The Joy of an Unexpected Savior

All right.

Well, it is awesome to see everybody this morning.

If I haven't met you, my name's Russ.

I'm one of the pastors here at Church of the Grove.

I want to say welcome to all of you.

Some of you might be here for the first time, and we say a special welcome to you.

Maybe you've been here first or second time.

And so we're excited you guys are here.

And we're celebrating today.

And I'm going to actually preach about the joy that comes through the presence of Jesus.

And so we celebrate as we talk about joy, we celebrate seeing what God did yesterday and what God is doing in this season in the life of our church.

And so Shot with a Hero was yesterday, it was amazing, but also am so excited just to see how God is working in this holiday season.

We do Operation Christmas Boxes and Operation Christmas Child with Samaritan's Purse.

And every year we have an amazing response.

But this year was particularly amazing.

And so Denny and Tara Coyne kind of head that up and make sure we get the boxes.

They keep us, they make sure we got it on our calendar in the Christmas season because it comes quick.

Some of these things like Operation Christmas Child and Shot with the Hero come early in the Christmas season.

And so this year was amazing because they picked up 268 boxes between our two campuses.

Yeah, that's amazing.

But what here's what blesses my heart is that it's a hundred more boxes than we've ever done before.

And so, now I don't, you know, I'm not big on bragging about numbers or attendance and all these things, but here's what I love about that.

That is a hundred more people engaged in something that they weren't engaged in in the previous uh previous season.

And then um yesterday we had more volunteers than we've ever had uh take part in shot with a hero.

Yeah, praise the Lord.

So uh and I mean when I say more, I mean like lots more.

Lots more.

Like I don't know the numbers more, but like overwhelming.

There's a group of uh guys that get up, and we've been doing this for years, where we go to meet at Bojangles at 6 a.m.

and have some biscuits before we go set up the tents.

And so when we got over to the building, there had to be, you know, one one of the guys said there had to be 50 people there at setup time.

And I don't know if that's completely accurate, but but that's that's a statistic I like because it's on the high end.

And um, so they don't let me count anything here because it's always double of what it really is.

I have an evangelist kind of way uh of counting things, and and so but but so they they keep me they keep me down to what's reality.

But I was so overwhelmed uh with joy uh yesterday and and just a great great season that God was working.

We we've got a we've got a vote on our budget bylaws and an elder this morning at the end of the service.

So I need somebody in my joy to make sure that I don't forget and dismiss you.

I've done that before.

Uh before we do that, you we won't dismiss everybody, we'll just ask everybody because it'll take about three, four, five minutes and at max to do that.

And uh, but excited.

The schedule for this holiday season is is a little it's a little bit different as we move into this week.

We'll gather today and then next Sunday.

We will not be here.

We will not be at this property, at this building.

We'll have one gathering at 10 a.m.

over at the high school, and we'll be uh blessed greatly with all of our children leading us in a Christmas celebration.

I really don't know the story, which is not any different from last year because I thought that a um a sloth was a raccoon.

I called a sloth a raccoon, and and so I I have a stuffed sloth that was given to me at my house as a joke the next week.

Um it's it's a special special gift from a special person.

Um uh it wanted to remind me of the joy that I that I brought in not knowing anything about the kids' program.

So, but I listen, here's what I do know is they work hard, and Katie does an amazing job with all of the team she has, and it's it's so much fun.

And listen, we get to share the just the simplicity of the gospel and the Christmas story with so many people that would not be there otherwise, and so we get to share in the joy of the Lord, and so that's uh that's a lot, but let's so let's dive in um this morning.

If you've got your Bibles, we're gonna be in chapter two of the Gospel of Luke primarily, and and we're talking about joy this morning.

So um, my grandfather on my dad's side, Daddy Butcher, is what he was known as.

And so Steve, Steve right down here with the hair color that is painfully similar to mine.

Um uh he's uh he's my first cousin.

So my dad and his mother were brother sister, and so they they know they know a little bit about this.

Um my dad, my dad's dad uh grew up, and my dad also was born in in a little town in in western West Virginia, close to the Ohio uh state line.

And so my granddad came and his family prior to him came out of the coal mining industry.

And they lived in this small little impoverished town in West Virginia.

So so I I I did know my grandfather.

I I have pleasant memories of him, but he he died when I was younger.

And so my older brother, Butch, is is lives in our community and planted uh pastored at Summit Baptist Church for many years.

