Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9 (NKJV) The search for happiness can seem elusive. But we can enjoy a continual spring of inner joy by knowing the qualities that generate it and working on the skills to develop them. For example, we know loving others and choosing optimism bring joy. Another source of joy is choosing to live courageously. In Joshua chapter one, Joshua needed courage to face an overwhelming task ahead of him. God designated him to lead millions of people into the Promised Land. And guess what? Joshua was probably a bit scared–which might explain why being strong …

Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Philippians 4:8 (MSG) God commands us to be optimists. As we discussed yesterday, one quality that cultivates joy is loving others. Another important quality that cultivates joy is optimism. Optimists and pessimists refer to seeing the glass as half full or half empty. Pessimists think they’re realists and see optimists as wishful thinkers. But is that accurate? In fact, both statements are true. However, choosing which you focus on has an impact on how you go through life. What we think and focus on will …

Jesus said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Matthew 22:37 (NKJV) Most people endlessly pursue happiness, but don’t actually know how to find it…or how to hold onto it if they do find it. There are several qualities that can cultivate joy in your life, so today I wanted to talk about one of them: love. You know, most people think the best thing in life is to be loved. Did you know that’s not true? That’s actually second best. The number one thing is loving somebody. Think about …

Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength! Nehemiah 8:10 (NLT) As believers, we’re supposed to have the joy of the Lord in us, but it doesn’t always look that way on the outside! Sometimes, if we’ve grown up around legalistic religion, we even view God as overly serious and Christians who are too happy as fake. But if that view were correct, why did God bother to give us a sense of humour or a desire to enjoy life? If life was not meant to be enjoyed, why didn’t God put Adam and Eve in the desert of Eden? He put them in a garden filled with laughter, joy and good things! A life filled with joy is …

I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead! Philippians 3:10–11 (NLT) There is an element of sacrifice to fulfilling the purposes God has for your life. It can be hard to focus on what God wants you to do, especially when your needs are crying out for attention. That’s the sacrifice I’m talking about—and it’s what Paul was talking about in our verse today. You and I are to share in Jesus’ death by putting our self-focus to death. It’s not that God wants you to suffer. It might seem more painful in …