I am in Nairobi, but I'm on my way home! It's been 10 weeks away, so I'm anxious to get home to my wife, summer weather, reliable electricity and water, and the Fourth of July. I am not complaining, for I've had a great trip and will be back on the African continent the third week of August.
During this trip, I reconnected with my favorite book, Proverbs. As you know, I published a book in 1997 entitled A Daily Dose of Proverbs. It is still one of my best-selling books, in which I wrote one page of devotional material focusing on one verse from Proverbs for every day of the year. (I recently wrote a blog entry about Proverbs if you would like to read it.) While reading through the book this month, I ran across a few verses on joy that stood out to me in light of the discussions we have had about joy in Monday Memos 297 and 298. (I am also attaching the July excerpt from my Proverbs book below for your use and enjoyment.)
JOY VERSES
The first verse that caught my attention is Proverbs 14:10:
Each heart knows its own bitterness, and no one else can share its joy.
No one can tell you what you should like or not like, energize you or not. You know what your heart is telling you when you love to do something, and when something is a drag. You can't explain it, justify it or dismiss it. It just is. I love to write. I love to work in Africa. That joy is my indicator that those are things I am supposed to do. At the same time, I was depressed when I was the pastor of a local church. A pastor does a noble work, but there was no joy in it for me. So I stopped being a pastor in 1993 and I have never looked back or had any regrets. I didn't leave church work; I just pursued work in that world that gave my heart joy.
The second verse is found in Proverbs 17:22:
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Joy, or lack of it, affects your physiology. If you have joy, you have a better chance for health. If not, then you are in danger of dried up bones. How often do you laugh every day? More importantly, how often do you laugh while you are working or doing whatever it is that you do all day, like going to school or tending your children? Laughter is good medicine, so doing what you enjoy is a health tonic of sorts. Not doing what you love is a prescription for illness, pure and simple. No wonder I feel so good these days!
JOY FEAST
The one verse, however, that really caught my attention is in Proverbs 15:15:
All the days of the oppressed are wretched, but the cheerful heart has a continual feast.
How many people I know who hate to get up and go to work. Their days are wretched and that means they are oppressed. How so? They have to do what they do and they somehow feel that this is noble or God's will. God does not oppress you by placing you in situations that you don't enjoy or find happiness. He may do that for a season to train you or develop some aspect of your character, but He won't do it for long.
Yet those who find what they love to do and then do it have a continual feast. They constantly feed at a table of creativity, innovation and significance. They have energy and an attitude that says, "I don't have to do what I'm doing; I get to do what I'm doing." Every day is a "ten" on a scale of one to ten when you do what you love.
So at what table are you feeding? Is it a table of meager fulfillment and occasional joy, or is it a table where there is an endless supply, a feast, of joyful energy? I refuse to spend one day at the wretched table of oppression, but only want to sit and serve where I can access the abundance of joy. I invite you to sit at the table with me, for there's plenty of room and there is no end to goodies that joy can provide. In fact, why not determine to take your place at that table today! If you do, you won't just have a good week in general, but a good week filled with seven joyful days.
Feel free to add your comments to this entry on the site where it is posted.
Download July Proverbs: July.doc
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