The Secret To True Joy

This is me at Disney World with my favorite Disney character of all time. Baymax. I waited in line for 2 hours just to get 2 minutes with him and Hiro. As you can tell from this photo, it was SO worth it. The smile of pure joy on my face is priceless making this picture famous among my family members. 

I think about that day a lot and how fun and special it was to me. And then I randomly thought about the other teenagers I see at Disney all the time when I go. Me and my family love Disney and we go several times a year which has given me a lot of time to study other people there. Most teenagers I see don't even smile. They stand there in the happiest place on earth with their hands in their pockets or holding their phones checking Instagram. And I think, "What are you doing? You're standing in the most magical place on the planet!" 

When I go to Disney World, its always the best day or days of my life! I wear Disney attire, I watch the parades, I skip around, I wave at characters walking by, I smile the entire day, and I don't even care about my phone. The heat of Florida and the sea of crowds don't even bother me slightly. And I used to think, "Its because its Disney World! Everyone loves Disney!" But then I realized I was wrong when I saw all the other teenagers on their phones all day while whining and complaining about small things. 

They don't have joy like I do. Sure, I really do love Disney and I believe God gave me that too! But those other teens at Disney can't enjoy it like I can because they don't know Jesus.

Without a relationship with Him, Disney is an empty place, just another theme park. But with Jesus, Disney really does come to life. That may sound silly, but I know it to be true. And this realization I had has been confirmed several times in my lifetime.

One time, during a trip to Disney World with my youth group from church,we were all in line for Splash Mountain. We came up with a super cool idea to high five and cheer for the people that passed by us in the Fastpass line. All 100 of the kids in my youth group would cheer loudly and high five every single Fastpass person that went by and those families loved it.One young man stopped and asked a kid in my youth group, "Why are you guys so happy and excited?" The kid replied, "Because we have Jesus!"

It really is true. Life is so much happier and better with Jesus in your life. The world is trying so hard to find the key to being truly happy without God. I'm sorry but it doesn't work. Popularity or fame won't make you happy, instead it will only make you more insecure. Having a girlfriend or boyfriend gets boring really quickly. Nothing man made can bring us the joy we desire. Only Jesus can.

So now when I go to Disney, I understand why it makes me so happy. I have Jesus in my heart and he died for me so that I may know him personally and he has removed my sin so I may have eternal life with him. Just like my last post about God sightings, I see God through Disney even though that may sound silly. He knows Disney is my favorite place and he wants me to enjoy it and have fun. He loves when I laugh and smile and because I have him in my heart I know that he has washed me clean of my sin and saved me from eternal death. So therefore I have a level of joy that people without Jesus cannot receive and I have true happiness that will last. 

To conclude, this is a poem I wrote for school in 7th grade about happiness. I believe that God wanted me to write it at the age of 12 so that I could share it with you today:

Happiness. It's like a feeling some people cannot explain. That special moment when your heart jumps for joy and your eyes twinkle. It usually happens when something special happens to you, like when you get a compliment or gift. But for me, it's different. I am happy, because I have the joy of the Lord in my heart which some people don't have.Their happiness is not forever. But mine is eternal.

We are His

“Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture.” ~Psalm 100:3

When I read this verse a few days ago, I didn’t immediately understand what God was trying to tell me. I had to meditate on it for a whole day or two and ask God why He was insistent on laying this verse upon my heart. As I read it again and again, God eventually revealed the beauty of this verse. One section of the verse that really stood out to me was this; We are His. We do not belong to the world or its hatred. We are no longer slaves to fear. We are not defined by the sin and evil that is running rampant on this earth. We are HIS.

Know that the Lord is God. The psalmist is urging us to reflect on everything God is. He is the Creator of Heaven and Earth. He is the only One who sits on the glorious throne of Heaven. He is sovereign, omnipotent, omniscient. He is God. But what’s equally amazing is that He, being God, looks upon us as His dearly loved children. He is our good, good Father, our unfailing Provider, our perfect Savior. He chooses to walk with us through our trials and He delights greatly in us.

It is He who made us. He created us each uniquely with special gifts, talents, and personalities. He handcrafted each of us individually in His image. Each and every one of us are priceless in His sight. We are His treasured possession, the apple of His eye. He sees us, He knows us, and He loves us.

We are the sheep of His pasture. Just as a shepherd knows each of his sheep, just as he tenderly cares for his sheep, just as he watches over his sheep, so God shepherds us. He never leaves our side because He cares so deeply about us. As we are under God’s watchful care and unfailing protection, we feel safe. We trust our Shepherd. We know His voice. We follow His sovereign leading, knowing that He is good.

I love how the verse says, we are the sheep of His pasture. As God’s children, perfectly loved by Him, we belong to Him. We are His. And as His sheep, as His children, we do not get confused with whose pasture in which we belong. When we roam to other pastures, seeking acceptance or love, our good Shepherd is there to gently remind us of His immeasurable, unconditional love for us. He is there to lead us back to Him for that is where we belong.

As we walk through this life, we can find comfort in the fact that this world is not our home. We do not belong to the hatred, the anger, or the hurt of this world. We have a hope, an eternal future rooted in Heaven. That is where we belong. So as we spend our time here on Earth, no matter how rough the road may get, no matter how scary the storms may seem, we can rejoice. We know that the Lord is God and that He is greater than what we face. We know that He made us special and that He loves us with a love that far surpasses our understanding. We know that we are His treasured sheep, protected when we are in His pasture. We are His and we are safe in His arms.

