Happy Dance!

Posted On March 7, 2021

“You have rescued me!
I will celebrate and shout, singing praises to you with all my heart.”

Psalm 71:23 CEV

The Bible commands us to rejoice, but what if we don’t feel like it? How do we find our joy when life is hard? We start by remembering what Christ has done for us. He has saved us from our sin and misery and has promised us eternal life with Him in a paradise full of wonders. If that’s not enough to lift our spirits, He has also promised to fill us with His joy when we stay connected to Him. This is great news! This means we don’t have to rely on our own feelings to find joy in the Lord. We just have to let Him fill us with His joy . . . and then we can’t help but let the joy overflow!

“We will not understand God until we understand this about him:
‘God is the happiest being in the universe.'”

John Ortberg, The Life You’ve Always Wanted

Why does God want us to be so happy? Because that is His nature. And we are created in His image. His entire creation, including us, was made to reflect His joy. This is not an option. We are commanded to be joyful, no matter our circumstances. John Ortberg describes joy as God’s basic character and His eternal destiny. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. . . . And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:1,31 NIV). He didn’t survey His creation and say, “It’ll have to do.” No, He saw that it was very good. He was delighted with it. Ortberg tells us:

“The psalmist speaks of the sun, ‘which comes out like a bridegroom from his wedding canopy, and like a strong man runs its course with joy.’ This is not merely picturesque language; this is creation expressing God’s own unwearying joy at simply being, at existing and knowing existence to be good.”

That’s reason to celebrate! We are part of God’s amazing creation and part of His wonderful plan. No matter how difficult the battles we face, we are already victorious thanks to Christ. We have already won. God calls us to be happy about it!

“The problem with people, according to Jesus, is not that we are too happy for God’s taste, but that we are not happy enough.”

John Ortberg, The Life You’ve Always Wanted

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”

Philippians 4:4 NIV

Paul wrote the words above, not while living in luxury or enjoying the comforts of this world. He wrote them from a prison cell. Max Lucado describes the scene:

“Go with me back in history a couple of thousand years. Let’s go to Rome . . . to a rather drab little room, surrounded by high walls. . . . Inside we see a man seated on the floor. He’s an older fellow, shoulers stooped and balding. Chains are on his hands and feet. . . . It is the apostle Paul. . . . The apostle who was bound only by the will of God is now in chains — stuck in a dingy house — attached to a Roman officer. . . . He is writing a letter. No doubt it is a complaint letter to God. No doubt it is a list of grievances. . . . He has every reason to be bitter and complain. But he doesn’t. Instead, he writes a letter that two thousand years later is still known on the treatise on joy — Philippians.”

How could he find reason to rejoice given his circumstances? Paul knew the comforts, not of this world, but of the next. He found his joy and his hope in Christ. He knew that nothing could separate him from Jesus’ love. He was thankful for every second he was given to share the gospel. We are given the same hope, the same love, and the same opportunity. Let’s be glad!

“We are invited to rejoice in every moment of life because every moment of life is a gift.”

John Ortberg, The Life You’ve Always Wanted

“. . . the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

Nehemiah 8:10 NIV

When we are facing hard times or struggling with temptation, we will be much less likely to give in if we are full of joy. Joy gives us strength to overcome our difficulties. Charles F. Stanley explains some important things to remember about the joy Christ gives us:

“First, the gift of joy has a spiritual source — the Holy Spirit within you. In other words, you can experience it at any time as you rely on His presence because joy exists independent of your circumstances. Therefore, focus on your relationship with Jesus. Nothing can separate you from Him or from His love now or in eternity. Second, watch for His transforming work in others. You can draw pleasure from what God is doing in those around you — rescuing people from sin and conforming them to Christlikeness. Third, serve whomever He sends to you. Obedient, loving care for others brings spiritual joy. Finally, meditate on God’s Word. Through Scripture, you will receive His truth on which to build a fulfilling life.”

When our joy is tied to things in this broken world, we will always end up disappointed. But when we put our hope in Christ, we receive “an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade” (1 Peter 1:4 NIV). We absolutely can rely on God’s promises of eternal life and everlasting love. The gospel really is “good news.” It’s news worth celebrating, and that’s what God calls us to do.

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances;
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV

“Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Be of good cheer!
It is I; do not be afraid.'”

