The Perfect Day
When my children were small we lived on the marsh
in southeast Georgia. Our backyard overlooked the eighth fairway in Osprey
Cove, a neighborhood located in St. Mary's Georgia. Our home had a large,
two-story window in the family room and as you looked out, you could see across
the marsh into Florida.
You may know that Florida is the lightning
capitol of the United States. Floridians experience lightning one-third of the
days in a given year. The Atlantic Ocean on the east and the Gulf Coast to the
west help to keep the environment warm and moist, creating conditions conducive
to thunderstorms. As a family, we would gather in the family room and watch
those thunderstorms. It never got old for us. We did it every time there was a
storm.
Around dinner time every night, a family of
raccoons would make their way across the fairway through our back yard and over
to our neighbor's house where they would find food that had been left out for
them. They were arranged like stair steps: dad, mom, big brother and three smaller
raccoons all hunched over in a row, waddling down the same path night after
night for dinner. My children, either Taylor or Logan, would announce their
appearance and we would all run to the window and watch them. This too never
grew old and every night we would gather at the window and watch: another
perfect day.
In my viewpoint, one of the worst things in life
that can happen to someone is to wake up one day and realize they have not
enjoyed their life.
Do you want to cultivate a lifestyle of joy that
will allow you to avoid those "if only" regrets?
We begin to experience true joy when we rest in and
know God. It is in the absence of worry, guilt and shame that we begin to build
a foundation and basis for a joy-filled existence. It is in his presence that
we have the courage to forget yesterday's failures and embrace tomorrow with
hope and expectation.
Do you think you would have a greater sense of
joy if you could see the world?
I have been blessed to travel around the world.
I've parasailed in Hawaii. I've zip-lined in Costa Rica. I've hiked through the
rain forest. I've taken a gondola through the Grand Canal of Venice. I have
been blessed by the Pope. I've carried a wooden cross through the streets of
London. I've survived in the jungles of Africa. I have had Bible study in a
bomb shelter in a kibbutz in Israel. I've experienced things that many people
only dream about but I can tell you, with all confidence, it is not money,
travel, or fame that gives joy.
Do you know what brings joy?
It is the small things in life, if we choose to
the take the time to notice, which offer the greatest joy. It is the love of a
family member. It is the smile on a baby's face. It is the hug of an old
acquaintance. It is a telephone call from a friend when you are feeling lonely.
Truly, it is the small things in life that will bring the greatest joy. So I
ask you, are you enjoying life now, or are you waiting for your life to just
get better on it’s own, waiting for that proverbial ship to come in?
What is joy?
Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit, which is most
greatly experienced in the heart of those willing to surrender all
self-sufficiency, self-promotion, self-reliance, self-protection, and
self-absorption. It is a gift given. Joy is an emotion, which inspires our most
unselfish desires, motivates us to live well, and give to others what we have
been given. It subdues the anxious heart.
Our joy is not strapped by the confines of our
present situation; it is deeply rooted in the confidence we have in Jesus
Christ. It cannot be moved.-Robin Bertram
We can tap into our joy if our joy is rooted and
grounded in us through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joy is an internal emotion
and fruit of the Holy Spirit that cannot be shaken or moved and is not reliant
on circumstances. Know this and walk in it.
Choose to
walk in joy.
How do you choose to walk in joy? Acknowledge in
your heart that the Lord is near you. He sticks closer to you than a brother.
He has promised to never leave or forsake you. He has promised to walk with you
and be a light on the path that you have to walk. Make this choice today and
you will most assuredly experience great joy and begin to live a life of no
regrets.
For more
information visit https://www. robinbertram.tv
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