under Control In the ancient world, prautēs described a wild animal that had been tamed. Think of a powerful horse or fierce lion that had learned to respond to its master’s voice. The power was still there, but it was now purposeful rather than destructive.The Joy of the Lord: Finding Light in the Gathering Dark
Posted on Sunday, March 1, 2026 at 8:45 PM
An Evening Reflection The sun is setting now, isn’t it? Those golden hours slip away so quietly—sometimes we barely notice the light fading until suddenly we’re surrounded by the soft weight of evening. It’s in these moments that something ancient stirs in us. A longing. A reaching. For what, exactly? We can’t always name it. But God can. When the World Goes Quiet There’s a particular kind of silence that only comes after sunset.The Joy of the Lord: A Fruit That Radiates
Posted on Sunday, March 1, 2026 at 4:26 PM
Galatians 5:22-23 - “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Joy is not happiness. Happiness is circumstantial—it’s tied to what’s happening around us. Joy runs deeper. It’s not dependent on good weather, good news, or good fortune. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit, which means it grows in us regardless of what’s going on in our lives. The Source of True Joy