Breakthrough - The Joy of the Lord is our Strength | Steuart Payne | Sunday 23rd January 2022

Pastor Steu speaks this week about the Joy of The Lord being our strength.  Sometimes we find ourselves lacking in joy and everything in life is flat. But when we take hold of the joy of the Lord, (because his Joy makes us strong) a breakthrough can occur in our lives.  In Nehemiah 8, 9-10, the people are told not to mourn and weep but rather celebrate the completion of the city walls and temple and have joy in their hearts. Nehemiah actually tells them “…for the joy of the Lord is your strength”. This restoration took place because of God's grace, not because the people had obeyed God's law. Daily strength comes from God, not our ability or inability. 

Likewise, restoration in our own lives happens because of God's grace, not because we obey God's laws. It's important that we remember that our daily strength comes from rejoicing in the grace of God and not mourning over our abilities or lack of them! Galatians 3, 24 tells us that the law is our tutor to bring us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Our justification before God is not by living according to rules and regulations, but by faith. So when it comes to being a people of breakthrough, It's important to remember that we already have the victory in Christ. Through His death, burial and resurrection, Jesus has made total restoration available to all Humanity. God's arms are wide open to us and the blessings of his kingdom are available to us. We have become children of God, inheritors of the kingdom of God and are rescued from the dominion of darkness and brought into the kingdom of the son of his love into the Kingdom of Light.

PS Steu spoke of three ways Satan often tries to steal our joy

• Legalism - trying to please God by following rules and regulations
• Regret – the children of Israel were constantly moaning and living in regret of leaving their old life and consequently never took the Promised Land until a new generation thought differently…..
• Circumstances that we know or go through can rob us of joy things, taking away the joy of our Salvation

When we focus on God we find joy. In Psalm 23 we see that our circumstances can sometimes be like mountains that surround us, and we feel like we're walking through a valley. We can feel overshadowed and overwhelmed by what's going on in our lives and find ourselves in a dark place, but the psalm also speaks about not stopping in the middle of the valley, but walking through the valley. Fullness of joy is found in God's presence.

Let us wake daily and declare the Joy of the Lord over our lives, then we shall find new strength.