Joy2Bcomplete

Today's Scripture Selections

Have you ever felt as though you have learned something so completely - even a simple thing - that you would never learn something new about it? Maybe most of you are not so foolish as I am, but I once felt this about JOY. I thought I had uncovered THE secret of it - and I had, sort of. But to my amazement, I discovered that there is MORE.

I developed a little acronym for the word JOY (OK, it's not totally mine). J is for Jesus and knowing in your heart that He loves you with mercy and forgiveness. O is for others - putting them ahead of yourself. Y is for yourself - knowing how you are made by God and the role that you uniquely fill in His Kingdom. All of this works beautifully together and I have shared with thousands of people in talks and individual conversation and coaching. It's not wrong, it's just incomplete and today's scripture

points toward it.

In John chapter 15, Jesus says "I tell you these things so that my joy may be in you, and your joy may be complete." Hmmm - let's break that down. First off, what did Jesus tell us: I am the vine you are the branches and those who live in me will bear great fruit. What is the fruit? More believers. What is Jesus' joy? More believers - more who believe in Him and so are reconciled with the Father. So He wants this joy in us - I guess we have to make more believers. I know, that sounds hard and out of our comfort zone, am I right?

Jesus knows this and tells us that it might be challenging, but it is worth it, because what we get when we bring others to believe in and follow Him is this: Complete Joy. Often times after giving a talk, or leading a discussion or even after a personal conversation I felt this tremendous sense of joy, and I thought it was brought about because I was being effective at using my gifts for His purposes - which is true - sort of. There is certainly some joy that comes from this - but the real joy, the joy that was overwhelming and complete was because people were coming closer to the Lord in those circumstances - because I used my gifts in a way that the Holy Spirit was directing me.

Not everyone is called to give talks or teach, but as Christians we are all called to bring more believers. The Holy Spirit will actually do the work of converting their hearts, we just have to build the environment for that to happen in. We will all do it differently: through hospitality, through conversation, through encouragement, through listening, through prayer, through works of service, through creating organizations, or starting ministries, or by meeting a need large or small. As we use our unique gifts and band together in doing it, we become the living, breathing, standing right in front of you Jesus Christ for the world to see and discover. That, my friends, is complete Joy.