You can have joy even when the circumstances aren't making you happy. Because joy is rooted in walking with the Father, doing His will, so that even when things aren't cooperating circumstantially, God says, don't worry about it, I will give you joy. and the joy I'm giving you the world can't even take away from you. There's a difference between happiness and joy. You feel the first because of life's goodness, but you can experience the second in spite of life's badness.
Hello and thanks for stopping by for today's Destined for Victory with Pastor Paul Shepard.
Well, Pastor Paul calls it responsibility. He uses two words and here's what they mean. No matter what you're going through, whatever trials or tragedy life throws your way, you have response ability. That is the power to choose joy in spite of everything going on around you. Remember to visit our website, PastorPaul.net to listen to any recent message on demand, including today's.
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Now, let's learn how to choose joy by listening to our Destined for Victory message, Neglected Areas of Discipleship. If your kids aren't living up to your rules and they're old enough to be on their own and you told them the conditions and the terms by which they can live with you and they want to have their cake and eat it too, live in your house, grown but still do what, you know, act in the old kind of way and not cooperate, you have response dash ability. That's your house. And the good thing about your kids is unlike evicting somebody, like if you have a rental or property you're renting to somebody, it's your house. You don't have to give them a certain notice.
I don't have to give you 30 days in my house. I'll give you like two, three days, whatever it is. Or give you a final warning. Listen, this is my house. You live here on my terms.
Don't like that? Lord bless you. You have response dash ability. You have response dash ability. Not making enough money, you have response dash ability.
You figure out how it is that I can honorably earn more. Many of us need to, first of all, begin by looking at the way we're using the money we already have. And pray and give it to God and talk to some godly people and let them help you work it through. There are lots of areas where we have responsibility. And so the Bible says where you have that ability, you get proactive.
But where you don't, don't let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe in Christ. Know that he has begun a good work in you and he's going to bring it to completion. And don't let yourself be troubled.
Just refuse to have a breakdown. Just refuse to miss out on what God has for you. And with that in mind, I want to tell you something else about Jesus that we need to imitate. An area we need to stop neglecting. Jesus lived an intentionally joyful life.
Jesus lived an intentionally joyful life. So if you're going to be a follower of Christ, I want to let you know some of us need to get about the business of experiencing joy. There are too many sad, pitiful, mean, angry, sour Christians in this world. Not you. but Christians I know Jesus was intentionally joyful listen to what he said in John 15 verse 10 if you obey my commands you will remain in my love just as I obeyed my father's commands and remain in his love verse 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
Jesus said, I have lived my life with joy. I've obeyed the Father. I've lived with him, walked with him, done what he told me to do, and part of that lifestyle has created joy in me. And he said, I've told you this because I am giving you my joy. I'm making my joy available to you that your joy might be complete.
Look at that in contrast to these sour Christians who look like they've been baptized in lemon juice. Jesus said, I've lived a joy-filled life and I'm telling you to walk in obedience to the Father, do his will so that my joy will be in you. He said, and I want your joy to be complete.
Now, here's my question. If Jesus left you joy before he went back to heaven, where's your joy? He left it for you.
So where's your joy? He said again in John 16, 24, until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive that your joy will be complete. Jesus is interested in you and I being joyful people.
Now I've told you before, joy is even better than happiness. Happiness is great when you can get it. But happiness depends on what happens. That's the only problem with it. When you get happiness, enjoy it.
You know that old song who was that Bobby McFerrin somebody don worry be happy Cool if you can be happy as a choice be happy as a choice But happiness usually hinges on the right things happening. You have money, happy. Relationships going good, happy. Kids behaving, happy. Jobs secure, happy.
You know, those kinds of things help promote happiness. in many of our lives. And happiness is great. When you can get it, go for it. But how many know circumstances don't always cooperate?
So there are times when you look at your money, not happy. Look at your relationships, not happy. Look at the way your kids acting, not happy. Look at your job situation or the people on your job, not happy. That's just the nature of life.
Sometimes life circumstantially doesn't cooperate with happiness.
So the Bible doesn't promise you happiness. The Bible says Jesus had joy. And he said to his disciples, I'm making my joy available to you. The blessing of joy is you can have joy even when the circumstances aren't making you happy. because joy is rooted in walking with the Father, doing his will, experiencing his love, his grace, his power, and his provision so that even when things aren't cooperating circumstantially, God says, don't worry about it.
I will give you joy, and the joy I'm giving you, the world, can't even take away from you. Your circumstances can't even take away from you. And I want to tell you that you deserve joy. Jesus willed it to you, so you deserve to walk in it. And if you're going to be like Jesus, you have to be intentional about living a joyful life.
Christians ought to be folks that enjoy hearty laughter. I don't hang out much with sad Christians. because they don't really represent what God is supposed to be doing in our lives. God is at work in us, both the will and the do of his good pleasure. I know all of us go through seasons of heavy trials, seasons of difficulty.
