Psalms 16:11 – You have made known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in Your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
It is comforting to know that the Lord is with His children all the time to guide them in the paths of life. They are given both life and life eternal by Him and He guides them in this life to prepare them for the life eternal. There is every possibility that we loose our pathway in this world because there are all sorts of detractors around us to lure us away from the right path. They offer joy and pleasures if we go their way. But this offer is only an advertising gimmick. Once we join their way, we will be plunged into sorrow, misery, hopelessness and oppression. Instead of singing for the Lord on His path, the path of the world will make us weep and wallow in our pain and agony. We will also have the guilt of taking detour from the path of the Lord. Many God’s children experienced this sorrow when they drifted from the path of the Lord. Abraham and David were prime example of such lives of diversions, but the Lord rescued them from it and brought them to the right path. When we are on His path, we would enjoy His happiness because it will be a time of perfect fellowship with Him and enjoy all the heavenly resources. Our hearts will be filled with joy which will be expressed through the songs that we would be enabled to sing to the Lord. This pathway is full of grace, joy and satisfaction through supernatural enabling. We are called upon to experience heaven on earth moment by moment when we tread the pathway that the Lord shows us. This doesn’t mean that we will not encounter problems or difficulties while on the Lord’s way, but He will give us heavenly resources to cope with these earthly challenges as we walk with Him.
Dear friend, Are you continually on the pathway that the Lord shows you? Do you sometimes drift into detours from the Lord’s path into the world’s pathways? If you are lured like that, you will surely recognize it because without the Lord, you will not be happy no matter what the world offers you. Instead of singing joyful songs and hymns, you will only be able to weep because you will miss fellowship with the Lord and His people. You will then be out of touch with the Word of God and will not be able to pray in the Spirit of God. But even as you take the detour, you will hear the soft and soothing voice of your Shepherd asking you to come back to His path and follow His instructions. If you listen and obey Him, you will be able to come back to His path. As you repent of your backsliding and drifting, He will give the joy of your salvation back to you. He will reestablish fellowship with you and give you songs in the night to sing along as you tread His pathway. The joy that the Lord gives you is joy in spite of your circumstances and situations. You will be able to rejoice even in the midst of poverty, sickness and loneliness. You will sing even when the world engages you in fierce battles. When you are misunderstood, misrepresented and misinterpreted, you will still be able to enjoy your walk in the pathway of the Lord because He fills you with His joy. Will the people who meet you be able to see such a joy in your life? If so, you are the best advertisement for heaven. This is the challenge the Lord wants you to take as you walk in His pathways each day of your life.
Nehemiah 8:10b – This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. Thought for TodayA child of God filled with the joy of the Lord in spite of his situations and circumstances is a formidable challenge for the world.