And um, Butch uh at some point several years ago, he he just had something inside of him that wanted to discover our family uh history and our family roots and genealogy and some things like that.

We were looking, I think both of us were looking back at some of our our our you know things that we were given from our biological family and processing that through how the gospel has impacted our life and changed our life and brought so many different blessings.

And so Butch had this hunger and desire to know more about where our roots were from.

And so he went on a mission trip to West Virginia.

While he's on the mission trip, he he visits this small town where my grandfather and his family had been born and been raised in the coal mining industry.

And it was so it was so devastating to my brother to see how impoverished that little town is.

It had been a coal mining town.

Now it is a they're they're reeling from the epidemic of drugs and and and dependents that come from being in a terribly uh impoverished circumstance.

And so it's depressing.

It's it's a bit depressing to for him to go back and for us to to try to learn a little bit about our family.

I mean, and I here's what I thought.

I thought these people are forgotten.

I don't know much about the history of the coal mining uh uh areas of our country.

I I and I I don't I don't hear people talking about that, but these all of these little towns in that one little town that that reflects my family, there are so many of those towns that have been impacted negatively that were part of the coal mining industry.

They're forgotten people.

And yesterday, as we're serving in our community, I thought a lot of these people that were serving you, people might ask why we're doing this, because we care about the forgotten people.

We care about the children who are struggling in school, struggling in their life, struggling to find meaning and purpose because of their generational consequences, generational sin, generational behavior.

Much of it has been passed down to them.

And so we we desire, I pray that something that we as the church can do would break that cycle of dependence and addiction, break the cycle of poverty, break the cycle and bring Jesus to the hearts and the lives of these children and potentially their families that would change those families for generations to come.

Four generations.

That sounds like a great phrase to build a church vision behind.

Because we care about the other generations.

It's not just my generation, it's not just the generation of young people, it's all of us collectively, multi-generational church family, and try to impact and make a tangible, observable, practical difference in the life of our community.

Now, why do I bring that story up about the coal miners in my family?

Because yesterday I'm trying to think about how we minister to families that come from a forgotten generation.

That's why we invest.

We want to see lives change.

We want to bring joy, and here's what we want to teach children.

This is what we want to teach you.

What we want to learn, all of us ourselves, is that joy, joy comes from Jesus.

Joy comes from Jesus.

And the big idea for today is true joy isn't found in perfect circumstances, it's found in the presence of Jesus.

Can we read that slide together?

Let's read it together.

You ready?

One, two, three.

True joy isn't found in perfect circumstances, but in the presence of Jesus.

In the presence of Jesus.

And so as we turn to Luke chapter 2, we looked at uh verses 1 through 7 last week.

Luke 2 · chapter mention

And so we're gonna set up uh, you know, for today.

Mary and Joseph had to travel to Bethlehem.

They make this long journey, and when they arrive, they're not greeted with wonderful hospitality.

They're sent to to have a baby and to spend the night in a in a in probably a cave.

Uh that's what a stable would have been.

What I showed shared a picture that I took in Israel on one of my trips.

Um, at one of those caves that had lights and was cleaned up and didn't smell, but you you you take away the lights, you take away um, you know, the tables and all the all the pictures on the wall in that cave and everything people have done to mess it up over the years, and you get back to a smelly place where they would put their animals to get them out of the weather or the sun.

And so what you see here is God brings his son to be born in the humility of an animal stable rather than in the opulence of a beautiful palace.

And so we pick up where we left off last week.

And the first blank, if you're a note taker, the first thing I want you to notice is this is an unlikely audience that God has as they announce the coming and the birth of Jesus.

Look at verse 8 of Luke chapter 2.

Luke 2 · chapter mention

That night there were shepherds.

Who are these shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep?

Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord's glory surrounded them.

They were terrified.

Now, who are?

Who are the shepherds and why are they significant to the story?

They are the coal miners of their era.

They are the forgotten ones.

They are at the bottom of the social ladder.

Their economy had changed, and they they they they were they were reeling in impoverty.

They're living in impoverished circumstances and conditions.

They're at the bottom of the social ladder.

They are the forgotten people.

They're out there with the smelly sheep, and and people would see them, pass by them, maybe even you know, cross paths with them, have an opportunity to speak to them.

And you know what?

They blend in with the landscape.

