My Joy ... Your Joy

I love that God always has a way of bringing me back off my self-imposed cliffs of frustration and joylessness. Each morning, before diving into our school day, we [the kids and I] begin with My Utmost For His Highest - my favorite devotional and one the kids are old enough to understand now. This morning's writing was spot on for me.

It's payday (Yay!) and when I checked our banking balance I was immediately disappointed; two months of expenses were supposed to be included in this check and they weren't. Having already made plans on what to do with that money (switching Anthony over to Sprint from AT&T so we can consolidate and reduce our cell bill, which requires the purchase of a new phone - hence the money part), it was not the best start to my day. Being honest, I was down-right ticked!

Then it was time for school. Opening the devotional to August 31st, I was immediately caught by today's title: My Joy ... Your Joy. Needless to say, it was the soothing balm that my frustrated soul needed:

• "These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full." John 15:11
• "Living a full and overflowing life does not rest in [circumstances], but in the perfect understanding of God."
• "The first thing that will hinder [joy] is the subtle irritability caused by giving too much thought to our circumstances." [For me, a paycheck and a cell phone bill]

In all accuracy, my plans for today were thwarted, and I wasn't happy about it. I had been waiting for months for August 31st to roll around because it marked both a payday [with expenses paid] and the official end to Anthony's contract with AT&T. Now? Well, we'll see what can be arranged. I have to trust that God will honor our plan to reduce our monthly outgo, BUT in the mean time, I'm not going to allow this [circumstance] to steal my joy. Instead, I will Conquer Joy through Jesus.