I'm not dismissing that at all. You can go through that, but God knows it ought to be a season that first of all, in the midst of that you still experience the fact that God is keeping you in peace and not allowing the enemy to rob you of your eternal life or your abundant life because your circumstances are not to dictate, but rather the leading of the Holy Spirit and the blessings of the Holy Spirit are to dictate what happens in your life.
So even when you're going through a season of trial, the Bible says you can still have joy and peace. Jesus said, I'm leaving you my peace as well.
So if Jesus left us joy and peace, then we ought to see those bearing fruit in our lives no matter what we're going through. And you know as well as I do, there's some people who aren't going through a season. It's their whole life. You ask them how they're doing anytime. It doesn't matter, this year, next year.
Ask them how they're doing and get ready. But the fact of the matter is, we have a right to live joyful lives. You ought to be experiencing joy every day, even if not happiness, you ought to be experiencing the joy of God's presence. The joy of knowing if God be for me, who can be against me? Although I don't like what I'm going through, I love the company I'm keeping.
Because he said, even when he allows me to go through the valley, I don't have to fear because he's with me in the valley. If I got to go through a valley, at least take somebody with you who knows how to get you through it, who knows how to fend off the enemy. I love Psalm 23 because it not only talks about going through the valley of the shadow of death and not fearing evil because the Lord is with you, but it says his rod and his staff, they comfort you. Meaning the one who's walking with you has some weapons. He has some weapons.
You know, it's the language of a shepherd. The shepherd isn't just walking out there with the sheep. He's got a rod and a staff. He can climb where he needs to climb and bring the sheep along. He has a rod.
He can beat something or somebody down. Your company makes all the difference in the world. Don't go away. The rest of today's Destined for Victory message featuring Pastor Paul Shepard is coming right up. In John 14, 6, Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me. Our mission at Destined for Victory is to share that timeless truth so that as many people as possible can be saved. You can help keep these messages coming your way. Please consider giving a generous gift today. Visit PastorPaul.net to make a safe and secure donation.
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Now for more on the difference between happiness and joy, let's listen into the second half of today's message, Neglected Areas of Discipleship. I told you before, when I went to junior high, I was scared because the junior high I was going to in my neighborhood, it was known there were guys who were known to just beat you up. They just picked you as the one to be beat down that day, and that was it. You didn't have to have done anything to them. I heard all the horror stories.
I had some friends who had been beaten down, and I was scared. I got to go to junior high. But then the Lord reminded me. You don have to be afraid You have your cousin Stevie Picked up the phone called New York I said, yo, Stevie, man, I'm scared. He said, what's the matter, cuz?
I said, man, I'm getting ready to go to Roosevelt Junior High. I'm scared, you know all the stuff I heard about these. Yeah, yeah, I know about all that. He said, look here. if anybody messes with you at that school tell them who your cousin is see Stevie had a reputation he was known far and wide he was a professional hoodlum you know what I'm saying this boy just this boy would beat you up just because I remember one time I was in New York with him I was so green and what have you but I'd go hang out with him That was my boy.
We loved each other. And I was in New York with him one night. We went out to get some pizza or something. And, you know, walking the streets with him, you just felt safe. And we were out getting some pizza or something.
And I remember a guy came upon us, and he pulled out a knife, and he said, give me your money. And so I went in my pocket. You know, no problem at all. And Steve said, what you doing, man? I said, he said he won our money.
He said, man, get your hand out your pocket. I stood there. Stevie looked at this dude. Stevie stuck one hand in his pocket. He said, what you want to do?
And the guy looked at him and saw the look on his face. And I realized my cousin was packing. I didn't do it, but I felt like saying, yeah, yeah, what you want to do? Come step into us tonight. I mean, what's the problem?
You know, it flipped my mindset immediately. And so I called Steve and I said, he said, look, just let them know who your cousin is. He said, and if you run into somebody who doesn't know who I am, by tomorrow they will. Because, see, Stevie would come down the Jersey turnpike if I needed him to. He would travel to beat somebody down.
And it gave me a whole different perspective. And I went to junior high with joy. No, that wasn't joy. That was happiness because I happened to have a hoodlum cousin. But you and I can experience joy.
That's why I like church the way it is. I like church where you can laugh sometime. There's no need of going somewhere where everybody looks solemn. This isn't a funeral parlor. Jesus died, but he rose again with all power.
He's alive. This isn't a funeral. This is a celebration. The hymn writer had it right. I serve a living Savior.
He's in the world today. I know that he is living whatever men may say. Listen, you have a right to rejoice because you serve one who is alive and well and has all power in his hands.
so you gotta make sure that you understand jesus lived an intentionally joyful life he was an overcomer he said be of good cheer be of good cheer i've overcome the world put a smile on your face jesus said you gotta tell yourself it's gonna be all right I'm not going down like this this isn't the end of the if I'm still in trouble that just means the book isn't over yet don't think your troubles are going to write the final chapter of your life that just means there's another chapter coming because in Christ we are more than overcomers and so we got to be like Jesus Jesus lived an intentionally joyful life He had joy and he said, I'm leaving it with you.
So the question is, where's your joy? He said, my peace I give to you.