Now, who are the forgotten people?

I don't know.

It might be people that we come in contact with every day of our life.

It might be the kids at the local school, it might be the people that pick up our trash, it might be the people that serve us at a restaurant or a retail establishment.

There are people that we pass by, that we cross in in conversations that we know.

We maybe work with them or we hire them.

We've crossed their paths and they listen, they blend into the environment.

They blend in and they're forgotten.

How many of us have thought, thoughtfully prayed about how we could bless our mail carrier during this holiday season?

How we might show Christ's love to a FedEx driver or a UPS driver or an Amazon driver.

You know, a thank you.

Or maybe a Christmas gift, maybe something to eat, because all those people they tend in, and I'm looking at my, I've I've been reflecting on this out of my own life this week.

People that are forgotten, that simply blend in to our environment, our circumstances, our life, and we forget the significance that they have in the eyes of God.

And when we discuss why would Jesus be born, why would God come in the form of a human being, why would he come in that manner?

Because he wants to identify with the lowest of the low.

He doesn't want them to be forgotten.

Listen, we feel, many of us in this room, some of you feel forgotten.

You're in circumstances that are less than ideal.

You're dealing with a crisis or tragedy or sickness or surgery or or or you know something related to a family member that has passed.

You're gonna experience your first Christmas without somebody.

I mean, we've got, I could go down a list of tough circumstances that are the result of us living in a broken, messed up world.

And we, listen, we think something's wrong with the world.

Let me tell you, the world is normal.

We're the ones that should be different.

Those of us that have put our faith in Christ, we should be different.

And so Jesus comes.

Jesus comes.

He is born into this humility.

We talked about this last week, to bring us joy unexpected, joy that surpasses our circumstances, joy that breaks through.

These shepherds, what were what were a few of their characteristics that we can identify with?

They're ceremonially unclean.

They are ceremonial unclean.

They they their work has put them out in the fields with animals.

They're walking around directing sheep.

Their feet are covered in animal manure.

They're outside all the time.

They are they don't they don't wear really nice clothes.

They are at the bottom of the of the social, economic ladder of their day.

They're unclean.

They can't go to you know what that means?

They can't go to worship.

They can't go to synagogue.

They can't go to church.

They can't go to their and and learn about their creator and be a part because they have they have either crossed the line or they've been labeled by their society as untouchable and unclean.

They're untrustworthy.

They're the, you know, they're the um, they're they're they're those people in that culture, in that society at that point in history that people just didn't want to be around because they they might they might take something from us, they might steal from us, they're they're untrust untrustworthy.

I I mean, should we should we buy food for them or should we help them?

Should we give them money?

Should they be a part?

And see, we sometimes we we overthink how we should do ministry when in reality, if somebody says they need food, then I want to try to get them food.

And if I give them food and they don't do something that they should with it, if they don't eat it, they sell it, or they want to give it away, or they want to try to profit, I can't control what other people do, but I certainly can respond when the Holy Spirit prompts me to do something.

And listen, Robin Johnson, I'm pointing down here because she's usually sitting here, she'll probably be here in the next service, I hope.

You heard her story.

I love that.

And I'm sitting here thinking, I said, you know, somebody asked me why we started Shot with a Hero 17 years ago.

One of my answers would be so Robin Johnson would come to know the Lord, and now she's a part of us sharing the Lord.

And she's the key, she's the one that has really put in the work with Shot with a Hero over these last, you know, uh several years that it's exploded.

And you see, man, I didn't I didn't I had forgotten that she was invited to Shop with a Hero first, and the Lord used that to bring her into the fellowship of our church, and now she's the one who has carried that ministry.

So if you see her, please tell her I bragged on her.

You know, she probably well don't tell her because she won't come in here.

Um and so shepherds, what else?

They're poor, they're poor, they're poor, they don't have anything to offer, they don't have anything to bring to the table.

They're poor, they're born in a harsh living situation with their life, and it's one of those things that it's gonna be hard to break out of, but it's not impossible with Christ.

And so, what what happens as a result of Jesus being announced to these shepherds?

It says they they rejoice, they rejoice, they experience, they experience joy.

And here's what joy does.

Here's why joy is brought to us through the person of Christ.

Joy is it is brought so it can uplift those who are lowly and buried in poverty.

Joy breaks through the uh to the lowly.

Joy comes to the lowly.

St.

