Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Philippians 4:4
Amazingly, when the Apostle Paul wrote the Epistle to the Philippians (from which our text today comes), he was in prison, yet the concept of JOY is the keyword in the entire letter! That means to Paul joy was a CHOICE, not a result of circumstances.
So his instruction for us to be intentionally and continually joyful emanated not only from divine revelation but also from personal experience. Paul knew that people could imprison his body but nobody could imprison his mind. He had all the freedom to determine his own attitude. His circumstances were not the master.
The same applies to you and I. Let us choose to be positive rather than negative. Besides Paul’s example, let us emulate the example of Joseph who experienced rejection and betrayal by his brothers, unjust conviction and neglect by those he helped-yet maintained a forgiving, pleasant and positive attitude to life. See Genesis 50:20.
Your circumstances must not dictate your mood. Your attitude must not match the weather. Your happiness must not depend on your bank account. Your friends and family do not determine your attitude. Do not just mirror other people’s bad attitudes. Yes indeed, attitude is contagious, but refuse to catch the bug of other people’s negativity. Train yourself to rejoice always. Decree and declare every morning, “This is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it”. See Psalm 118:24.
Start everyday with a sense of faith, hope and love. Remember you’re blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Believe that God is causing all things to work together for your good-even the problems and challenges. Approach life with an optimistic outlook. Be grateful for every blessing you have. Compliment, celebrate and encourage others. Be an instrument of peace rather than strife. Smile much. Laugh. Rejoice. Our God reigns!
Pastor Josh