How Do I Have More Joy? | JoyFull | April 26, 2026

Idolatry is, or an idol is something that we worship or we live for other than God. It's something that we we give ourselves over to. For for some, it could be money. You know, money's you wake up in the morning, and it's all you ever think about, and you you're thinking like, how can I make more and more and more? The Bible teaches that money is not evil. It's the love of money that is the root of all evil. And so so what what Paul is showing here is he's saying, you're willing to sacrifice anything on its altar. [00:43:54] (32 seconds)  #IdolsOverGod

In the gospels, after the death of Christ, Peter completely loses his hope and joy because of the loss of his savior. In Psalm 51, David actually pleads with God to give him back the joy that he has lost. Here's the reality is that even as a follower of God, there there are times that joy can dry up. That that that joy can actually disappear in ways that we aren't experiencing it to the full extent that God wants us to experience it. But I also wanna tell us that joy rarely disappears at random. [00:34:38] (34 seconds)  #JoyCanDisappear

to cultivate until a lush harvest of joy actually comes forth out of our spirit into the branches of our life. In Ephesians four, Paul even tells us things like this. He says he says, don't grieve the Holy Spirit. Then in his letter to the Thessalonians, he says, don't quench the Holy Spirit. Now, in the Greek, this word quench is sphenumia. It means, to put out or to extinguish a fire. Paul is saying this. He's saying there there are things that we can do that douse the Holy Spirit's influence and activity in our life. [00:36:11] (31 seconds)  #DontQuenchTheSpirit

envy is this longing for something someone else has. It's really a longing for something that God has not given you. And and the Greek word sorry. Envy is this reality that we actually walk into a situation and we desire all of the things that we can't have at that time. And I would ask a diagnostic question. Are you frustrated or discontent in your life in some space and desiring maybe it's you you want your friends' looks. Maybe you want your brother's career. Maybe you want your your sister's relationships. Envy will kill your joy because the entire undergirding of envy is that we are desiring a life that we don't have. [00:45:50] (46 seconds)  #EnvyStealsJoy

See, sometimes we depend upon alcohol because we we say, you know, it takes the edge off and it helps me get rid of the stress that I have, and it helps me forget my problems for a minute. But the Bible would teach that this is a trap because you're depending upon something that isn't God to help you with the difficulties of life. It's it's this moment where it tips over the edge, and then we lose control. And wine, it may help us find a momentary happiness or bliss that's like an earthly happiness, but in the end, drunkenness will kill your joy. [00:48:28] (33 seconds)  #AlcoholIsATrap

It's almost as if we're, as Christians, afraid to feel joy because if we do, we think we'll get our hopes up and be disappointed somewhere down the line. But but in the Proverbs, the writer says this. He says, a joyful heart is good medicine. It's like it's like this goodness to the soul. But a crushed spirit dries up the bones. See, the person with a crushed spirit, they're always despondent, always looking at the darker side of life, always always sort of living by Murphy's Law, thinking I'll never have enough, I'll never be enough, I'm living in this void, in this vacancy of abundance. [01:02:40] (38 seconds)  #JoyIsGoodMedicine

Now throughout the Psalms, this idea of the shadow of your wings is often described as covering. It's like an illustration of a of a, these young birds huddled under the wings of their mother in protection. And David is saying this. He's saying, even if my circumstances around me are not good right now in my life, which they weren't, he's saying, have joy because, God, I'm safe with you. You can't protect yourself. You can't protect your family. You can't control the things that happen in your life. You can't predict the future, but but you know who can. [00:58:06] (32 seconds)  #FindJoyUnderHisWings

God. And and you can walk to God, and you you can say, God, no matter what you give me, no matter what tear surrounds me in the night, trust you. I trust you with my life. I trust you to cover me in protection, cover me with your wings. I trust you in all the ways. See, worry drains joy because it shifts our focus from God's control to our lack of it. And yet, it's in this place of security with God that we find unchanging protection and security and safety. [00:58:38] (30 seconds)  #TrustNotWorry