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Section 1: Yehuveh’s Love, Article 12 Do You Have Everlasting Joy? “Therefore the redeemed of Yehuveh shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their head: they shall obtain gladness and joy; and sorrow and mourning shall flee away.” Isaiah 51:11. |
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wo artists were commissioned to paint a picture of peace. The first artist painted a pastoral scene of rolling hills, cattle grazing quietly among flower strewn meadows, stately trees, and gently-flowing streams. It was tranquil and inviting. The second artist, by contrast, painted a | |||||
rocky craig behind a thunderous waterfall. As the cascading water crashed into a broad pool, spray and mist rose again in billowing clouds, creating winds that swayed the trees in ceaseless motion. In the midst of this tumult, he painted a small nest atop a branch that extended far out over the water. Undisturbed by the commotion around her sat a mother robin, secure in her own inside peace, quite untouched by her surroundings! In like terms Isaiah described how we can have such peace: “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee.” So I raise the question: If peace comes, not from our surroundings, but from what’s inside each of us, is not the same true of joy? David says, “Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing,” and that’s what I crave! Isaiah 26:3; Psalms 30:11. Having “everlasting joy” clearly implies that we will experience this joy all the time, without ceasing, unending, and unfailing. That promise greatly appeals to me! In the midst of heartbreaking tears and deep soul anguish I crave joy, this “everlasting joy.” Does such joy come only when life is tranquil and resources are plentiful? Will “my mourning” “turned” to “dancing” come only after all external situations are pleasing to me? Or can joy be mine as soon as I am in harmony with Yehuveh? Can we have it now, in the midst of our struggles? First Discovery of Joy What do the Scriptures say about how we attain this joy? About when we will have it? Can it be ours all the time NOW? For years I have been asking Yehuveh: What is true joy and how and when might I have it? From childhood, I have loved my my “Maker” and sought to know and do His will, yet the deep joy I read about in Scripture has never been mine. It seemed to me that I never understood this word, this concept, yet I continued to pray for it. One by one, as Yehuveh has brought me back from the “inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit” of my early training, I have felt relief and gladness, but true deep joy still evaded me. Then one Sabbath morning that changed. Isaiah 54:5; Jeremiah 16:19. I sat alone near the front of a small independent Sabbath-keeping church to which I had taken my grandchildren for their children’s program. I was reading quietly to myself, only casually listening to the “lesson,” when a stranger from the back of the room startled us all with the comment, “You realize that there is no continual week.” Suddenly, he had my full attention. I awaited his explanation, but he said nothing more. Gael Bataman Originally Written: 11 October 2005 Latest Update: 9 October 2009 Complete Study Guide to Article 12 In Returning and Rest From Where Do We Get Joy? Everlasting Joy for Us NOW! Expressing Our Joy Return to Zadok Home Continue Article 12 . . . Go to Section 1: Love Go to Historical Calendar Go to Daniel 11-12 Go to Revelation Go to Years of Returning (Darius) |