Genuine Joy, Genuine Faith

Well, I am in finals week in school, so no doctrines yet, but i had to post what's been on my mind really fast.

One day a boy was playing in his sandbox, making mud pies. He found his greatest delight in his own creations and held them up above all else, even his loving mother's creations and desires for him. He did not trust his mother that she could make a pie as good and rich and full as his own mudpie. So, he never tasted that delicious chocolate pie his mother made because he never let go of his selfish desires. As he grew older, he finally tasted his mother's wonderful chocolate pie. The moment he put away his selfish desires, willing to trust his mother to make his joy complete, he experienced not joy, but ECSTASY! How could he have ever been happy in his mudpie? How could he have been so blind? How could he have lived his life void of true significance and fulfillment? And now, how could he, once tasting true happiness, keep silent about his newfound passion?

This story is a crude analogy of what has been on my heart about God's genuine joy that He bestows to man, once man, stricken by God, refuses his old man and the ways of the world. Seeing them at face value and understanding the insignificance of life apart from complete devotion to Christ, the once-dead man awakens to a new life with new passions, new desires, and new understandings. How can a man be a "new creation" (2 Cor. 5:17) with his "old things" passing away, and all things becoming NEW, and yet still be holding onto the things in his life that were characteristic of that "old man?"

If you find your greatest joy in following Christ, completely aside from selfish gain, you WILL experience God's infinite joy (even if that is not your goal!). But, if you still try to find joy, completion, happiness, fulfillment, etc by your own power, that old man has not passed away, you have not let go of your happiness and entrusted it to Jesus. Does God call us to live miserable, monastic lives? Absolutely not! (Ps. 35:27) God DELIGHTS in your joy! He wants you to experience HIS true joy! He wants you to lay aside your pride and selfishness and join Him in the glorification of Himself!

There is a movie with an excellent analogy on man's inability to see their sin for what it is, HERE. It ties directly in, because with genuine salvation comes authentic, genuine, God-given JOY!!