Joy in Jesus?!

For a long time now, I have wanted to start blogging. I don't know why I put it off this long, when the fact of the matter is, I love writing. It is almost therapeutic for me. But why, you are probably wondering, would I call my blog site "Joy in Jesus"? 

Besides the obvious fact that the phrase is catchy (an example of alliteration), there must be some deeper reason for deciding to write under the topic "Joy in Jesus". Is it because I smile and laugh and am joyful every day? Is it because Jesus has promised me that every day will be rosy if I follow Him? Or is it because I sing His praises and shout "Hallelujah!" and "Praise God!" a lot? No. I will honestly admit to you that my answer is "no" to each of those questions. I do not smile all the time. I am even grouchy sometimes, and (sadly) snap at my kids more often than I care to admit. I also struggle with anxiety from time to time and know what a panic attack is from experience. Furthermore, Jesus hasn't even promised us that everything will go according to our desires if we follow Him. 

But I can tell you some great news. Even during my "down days" I never feel hopeless. And even in really dark times I always end up realizing that there is a lot of light at the end of the tunnel. Why? Romans 10:9 says that "If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord', and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." Whoohoo!!! That is like super great news!! It doesn't say, "If you have it all together you will be saved", or even "If you live a good life you will be saved." No sir. Just simply, if you say that Jesus is Lord and believe it, you will be saved. THAT is what always brings me through the down times. That simple truth is what gives me an "inexpressible and glorious joy" (to quote the apostle Peter's words in 1 Peter 1:8) despite, and even through, life's greatest trials. 

I could share with you about how having that everlasting joy in my heart pulled me through an extremely difficult time. If Jesus was not the Lord of my life and the head of my family, I would never have been able to live through the tragedy of losing a child. But that is a whole other story which I promise to write about sometime in a future blog.

So, through my writing, I hope to encourage those who might be at a low point in their lives. Through my blogging, I want to remind you and I of the true, lasting joy of believing in Jesus Christ. I want to remind us all -- yes not just others, but also myself -- that the more we surrender our lives to Jesus Christ, the more true, lasting joy we will experience.