Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.
I know this verse; I sing this chorus. Yet I found myself wallowing in What on earth is the matter with me? Nothing was wrong. No one was ill. Money was not an issue. I had food on the table, gas in the car, and a roof over my head. I had no reason not to be filled with the joy of the Lord. But I was tired and grumpy. Grieving.
Because I had plans with my daughter and granddaughter, I made myself shower and prepare for the day. I might have been grumpy, but I didn’t plan to stink. We went to a coffee shop, sat outside in the sun, and talked. Slowly, the warm coffee, sun, and conversation comforted me on the inside, where only God could see.
After receiving a bit of cheer from the Lord, I reflected on the beautiful things He had arranged for me in the past few days: Shopping with my granddaughter for her wedding dress. Putting wedding favors together with a group. Eating a meal with friends. Holding my five-week-old great-grandson. Spending an evening with three close friends. And attending an inspiring and encouraging Sunday morning worship service. Soon, I was no longer tired or grumpy.
It is such a blessing that the Lord gives us a second chance—or a third or fourth—to get past the What on earth is the matter with me? and move into the joy of the Lord is my strength.
Make the Lord your joy and strength. Even when you don’t feel like it, shower, prepare for your day, and list what God has done for you. Find the joy and strength that comes from Him and is free.
Susan Paulus is the mother of three adult daughters and grandmother to nine and has been married for over 60 years. She loves her part-time job at her small church in Northwest Ohio, is challenged by the two writers' groups she attends, and loves remembering she was led to the Lord in the mid 1970's by a woman who prayed, "Lord, use me."