But the fruit of the spirit is
love, JOY,
peace, patience, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness and self- control.
Against such things there are no
laws. Galatians 5:22-23
"Never postpone JOY!" These words on a bumper sticker arrested me recently. I was
immediately convicted because so much time in our lives is dedicated to
the future that we sometimes miss the joy of the moment. This is especially true in marriage. We can become so busy with tasks that we forget to celebrate
the daily victories. C.S. Lewis once wrote, "Joy is the serious
business of heaven." If
husbands and wives' love for each other is to be just like Jesus' love
for the church (Ephesians 5:), then joy must become the serious business
of marriage. Hebrews 12:2
says, "For the joy set before him, Jesus endured the cross."
On those days when we are tempted to grow weary and lose heart,
Jesus' joyful endurance inspires us! Then Nehemiah 8:10 become a reality
in our homes, "The joy of the Lord is your strength!"
When we daily invest joy in our marriages, it pays dividends for
all the years to come. Bob Benson has expressed it this way: "I
pass a lot of houses on my way home. Some pretty, some expensive, some
inviting. But my heart
always skips a beat when I turn down the road and see my house nestled
against the hill.
I guess I'm especially proud of the house and the way it looks
because I drew the plans myself. It started out large enough for us—I
even had a study. Two
teenage boys now reside there. And it had a guest room; my girl and nine
dolls are permanent guests. It
had a small room Peg had hoped would be her sewing room. The two boys swinging on the Dutch door have claimed it as
their own. So it really doesn't look right now as if I'm much of an
architect. But it will get
larger again.
One by one they will go away -- to work, to college, to service,
to their own houses. And then there will be room -- a guest room, a study and a
sewing room -- just for the two of us.
But it won't be empty. Every
corner, every room, every nick in the coffee table will be crowded with
memories. Memories of
picnics, parties, Thanksgivings, Christmases, bedside vigils, summers,
fires, winters, going barefoot, leaving for vacation, cats,
conversations, black eyes, graduations, first dates, ball games,
arguments, washing dishes, bicycles, dogs, boat rides, getting home from
vacation, meals, rabbits, and a thousand other things that fill the
lives of those who would raise five. And Peg and I will sit quietly by
the fire, and listen to the laughter in the walls."
You can't turn a house into a home without laughter.
But if you have forgotten how to laugh, or it's been a while,
then open your heart and receive an infusion.
Receive the gift of laughter.
The joy of the Lord is your strength! Never postpone JOY
Pastor
Duane Brooks Tallowood
Baptist Church
Houston, Texas
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May you find the true JOY that God has for you as
you celebrate this very special day.
God bless you, your marriage, and your home.