Matthew 14:27 NKJV

I have a daily devotional book by Max Lucado called Grace for the Moment. A few days ago, my morning reading from this book referred to the verse above (Matthew 14:27):

“When the disciples saw Jesus in the middle of their stormy night, they called him a ghost. A phantom. . . . To them, the glow was anything but God. When we see gentle lights on the horizon, we often have the same reaction. We dismiss occasional kindness as apparitions, accidents, or anomalies. Anything but God. . . . And because we look for the bonfire, we miss the candle. Because we listen for the shout, we miss the whisper. But it is in burnished candles that God comes, and through whispered promises he speaks: ‘When you doubt, look around; I am closer than you think.'”

God is closer than we think. He is all around us in the goodness we see in the world . . . in the small kindnesses of others. He doesn’t always speak from a burning bush or send winds that can part the sea. Sometimes he just whispers in a gentle breeze. I was very comforted by this thought, but then I realized I shouldn’t stop there. I can also whisper God’s presence to others through my kindness. And, in fact, doing so will help me find my joy. I have another book by Max Lucado called Happy Today, which explains how to find happiness:

“What if we could feel happy every day? In the book of Acts, Jesus is recorded as saying, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’ (Acts 20:35). This truth turns the pursuit of happiness around. Instead of pursuing happiness for yourself, Jesus said to pursue happiness for someone else. In turn, you will experience the feelings of happiness. Want to know how to find happiness? Happiness happens when you give it away.“

“There are many who say, ‘Who will show us some good?
Lift up the light of your face upon us, O Lord!’
You have put more joy in my heart
than they have when their grain and wine abound.”

Psalm 4:6-7 ESV

God created us to be happy, and He empowers us to do so. We can access this power by staying connected to Him through Scripture, prayer, and gratitude. The Weekly Gratitude Project says of the verses above:

“In verse 6 of this psalm, David wrote about people who were asking the Lord for good things. But in verse 7, it’s as if he said, ‘Lord, You are the Good Thing!’ Throughout the Bible, God shows us that joy is found less in what you have and more so in whom you have.”

We have the Creator of the universe who loves us so much that He sacrificed Himself to save us. That’s pretty awesome! Any hardships we face are tiny by comparison. Let’s remember that, and let’s allow His joy to fill us and bubble over!

“We’ve got reason to get up
Reason to get down
He done traded our sin for joy
And now, that joy wants out
Happy dance!”

“Happy Dance” by MercyMe

This week’s Scripture passages focus on dancing, praise, and joy. There is a printer-friendly pdf version below the image. I have also included another version of “Happy Dance” by MercyMe because I love this song so much! They recorded the second video in 2020 while in isolation, really driving home the message that our joy is not tied to our circumstances here on earth. It comes from above. Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ or from His joy . . . so let’s get happy!

“You have changed my sadness into a joyful dance;
you have taken away my sorrow and surrounded me with joy.”

Psalm 30:11 GNT

References:

• Lucado, Max. Grace for the Moment: Inspirational Thoughts for Each Day of the Year. J. Countryman, 2000.
• Lucado, Max. Happy Today: A Guided Journal to Genuine Joy. Thomas Nelson, 2019.
• “MercyMe – Happy Dance (Official Music Video).” YouTube, uploaded by MercyMe, 15 September 2017, https://youtu.be/I32vblmQ714.
• “MercyMe – Quarantine Grab Bag – ‘Happy Dance’.” YouTube, uploaded by MercyMe, 18 April 2020, https://youtu.be/0RlGiTHImKM.
• Ortberg, John. The Life You’ve Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People. Zondervan, 2002.
• Stanley, Charles F. God’s Purpose for Your Life: 365 Devotions. Thomas Nelson, 2020.
• The Weekly Gratitude Project: A Challenge to Journal, Reflect, and Grow a Grateful Heart. Zondervan, 2020.

Images:

• Three Women Sunset featured image by StockSnap from Pixabay
• Heel Click image by Rolanas Valionis from Pixabay
• Elvis Jailhouse Rock image by No-longer-here from Pixabay
• Couple image by Alexander Belyaev from Pixabay
• Man on Street image by Dieu vath MAYOMA from Pixabay
• Father and Son image by Dawnyell Reese from Pixabay
• Old Man image by Jose Skertchly from Pixabay