Ambrose says this, and this is a bit of a paraphrase.

The shepherds keep watch as Christ, the shepherd of shepherds, comes to gather the sheep.

They are awake as Christ is born to awaken us from sleep.

They are the they are the first to hear, so we might know that the kingdom of God is revealed to the simple.

It's revealed.

Listen, we say this a lot.

Every listen, anything's possible, every individual, everyone matters, anything can happen.

Listen, anything's possible.

You see, these shepherds having their life encountered by our Savior is absolutely amazing.

Now look at look at verse 10 of Luke chapter 2.

Luke 2 · chapter mention

But the angel reassured them, don't be afraid.

And here's what he says I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all the people.

Now, I'm gonna I'm gonna explain something to you that's very important.

Now, as Luke writes this verse, and and it is translated out of the Greek into the English, they they translate it, I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.

And so it it uses the word joy as a noun.

And we all want joy.

We all want joy, don't we?

We deep deep down we want joy.

But we live our lives as if the joy is dependent upon what we do, and so we can we can manipulate circumstances, we can get a little bit better job, we can try to make a little more money, we can have a side hustle, we can do a lot of things that can bring us joy.

But let me tell you what that verse actually reads in the Greek.

It says, it will cause people to greatly rejoice.

So it's not a noun that Luke is talking about, it is a verb to rejoice.

There's a big difference because joy is a state of mind that I would describe or define as being a volitional choice of your will.

So when I wake up in the morning, I can choose joy, and and because I'm choosing the noun joy, then I need to go ahead and verbally act out what I know that God has promised.

And so I you know what I say, praise the Lord.

Hallelujah! You say, well, what if what if we're going through something tough?

Well, you choose joy because Jesus has come, and if I've got his presence, I've got more than I need.

Amen?

So so bear with me.

I I am an obnoxious Georgia fan.

So so let me let me explain joy this way.

So and when I when I'm talking about joy, the noun versus joy, rejoice being a verb.

So so last night at around eight o'clock, I had this overwhelming feeling of joy.

I didn't choose it, I just saw it.

And I I was telling, I love Monty's my friend.

Monty's God's using him so much in my life, in the life of our church.

He's a George Tech fan.

I'm telling you, this is how big God is.

And I love him.

I don't love all tech fans.

But you know what?

There's a bond that Monty and I share, and this is true.

And I so I respect him.

Man, good way to go.

Congratulations.

Listen, tech's gonna catch up.

It's coming.

It's just, and that's the way sports world is.

But Monty and I have a bond that surpasses our allegiance to a football team, and it's the bond of Jesus Christ.

And so last night, I I experienced a circumstances that brought a warm sense of joy.

But I don't even know how to how to enjoy it because I'm a Georgia fan.

And we're plagued by our inability to rejoice despite the circumstances.

And so that is a that is a feeling or an emotion of joy that I experienced that was directly tied to the outcome of a football game.

Now, when I say that out loud, it sounds so shallow.

And I mean, and I'm like, how did I get here in this point in my life?

Listen, I used to be really obnoxious.

Now I'm just obnoxious.

And so I was thinking about it, I was reflecting last night.

That's not the joy.

What I experience, that comes and goes.

That certainly can go away in two weeks very quickly.

The joy he's talking about is joy that completely transcends your circumstances.

But it is a choice you make to verbally rejoice despite their circumstances, because Jesus promised that we, he would come to the lowly and he'd break through.

And this is what joy does.

Joy breaks through the darkness.

Joy breaks through the darkness.

Think about those shepherds.

They live in a world.

They're under Roman oppression like other Jewish people, other people groups that were in Rome and the Empire at that point.

They're heavily taxed.

They're living in constant fear.

They're out on the edges of society protecting the sheep and protecting these valuable resources from lions and bears and other types of threats.

And so lots of hardship.

A few miles down the road, King Herod is ruling with this firm leadership and with paranoia and with cruelty and persecution.

But in the midst of all of this, God breaks through with announcing the coming of the Savior Jesus.

And so He breaks through the darkness.

Just imagine Jesus being born in that dark, dreary cave among the stench.

And the angel comes and announces to these shepherds, I bring you good news that will bring great joy.

And in the actual wording, I bring good news that will cause you to rejoice.

And that that what moves us comes from outside of us.

It transcends our circumstances.

It transcends our own personal affections.

And so I can be in tough circumstances and I can choose joy.

