Teaching by Tag: Joy
Spiritual Disciplines: The Great Gain of Training in Godliness
Crisis drives people to take spiritual inventory. During this crisis, and in our whole lives, we should be proactive in pursuing the disciplines of solitude, Bible reading, prayer, and meditation.
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20/20 Vision for 2020
As we enter 2020, we need to adjust our vision to see more clearly beyond the dirt and cracks in the windshield of life. We can look through the window to find an equal, more powerful, and lasting reality: joy.
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In the Beginning, Part 55: Down Into Egypt
If you want to gain an eternal perspective, you must see yourself as a pilgrim, understand that life is a vapor, hold no confidence in human promises, realize that your life is in transition, and take inventory of your life.
Watch / ListenIn the Beginning, Part 49: Joseph’s Patient Hope
In a fallen and broken world, we are constantly going to be waiting. Waiting on the Lord is hard, but joy is the inner spiritual confidence that God’s grace is sufficient to see you through your earthly pilgrimage.
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Do Not Be Anxious About Anything
Anxiety is the result of my propensity to view life’s events through human eyes rather than through God’s perspective of those same events. In Philippians 4, we find several antidotes for anxiety.
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Suffering: God’s Unwelcome Instrument
We can have joy in life, even in our trials, when we understand God’s plan to transform us into the image of Jesus Christ. Who wouldn’t want to look like Jesus?
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A Better Peace
The worship of God leads to the peace of God.
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The Hard Truth, Part 1
Tourists go with the current of this world. Pilgrims go against it.
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James: Living Out Our Faith, Part 1
The world’s currency is pleasure. God's currency is pain. In His grace, God leverages pain for our good and His glory.
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Philippians: A Journey Toward Humble Joy, Part 4
At the end of the first chapter of Philippians, Paul introduces a glorious tension that all Christ-followers should feel to some degree.
Watch / ListenPhilippians: A Journey Toward Humble Joy, Part 1
Joy is an inner spiritual confidence that God will see us through our earthly pilgrimage. In this message, Pastor Mike begins a series that will walk through the book of Philippians on a journey toward humble joy.
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GPS, Part 4
One of the hallmarks of being conformed to the image of Christ is joy. Although our culture often uses “joy” and “fun” interchangably, they are vastly different. Fun is temporary. Joy is the inner spiritual confidence that God’s grace is sufficient for our pilgrimage in this life.
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Grand Theft Joy
We make decisions every day to either protect our joy or to allow the joy that God intends for us to be taken away. We allow our joy to be stolen by “Joy Thieves” when we don’t protect the joy God has given us through Jesus. There is one Joy Thief that is particularly relevant to us in Northern Virginia – busyness. If we aren’t careful, busyness steals joyfulness by keeping us from spending time with Jesus – the only source of true joy.
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Life Will Be Better When… Part 3
During favorable circumstances, we often say “Life just doesn’t get any better than this!” – but perhaps life will only be better when we realize that life will never really be better “when”? Yet, the Bible does tell us that we should love life and see good days. There is an ultimate “when” for believers in Christ.
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Life Will Be Better When… Part 2
The future “whens” of life are a temporary fix to an eternal problem – as soon as one “when” is realized, another pops up to take its place. If we do not keep future “whens” in check, they will become idols and keep us from present joy in the Lord.
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