So the question is, where's your peace? And I want to say that if you're not experiencing it now, you have a right to go before the Lord. Say, you know, Lord, I'm tired of being in the state of mind I'm in. I'm tired of being beat down by my circumstances. The Bible says, Paul said in Romans 14, 17, the kingdom of God isn't about meat and drink.
He was talking about some of the controversies in the early church about what people ate and drank. He said that's not the kingdom of God. He said the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. We have the right to walk in right standing with God, righteousness, and we also have the right to have peace and joy. We ought to enjoy life.
We ought to enjoy what we're doing every day for the Lord. We ought to enjoy the fact that we get to go out every day knowing our sins are forgiven. I mean, every day you get to know my sins are forgiven. If I die in the next moment as a believer, I have the assurance my sins are forgiven. In fact, if I leave this world, it's a promotion.
Even death, that's why, I don't know if you've been to a good Christian funeral, but if you go to the right one, they'll shout at the funeral. See, some of y'all never been to that kind of church. I grew up in church where they do some serious praising at a funeral You say why is that Because they didn let a person No no because they rejoicing that this person is now in the presence of God in whose presence is fullness of joy. And I'm telling you, when you're a child of God, you can't lose any way you go. Paul said, whether I live or die, I belong to the Lord.
He said, if I stay here, he was in jail when he wrote the letter to the church at Philippi. He said, I'm imprisoned right now. I'm not sure whether to go or stay. He said, if they take my life, I'm going to be with the Lord, which is far better. Far better.
You can be having a wonderful life now, but it's not to be compared with when you're in the presence of God. Your happiest day on earth can't compare with a boring day in the presence of God.
so if a child of God leaves this earth they're with the Lord and if we remain here we're with the Lord he walks with us where we go he walks with us through our valleys he walks with us through our challenges in fact he uses our challenges to make us stronger in faith so that we tell the devil I'm ready for you now more than ever because I'm growing in my faith and I'm determined to experience all that God has for me. My friends, I want to tell you, in Christ, you have every right to experience joy. Just practice smiling.
Some of us need to just practice. Your face is all messed up. Get in the mirror. Get in the mirror and just practice looking pleasant. You'll represent Jesus better.
looking pleasant. Stop going right there. Praise the Lord. How you doing? Blessed.
You don't look blessed. You look pathetic. Smile. Enjoy your life. Thank God every day.
Be grateful when you wake up that I know the Lord. He knows me. I'm a friend of God. I walk with him. I talk with him.
I cast my cares on him. When I got things to complain about, I give my complaints to him. He says, bring them to me. See, he's trying to bless the people in your life because they tired of hearing it. He said, come on, tell me about that.
Tell me about that. Stop, stop, who else can you call? Alienating everybody you know. Sure, sure. You say some things to those caring people, but at a certain point, they reach their saturation point.
And God says, that's all right. Talk to me about it. Get it all the way off of you. And then let me give you my joy so that you can live the abundant life. I have come, Jesus said, that you might have life and that you might have it to the full.
Let's walk like Christ and live an intentionally joyful life. Thanks so much for being here with us for today's Destined for Victory. Before we leave you, our Executive Director, Alicia Greer, wants to personally thank you for all you're doing to keep Destined for Victory on the air. Alicia? Hi, everyone.
I wanted to share something really encouraging with you. I was looking at the comments on Pastor Paul's YouTube channel and was delighted to see a couple people mention that they only just discovered his teachings after his passing. To me, that is a powerful reminder of why this ministry continues to matter. Your contributions aren't just keeping his voice on the air for our faithful listeners. They're actively reaching new people who had never had the chance to hear him before.
I'm so grateful for that. If you'd like to continue supporting this work, Visit pastorpaul.net slash donate for a full list of ways you can partner with the ministry. Thank you, and let's keep reaching the world for Christ together.
Well, as you heard Alicia say just now, our audience continues to grow, which means more and more people can hear Pastor Paul's timeless truth for a victorious life. And we have listening friends and partners like you to thank. When you give today, we have a great resource to send you as our way of saying thanks, a great new booklet called Truth, Temper, and Treasure. You know, in Ephesians chapter 4, the Apostle Paul talks about our new life in Christ and what it should look like. In this outstanding resource, Pastor Paul goes on a deep dive into three key areas, telling the truth, controlling our temper, and honoring God with our tithes and offerings.
I encourage you to get your copy today and see how the Lord wants to help you grow in these areas. That's Truth, Temper, and Treasure, our thank you gift this month when you make a generous donation to Destin for Victory. You can give by phone by calling 855-339-5500. That's 855-339-5500. Or visit PastorPaul.net to make a safe and secure donation online.
You can also mail your gift to Destined for Victory, Post Office Box 1767, Fremont, California, 94538. You don't get stronger, wiser, better automatically. You don't grow just because you get old. The only thing that happens with time is you get old. It's up to you if you also grow while you're getting older.
And that's next time in our Destined for Victory message, Junk Removal for the Soul. Until then, remember, He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are destined for victory. Thank you.
