The joy of the King

       He giggles with glee as I tickle his bare tummy then turns and runs to the other side of the room where he eagerly calls me, "Bee! Aun Bee!" then squealing in delight he runs into my arms. It was the game we played over and over last night. My darling little nephew with his laughing blue eyes and feisty temperament is such a joy to my heart. As I laughed with him last night it got me thinking. God delights in His children and rejoices to bring them joy right? But what brings God joy? 

    God is a God of emotion, which means He is a God of joy, a GIVER OF JOY. He delights to shower us with blessings that will bring us joy. Personally, I believe that when we deliberately choose to shun the joy of the Lord and dwell on our negative emotions we are taking away from His joy. If we want to bring our Father joy we need to LIVE IN JOY. One of the most easily recognizable characteristics of a Christian is their joy, so if we want the world to recognize us as a Christian one of the things we need to do is live a joyful life. It's not always easy, but we need to be purposely seeking to find even a hint of joy in our day to day lives to thank God for that cheer, being in communion with Him through the simple things that bring a smile to our face.

 "But let all those who take refuge and put their trust in You rejoice; let them ever sing and shout for joy, because You make a covering over them and defend them;

 let those also who love Your name be joyful in You and be in high spirits" 

Psalm 5:11

"For the glory of God!"