Mercy

"You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds

shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let

righteousness flourish with it; I, the Lord, have created it."

~ Isaiah 45:8

    

     There's something about the rain that I've always loved, and with Hurricane Matthew here in Florida, I've obviously been getting to see A LOT of rain! Even now as I'm sitting in my home and writing this post I can hear the drops of rain gently hitting our roof and dripping down to water the world outside. I can imagine myself standing out there, too, in the middle of this storm, and just looking up into the sky and feeling the rain hit my face and dampen my hair. It makes me take a deep breath of relief. 

 

     The rain continues to pour down, and though I'm not literally standing outside in the midst of it, I know full well that is indeed falling- all around me; everywhere- which so beautifully reminds me of my Savior's love and mercy and favor towards me that is always showering down on my life. I may not always see it, I may not always even feel it, but I can trust that it is always there. 

 

     When I am standing out in the rain, I feel this vulnerability, yet complete safeness before God. He sees right through me and the many walls I try to put up around myself, straight into my heart. He sees my sin- past, present, and future. He sees my weakness. My pride. My anger. My self doubt. He sees ALL of those things- and He still loves me and delights in showing me His mercy. 

 

     I mess up ALL THE TIME! I'm human- It's what I do! But God's love and mercy towards me always triumphs over His judgement. God even illustrated this fact in the Old Testament, when He would call his people to "meet Him at the Mercy Seat" of the Ark of the Covenant, where they could repent and make atonement for their sins. The cool thing is, that the Mercy Seat of the Ark happened to be the area directly above the place where the Law of Moses (the Ten Commandments) was kept- the rules, the expectations, and the consequences and judgements that would be placed on the people if they chose to sin. But each time the people came to meet God at the Mercy Seat, they were always forgiven and covered with God's love and mercy, not His judgement and authority. 

 

     I just think that's such a beautiful picture of God's character towards His children! It reminds me of a Bethel song called "Mercy" that's one of my favorites right now. The lyrics go like this:

 

My past embraced

My sin forgiven

I'm blameless in Your sight

My history rewritten

You delight in showing mercy

And mercy triumphs over judgement 

Oh, love great love

Fear cannot be found in You

There will never be a day

You're uncertain of the ones You choose

For You delight in showing mercy

And mercy triumphs over judgement 

So I will wake and spend my days

Loving the One who has raised me up

From death to life, from wrong to right

You're making all things beautiful

***Here's a link if you want to look up the song for yourself:  

https://youtu.be/6gFSkCv3XjQ 

 

     I just LOVE that! I LOVE that God so deeply wants to show us His mercy, love and favor if we're willing to show Him just a little bit of ourselves, and get open and vulnerable before Him. His Presence is the safest place to be; it's exactly what He wants for us. For in Him we are kept safe, loved, and continually drenched by His merciful presence, being made beautiful and blameless in His sight.

 

 

  

God Sightings

A lot of people, teenagers and adults alike, struggle with seeing God in their every day lives. And they feel like God shows up only in miracles and prayer, or only in the Bible. God most definitely shows up in all those things! But, there is another way to see God, a more simpler way, and it is my favorite way to see God in my everyday life.

God shows up in small little things every single day that sometimes in our self-centeredness or stress we miss. You just have to look and you will see his love shining through your bad day or good day alike. An example?

Here's one of my God Sightings: In the car, sometimes we would pass a huge, empty field. And in this field, in the distance, there would be a pack of wild turkeys! Yes… turkeys. Those brown birds we eat at Thanksgiving. But these turkeys weren't about to be eaten, they were just wandering around searching for food and being the cute little birds they are. And me, nicknamed "Pocahontas" in my house for being an animal and nature lover, yelled, "God Sighting!!!" And my mom who is a God Sighting professional, agreed with me, laughing.

You see? God knows exactly what makes me happy. He knows exactly how to brighten my day and show me his love through small and simple things! One more example!

This is Habersham, AKA Habby, my new French Bulldog puppy we've had for over a month now. Talk about a 24/7 God Sighting! When I wake up in the mornings and come into the kitchen where he usually is, his head snaps in my direction, his ears go back in excitement and he takes off at a full sprint straight towards me, proceeding to jump on me and lick me all over as I swoop him up into my arms. He recognizes me and knows I've just woken up and he LOVES to tell me good morning. I've never seen anyone more happy to see me in my life, LOL.

So, when little Habby comes to greet me every morning I automatically feel God's love! And there are so many other ways to feel His love during the day. A sweet text or nice hug from a friend, a butterfly flying near you, your pets being sweet, your parents complimenting you, a good grade on a test, a sunny day, a rainy day, and on goes the list! Even when you've had an awful day, I guarantee God has been trying to get your attention, you just have to open your eyes and see. Those little things, we may think, are just coincidence or good luck. But when I drive by and see those turkeys, I don't think that's a coincidence. Not at all, I believe God put those turkeys there for me to look at and appreciate what He has created.

It begins small. You have to look closely even though his love is there right in your face all day. It can be hard to see God's love sometimes but I promise, if you just pray and ask him to reveal his love to you, your eyes will be opened to see it! So, I encourage you, look for God Sightings through your week. I promise you, you will feel so loved and happy once you see all the things God does to show you his unending love for you! ~Maddie~

"LOVE is the one word that fully encompasses God's Nature."

-Kenneth Copeland