So what's let me read through this passage.

Continue, verse 11.

It says, The Savior, yes, the Messiah, the Lord, has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David, and you will recognize, and by this sign, you will find a baby wrapped in snugly strips of cloth, lying in a manger.

And suddenly the angel was joined by a vast host of others, the armies of heaven, praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to those whom God is pleased.

And when the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, Let's go to Bethlehem.

Let's see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.

They hurried to the village, found Mary and Joseph, and there was the baby lying in the manger.

And after seeing him, the shepherds told everyone, who did they tell?

Everyone, if you encounter something so good, you can't stay quiet about it.

That's what, you know, that's you know, I was telling Monty, I I watched that game all by myself.

And I want you to, when I finish talking, I want you to say, Oh, because you're so hurt for me and sorry for me.

I was home by myself.

My wife had left me.

Um, yeah, yeah.

You can just do one at the end.

Y'all, you want me to stop talking.

I know what you're doing.

And so I didn't, you know, my son wasn't home, my wife's not home.

I I don't have anybody to celebrate with.

And so I my dog was there, and so we just got up and jumped.

He barked, I jumped.

I rejoiced, but that joy didn't come from a source outside of me.

It was based on a score, which does sound shallow.

Yeah.

There's a joy that comes outside of me.

That comes from the source of my own existence.

My creator.

And he knows me best because he created me.

So he knows what I need.

And he's promised to take care of me, he's taught promised to give me eternal life, and through that I have hope and joy.

And joy is now a choice, and I can verbally rejoice regardless of my circumstances.

Because you know what?

Jesus came and he was born.

He was born at a time and a place and a location and history that is real.

It's the true story.

And because Jesus came and God communicated his promises, his desire for my life, I know that I am not forgotten.

I am not forgotten.

I may not be rich, I may not make a lot of money, I may not, you know, have have um, you know, public notoriety, but God cares about me, He cares about you.

He doesn't, He hasn't forgotten you.

If you feel like He's forgotten you, then you need to read this story on your own and then make a decision.

You will respond according to the truth that's been revealed through the story of Jesus.

And so finally, what is joy?

Joy comes to the lowly, joy breaks through the darkness, and then joy leads to worship and witness.

Worship and witness.

The angels declare the message that the Savior has been born.

That's just the natural response of these shepherds to go talk and to share and to announce that, hey, God is coming.

God is coming.

And so these these the angels say, Glory to God in the highest.

And so the angels couldn't help but begin to praise the Lord.

They they they they volitionally chose to rejoice as they announced the good news.

And so they they share this complete revelation of God's sovereign plan through Jesus.

And they can't help but respond in rejoicing and worship, to announce it to other people and to continue.

And so let me tell you, our life should be a constant ebb and flow back to where we're living with two things in mind.

Our focus is on Jesus, our focus is on our relationship with him, he's my source of joy, and then what he's called me to join him in is the mission of sharing that joy with other people.

And so I'm constantly focused on the Lord, and then I'm focused on other people.

And so the shepherds would not have been picked as the ones who would show up as important people.

The shepherds are called to be a part of this groundbreaking historical experience that will change all of humanity, that will divide our calendar and all of humanity.

It's a historical moment.

We can't, there are many sources outside the Bible that tell this story or aspects of this story because it's a real story.

And it actually happened.

So joy leads to worship and witness.

We should be looking for opportunities to share our faith.

Here's what the gospel of John says in John 16.

John 16, 20 through 24, I tell you the truth.

You will weep and mourn over what is going to happen to me.

This is Jesus, the words of Jesus, but the world will rejoice.

You will grieve, but your grief will suddenly turn to wonderful joy.

It will be like a woman suffering the pains of labor.

When her child is born, her anguish gives way to joy because she has brought a new baby into the world.

So you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, then I will rejoice, and no one can rob you of that joy.

At that time you won't need to ask me for anything.

I tell you the truth.

You will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name.

You haven't done this before.

Ask using my name, and you will receive, and you will have what?

Abundant, say it together.

Joy.

And so today, today marks one year from the loss of one of our sweet church family members, Wendy Allygood, stepped into eternity a year ago today.

Wendy and her husband, Darren, they've been part of our church for many years.

And Wendy battled through a cancer diagnosis.

She went through it the first time and was declared cancer free.

We rejoiced with her.

