The Joy of the Lord

Nehemiah 8:10: “the joy of the LORD is your strength”.

Philippians 4:4: “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!”

These verses have been on my mind a lot lately, either because of my daily devotions or through conversations with my wife.

Christ said that He has come that we may have life and life “more abundantly” (John 10:10). But how does this abundant life translate into our lives? Over the last several years, I at times look around the Church (universal, not necessarily my local church) and wonder where that joy is. Many Christians are seen as serious, nit-picky, joy-less people. We are somber, devoid of humor, easily and constantly offended and we voice that offense.

I remember when I recommited my life to Christ in high school (I had been a “Christian” as a child, but fell away as a teenager). There was such a profound joy in my life. When I first accepted the call of God on my life to be a pastor, that joy was rekindled and burned bright.

We have been given amazing hope. We have been given amazing grace. And this amazing gift should produce in us, as Christians, a profound sense of joy in our lives. Joy because we have a Saviour who loves us. Joy because we have the hope of eternity. Joy because we have been forgiven our debt of sin and death and hell.

Shouldn’t the world look at us and see this joy? It pains me that Christians are looked at with such disdain. But this disdain seems to be grounded in some fact. What separates us from non-believers? If our “religion” causes us to lose our joy instead of being the source of our joy, we’re missing the mark. We have been called to “rejoice in the Lord always”. This came from the man who was constantly imprisoned, beaten and mocked. Who am I to disagree?

Food For Thought:
I came across an article this week by Keith Drury, a professor at Indiana Wesleyan University. He discusses issues he sees with the Church today. Very interesting stuff. Definitely some food for thought. Check it out here. 

I Know Who I Want To Take Me Home…

If you’re reading this and you’re in the Grand Falls to Woodstock region, then here’s something to think about: right now, Jenn & I are fostering 5 beautiful kittens for the Florenceville Veterinary Clinic and they’re looking for a home. They are the sweetest little things. They are friendly, playful, cuddly and affectionate. Here are a few pictures of them. If you are interested, contact me at jordonleblanc@gmail.com. The clinic does ask for $100 donation, but if you adopt more than one, the fee is still $100. The fee covers their spaying or neutering and covers all their shots for their first year. All in all it’s a bargain (especially if you adopt more than one!!).

Look Who Just Got Back Today…

Well, after an unofficial hiatus, I am back from my blogging vacation that has seen me travel almost 800 kilometeres, survive the flu, get ticketed for speeding, preached twice, and braved a youth all-nighter. It’s been an interesting few weeks to say the least.

Happy 1000!!!
Happy 1000 visitors day! I feel so popular! Keep coming back and I’ll keep writing!

The End Is Here?
Today, Christians everywhere are watching their backs, wondering if they’ll be trampled by one of the horsemen of the apocalypse will. Yes, today is the inauguration of President Barack Obama and, no, he is undoubtedly not the anti-Christ. It seems that every time a Democrat takes office, somebody manages to proclaim him as the devil, the anti-Christ, a worker of evil…you get the picture. I, on the other hand, would prefer to worry about things that are more within the realms of reality…like the world ending in 2012… (que scary “duh duh duh”)

And Now For Something Completely Different
I preached this week (which is something I do from time to time) and I shared the idea of living for Christ’s return. It wasn’t the first time I’ve shared this idea, nor will it be the last I suspect, but it’s something that always seems to come back to me. My text for this message was Matthew 24:36-44 , where Jesus is telling His disciples that no one knows the day or the hour of Christ’s return. That got me thinking about how we as Christians live. We often fall into the trap of thinking that we are guaranteed 80 or so years and live as such. But what we are missing is the urgency of the early Church.

What set them apart from us? No, it was just because they knew Jesus physically. No, it wasn’t that they had more “miracles” than we see now. It was their urgency. You see, people truly believed that Jesus was coming back soon. And this caused them to spread the Gospel like wildfire because they wanted the world to be ready for His imminent return.

Christ has said that he will come at a time when we least expect it, but to keep watch (like for a thief in the night). I wonder if now is the time we least expect it. It’s been close to 2000 years and many of us doubt he’ll come back… at least not in my lifetime. Wouldn’t it stand to reason that it could very well be in our lifetime? I’m not saying it will, just asking the question. Does this change the way we live our lives? Should it? Like I said, I’m just asking…