Choose Joy

By: Melody Mohnhaupt

Sometimes life is just plain rough. It’s hard to formulate how I feel into words, but, if I’m being completely honest with myself, and with you, I struggle a lot with maintaining the joy of the Lord in my life. Overall, my life is pretty good. I know I have so much to be thankful for: my health, my family, friends, a roof over my head, clothes on my back, a warm bed to sleep in at night, and so many more blessings. I could go on about all the good things going for me in this life, and yet, somehow, at times, I still find myself focusing on all the things that are going wrong. I think about all the things I’d change. I ponder what my life would be like if nothing had changed; if I could go back to “the good old days”. 

I’ve struggled with maintaining my joy in the past, but recently, I’ve experienced this resurfacing in my day to day. I’ve found myself sitting alone with a sense of hopelessness, the feeling of being a failure, loneliness, lack of motivation, fear and so many overwhelming feelings that have brought me even to the point of tears. I shut down or sometimes lash out, and a lot of the time, I’m not even sure why. I just feel unhappy with my life.

It comes in waves, I must say. Eighty to ninety percent of the time I’m pleased and content with my life. I have hope for tomorrow, and then, without any warning at all, doubt, fear, and depression swoop in in attempts to overtake me. It is so strong and has such a grip on me. The thing that probably upsets me most, is that I genuinely desire to delight in the Lord. I feel bad, like I’m not happy with my life just as is is. I feel guilty, because I know he deserves so much more. Even if I had nothing at all, I want him to be enough.

Why do I share these personal details of my inner struggles with you all? Well, first, to tell you that you aren’t alone. Nobody is perfect, and although things seem great from the outside looking in, we all struggle inwardly with our own issues, even me. Secondly, I wanted to share this with you, because there is a solution to the problem. Jesus.

It’s so much easier to say than to actually apply to our lives, but he really is the only one that can break the strongholds binding our minds. However, it’s a choice we have to make to LET him break the chains. 

As humans, we are made of body, soul, and spirit: our fleshly body; our mind, will, and emotions; and the holy spirit within us. I’ve come to accept in the last few years, that when I am not letting my spirit rule and reign in my life, that my soul is just plain out of control. I get irritated, and annoyed so easily. I can become short tempered, hard headed, and DEFINITELY strong willed. My whole life, my excuse was, “That’s just me. Deal with it”, but the Lord had to break me. Because it’s not my will, but His will that I want in my life. I had to really swallow my pride and come to terms with the fact that my behavior and much of my “personality” was just my soul refusing to be put into subjection under my spirit. Thank God that he so graciously, and gently humbled me to see this.

But, how does this tie into what I was originally speaking of, you may ask? Well, it may seem insensitive for me to say, but, the emotions we feel, as real as they may be, are from our soul. When we come to the Lord, we (hopefully) realize that we have to relinquished that control to our spirit. Our soul can no longer rule and reign in our lives. SO, when we are down and out about whatever it may be, we could either let our soul keep us down and discouraged, OR, we could fight the flesh (trust me, I know it is a major fight) to surrender and choose the spirit. 

Unfortunately, I can’t get rid of my soul. It will always be apart of me. It is a daily struggle just keeping it in subjection. As I’ve grown more with the Lord, I’ve learned more and more how to train my soul to stay in subjection. Because of this, the enemy tries viciously to come at me from whatever angle he knows might work. He attacks my emotions. He wants to keep me under his thumb through afflicting me with negativity. He tries to steal my joy. I’ve let him because, sometimes I just don’t know how to fight back. It’s so exhausting and I feel like I don't have enough strength.

There’s a song (I’m sure most of you know) called, “No Longer Slaves”. The main chorus simply says:

“I’m no long a slave to fear

I am a child of God”

I’ve been trying to apply this statement to every form of bondage in my life. I’m no longer a slave to sadness, I’m no longer a slave to depression, I’m no longer a slave to hopelessness, I’m no longer a slave to discontentment, I’m no longer a slave to loneliness, I’m no longer a slave to fear, I am a child of God. 

Shuffle through the negative thoughts that plague you. Ask yourself, is this what my God says of me? Does he think I’m nothing but a slave to these thoughts? Or does he say that I’ve been freed from the bondage to them?

Through Jesus Christ we have been liberated. They have no hold on us unless we LET them hold us. Don’t let your flesh lie to you and trick you into thinking it has all the power. There is freedom in the SPIRIT!

2 Corinthians 3:17

"Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty!"

 “We’ve been liberated

From our bondage

We’re the sons and the daughters

Let us sing our freedom”

“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world!” 1 John 4:4

You have the choice to determine weather or not you will allow the enemy to over take you. You choose weather your spirit or your flesh rules your life. You choose life or death. 

Let the joy of the Lord be your strength! CHOOSE JOY TODAY!