But after a short time, the cancer came back, came back with a vengeance, and so they found a number of tumors in her brain.

And um, and so that it, you know, that was a tough, tough re-diagnosis.

And after that diagnosis, uh Wendy was when Wendy displayed incredible faith.

I mean, she said from the beginning, I want God's will.

I know that God has my best interest in my she knew the truth, and she wanted to base her life on what was true rather than how she felt.

And so she had such faith, such such joy.

I mean, she and she says, I'm choosing joy.

And so God walked with her.

It was on display for us to observe her journey, and she eventually stepped into eternity, but we have hope that her faith has put her right in the presence of Jesus.

And so Wendy and Darren had already been a part of this new ministry we were going to establish, and and it's a cancer care ministry, and the cancer team decided to call this ministry Wendy's Wish.

After Wendy's story.

And so our cancer care ministry was birthed, getting off the ground.

Wendy and Darren made a generous financial gift to that ministry to help it be birthed, and and so they named it after her, Wendy's Wish.

And so this past year has been amazing.

That group has grown.

They have done some amazing things.

They have delivered meals, helped provide transportation, done home repairs, and even started a support group that meets weekly, where people can come and have their emotional needs ministered to.

And so they they uh they've made these donations, they supported people in their journey, and and Wendy's death, as tragic and sad as it was, it's paved the way for dozens, and no telling how many more in the future that will receive ministry from our team.

Richard Moss leads that ministry.

Pat has been instrumental in that ministry, um, and and we're so thankful for um uh uh Clay and Donna Myers and their leadership in that ministry.

There's so many.

The team is amazing.

It makes me think back to Kevin Gibson, who was one of our founding members and with us, and I hate it because our church, many of you in our church don't know Kevin because he's passed, he passed a few years ago into eternity after a long battle, a few rounds of cancer.

But but I I Kevin has his hands all over our church, his fingerprints, Wendy's fingerprints are all over our church.

And and because of how God worked in their life, and because they chose to choose joy in their circumstances, their story doesn't end with them being forgotten.

They're not forgotten.

They simply moved on.

They were pilgrims traveling through a foreign land, and we are now in that foreign land, and we look at their journey as emotionally encouraging, and we can choose to rejoice even in tough circumstances.

You can choose joy.

And so as we come to the end this morning, I want to encourage you.

What does this mean for us?

True joy is not found in perfect circumstances, but in the presence of Jesus.

Find, look for joy in the unexpected, everything you do, whether it's ministry in our community or or or or or what your family chooses to rejoice in.

Find joy in the unexpected, joy in the darkness.

We are lights, and so when God's people choose to worship and rejoice, regardless of how we are dealing with difficulties, that is a light in a dark world.

And the joy is meant to be shared.

You don't keep joy.

Listen, joy is not even joy until somebody else gets to hear about it or experience it.

I mean, joy that's kept to yourself isn't really even defined yet as joy.

And so, choose joy, choose joy.

So would you bow your heads with me?

Let's pray together.

Father, we thank you for the joy that you've given us through Christ.

And thank you that that joy comes not because we are have a certain economical status, it doesn't come because we are successful in our careers.

It comes as we surrender to the gospel of Jesus.

And so, Father, we say thank you and we rejoice.

We rejoice right now.

And so, Father, I pray for those that might be here this morning.

They've never put their faith in Jesus.

And today is their day to repent and believe the good news that Christ has come, he has lived, he has died, he is bodily resurrected.

And so we come to declare that he has saved us and he has given us eternal life.

Um, and if you if that's you this morning, I just want to encourage you to uh respond to the Lord and just say, Yes, Lord, yes, Lord, I believe.

Thank you for coming, thank you for saving me, thank you for giving me joy.

That's you, that's your first response, that's your first step.

If you are a believer and maybe you're going through something that's difficult in this season, then then choose joy.

Choose to follow.

Follow God's leadership, choose to follow Jesus, choose to give your heart to Jesus.

And listen, He may not change your circumstances, he has the power to change them, but he may not.

And you may not know the whole story until you get into heaven.

But you can go through anything in your life, and you can choose joy.

You can choose to rejoice.

Joy is a noun, but it's also a verb, and it you can choose joy.

So, Father, we pray that you would bless us, have your hand on us.

God, we give you this time as we celebrate the joy that you have shared with us.

And it's in Christ's name we pray.

Amen.

Amen.