Tears of Joy

If you grew up in the church you'll remember the catchy little song "the j-oy of the Lo---rd is my strength, the j-oy of the Lo---rd is my strength, the j-oy of the Lo---rd is my strength, the j-oy of the Lo-rd is my strength." Are you humming the tune right now? Anyway, what does this phrase actually mean? Well, a quick check of the context surrounding the verse the song was taken from (Nehemiah 8:10) makes the phrase clear.

In the historical book of Nehemiah, the Jewish captives have returned to Jerusalem and have mercifully been allowed to rebuild the walls of their holy city. Upon the completion of this task, while Ezra the priest was reading from the Book of the Teachings, those present confessed their sins and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. Then, the governor, Nehemiah said "'this is a holy day to the Lord your God. Don't be sad or cry' because all the people had been crying as they listened to the words of the Teachings."

Why were they crying? Because God, in his great mercy, had forgiven their sins and brought them back to their beloved Jerusalem! That's definitely a reason to cry. But not tears of sadness, tears of joy! Tears of joy because their sins were forgiven; tears of joy because God had kept His promise; tears of joy because their future was secure.

That's why Nehemiah told them 'let the joy from the Lord make you strong.'

Does God's joy - the quiet assurance that He is in control - give you strength? Does God's joy - the fact that he'll be there no matter what - give you courage to stay strong? These are important questions in the life of any believer. If you're not sure of the answers, why not commit some time right now to prayer asking God's joy to become your real strength.