Cultivating the Heart of Rejoicing

Godman Akinlabi
Philippians 4: 2-5, 2 Corinthians 4: 7-10
 The power of the Holy Spirit is active in an atmosphere of rejoicing. We, therefore, must strive to maintain an attitude of joy because it's the key to prevailing over difficult circumstances or enemies. Rejoice in the Lord always because He knows we live in a turbulent world and He will always make a way for us. A gloomy heart will repel the Holy Spirit, so even though we are hard pressed, perplexed and persecuted on every side, the correct thing to do is to rejoice in the love of God.
A joyous attitude is a choice; the way we feel is under our control. When we understand the depth of the love of God, it becomes easier to be full of joy and rejoicing because then we are confident that God will always be with His own people.
Joy has got to come from the heart. Let's bear in mind that “it's not because things are bad that we are sad; rather, it's because we are sad that things are bad”. Despairing is a waste of time, as well as murmuring and complaining. When we choose to stop wallowing in sadness, our circumstances begin to change for the better; if we refuse to allow our emotions to be tossed about by physical circumstances, then, the view that God is working things together in our favour prevails.
Recorded in the bible is the story of two apostles, Paul and Silas. They cast out demons from a slave girl who was possessed with a spirit of divination and claimed to foretell the future. This greatly infuriated the crowd especially as some people were making money off her. So, they were beaten mercilessly, thrown into jail and their feet were fastened with heavy chains. The apostles, instead of despairing, prayed and sang hymns of praise to God and there was a great earthquake which shook the foundations of the prisons and the doors opened and their chains came loose. ACTS 16:16-26.
We all have to emulate the attitude of those apostles by deliberately ignoring the circumstances gnawing at us and reach
for God through rejoicing. A merry heart causes things to happen in our favour of their own accord. Rejoice! Again, I say,
rejoice!!