Joy That Won’t Stay Quiet

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Psalm 28:7 —The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.

You know the song.

“I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart…”

If that song doesn’t put a smile on your face, you might need to splash a little cold water on your cheeks and pour yourself another cup of coffee.

I grew up singing that in Vacation Bible School, standing in a line of wiggly kids doing hand motions like we were directing traffic. And even now, years later, that tune still pops in my head from time to time.

And I’ve got to tell you. that song didn’t just fall out of the sky.

It was written back in 1925 by a traveling evangelist named George William Cooke. The world he lived in had just come through World War I. Families had buried sons. Influenza had taken millions of lives also. People everywhere were wondering if the world had lost its mind.

And right there in the middle of all that heaviness, this preacher writes a little song that basically says, Joy can live somewhere deeper than your circumstances.

Not in the headlines.

Not in the economy.

Not even in how your morning is going.

It’s way deeper. Jesus. Down deep in my heart.

And I think that’s why it stuck. Because life will give you plenty of reasons not to feel joyful. Bills show up. Relationships get complicated. But we have to find our joy in Him.

Let the Lord be your strength. Trust Him. Scripture says He will be your help and your shield. Let your heart leap for joy at the thought of that.

And maybe today—before the emails start flying, before the errands pile up, before the news tries to steal your peace—you could take just a moment and remember one way the Lord has carried you through.

When you remember His goodness, joy has a way of rising back to the surface and making you say “Wow!” And who knows…

You might find yourself humming along to those old VBS songs too.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • Where have you been looking for joy lately—in circumstances or in Christ?
  • Can you think of a recent moment where God has been your strength or shield?
  • What is one specific way God has helped you that you can thank Him for today?
  • How might remembering God’s past faithfulness change your mindset right now?
  • What would it look like for you to intentionally “choose joy” in your current season?
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