Pretend you paid cash for your favorite vehicle—a Mercedes perhaps, or a Lamborghini, a Ford-150 maybe. You included every accessory you ever imagined–leather seats, a 22-speaker sound system, outside sound suppressing sonar. Jumping into your bright new car brings delightful happiness.
As you are driving out of the dealership, an out-of-control garbage truck crushes into the left side of your car, spilling smelly trash all over your shining exterior. Suddenly you are shocked, angry and decidedly unhappy. In a nanosecond your mood changes from elation to dejection.
This thought experiment tells us that happiness depends on happenings. When our life glides on silky waters as smoothly as a sailboat in a soft, summer breeze we radiate happiness. When our life resembles a busted flush we exude unhappiness.
Joy transcends happiness. Steady and certain, joy comes from the confident assurance that God loves us and seeks to help us act according to his good purpose. While happiness depends on happenings joy depends on the conviction that God strengthens us in our weaknesses even though his presence remains unseen.
Now comes the part that is hard to understand. Joy comes only with personal surrender. We can never have joy when we put ourselves first. Selfish ambition and vain conceit steal our joy.
A great paradox presents itself when we seek joy. Joy’s victory comes from surrendering our self-will to a higher power. The very self-centeredness that makes us need to surrender our conceit to God causes our inability to submit.
If we are unable to turn our lives over to God what can we do? We can ask the Holy Spirit for help. When we seek the Holy Spirit’s assistance he gives us the power to glorify God and enjoy him forever.
When we take time to listen, to help, serve and encourage others we love like God. When we give our prayers, our gifts, our presence and our service for the betterment of others we love like God. God-like love brings joy, a joy that allows us to endure adversity without bitterness and abide prosperity without conceit.