JOY – MORE THAN HAPPINESS

The FRUIT of the SPIRIT is…JOY – Galatians 5:22

The human hunger for HAPPINESS is an endless and insatiable quest! For many people, finding happiness in life is the big goal; a goal that constantly eludes them. Multitudes are breathlessly chasing after the illusion called happiness. Drugs, liquor, entertainment, and diverse options provide false offers to attain the acme of pleasure. Alas, it’s all a futile grasping after the wind. According to Bible scholar Ian Barclay, “Happiness is not a biblical word at all. It is derived from the root TO HAPPEN. Clearly, what happens to us will affect our happiness.” Happiness is determined by what happens to us, and on ever-changing emotions and fleeting feelings.

Happiness is mainly dependent on external circumstances and transient happenings. Happiness is fake and fickle because life’s circumstances are constantly changing. JOY, on the other hand, is a FRUIT of the SPIRIT and is not affected by positive or negative happenings. Joy is independent of our circumstances and situations. It is dependent, as we ourselves need to be, on God Himself who dwells within us. Joy is primarily an INSIDE MATTER. Unlike happiness, you need not chase after Joy. It is the pursuit of God via the indwelling Presence of His Spirit that unstops the Fountains of Joy within you.

True Joy is a fruit of something, nay Someone; it is much greater than happiness. Happiness depends on happenings; JOY depends on JESUS! Beloved, you should desire to have the Joy of the Lord in your life, without chasing after it. When you live and walk in the Spirit, the fruit of the Spirit will naturally burst forth. When you’re walking with the Lord, He will sow seeds of Joy in your heart and sustain your Inner Joy.