What brings you joy?
Do you understand the question? I'm not curious about what makes you happy, but what brings you joy. Joy can be illusive. It doesn't have to be. In fact, joy is a gift of the Spirit according to Galatians 5:22.
If we really desire to be the individuals God dreams us to be, we would find joy in the things that bring joy to Him. So what joys the heart of God? People. More specifically, sinners coming to repentance. At least that is what Jesus said.
Jesus, just prior to heading to Jerusalem (where He would give His life as a sacrifice for the sins of all men), told a parable explaining what brings joy in heaven. Jesus was a master storyteller. I like stories, especially when I can relate to the characters in the story. That's exactly what Jesus did.
In Luke 15 we find the parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin. The audience, sinners and tax collectors, would have related to the characters in Jesus' story. The Pharisees did not. They heard the same story but they were distracted with the fact that Jesus dined with the downcast of society. The fact of the matter is that the downcast is exactly the ones that Jesus came to earth to reach.
In each of these stories the main point remained the same, "there is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents." So what brings you joy? My prayer is that you find joy in that which brings joy in heaven - sinners coming to repentance.
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