The Joy of the Lord comes through active relationship with him.

 Isaiah 35:10

And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

I've had an incredibly good morning. 

It started on my way to my short work day. On the way to work, I grabbed my wife's hand and began praying. My customary short prayer for protection for us and our family back home turned into a long prayer of intercession for many folks. 

Then, as we loaded our truck and worked the stores we had to work this morning, the feeling of God's presence that I'd felt all morning began to blossom and I felt what can only be described as "the Joy of the Lord." It was like a fountain of Joy bubbling up from the inside where God lives. I could hear the whispered voice of God. I could feel his presence like I haven't felt in years! 

I felt like crying (and did some) but it was tears of Joy. I wasn't sad at all! I was just reveling in the feeling of being in his arms and enjoying hearing his whispered words! It's incredible! 

Recently I've been praying for God to teach me to hear him and teach me how to truly walk with him. And he's begun to answer that prayer! 

It's simple for him. God is always speaking. It's our spiritual ears that need to learn to become attuned to hearing his voice. But there are many voices out there that are all vying for attention. On top of that, there are many voices that we purposely go looking for. That, I believe, is why God's voice is referred to as a "still small voice." 

Enoch walked and talked with God. I'm sure that God's voice wasn't constantly being interrupted by Enoch saying, "Lord, can you please repeat that? I didn't quite catch what you said." 

Moses and the people of Israel heard God's voice and it was powerful and loud enough to shake the mountain and sounded like lightning and thunder! 

But, somehow we have a hard time hearing him. Oh, there are times when his voice is very clear. I believe that's because he's emphatically trying to make a point. But the rest of the time, hearing from God is a bit more difficult. 

Yet, his word says, (Isaiah 30:21)

21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

So it can't be as difficult to hear from God as it seems to be for us. God does speak. He desires to walk and talk with us. 

So taking a page from Enoch (not that I'm anywhere close to that level of communication), I've been praying "Lord, let me walk in your spirit and talk with you." I want to be able to hear from him all the time. I don't just want to get snippets from God. I want to have an in-depth conversational relationship with him! 

Marriage is supposed to be a picture of God's relationship with us. Unfortunately, the way most of us handle our relationship with our spouse doesn't come anywhere close to holding up that picture. But, in theory, it's true. 

I don't know about you, but I don't talk to my wife in short, seemingly random snippets and then walk away to do my own thing. We talk- probably not enough- but we have in-depth conversations, light-hearted conversations, and everything in between. We interact with each other and get to know each other very well. 

The more I learn of her thoughts and feelings, the easier it becomes to act and speak in ways that please her. I can stop a comment from coming forth that I know will hurt her because I know how she thinks. I can rephrase my comments in a way that will be pleasing to her. I can interact with others in ways that I know my wife will have no issue with because I know how she thinks. 

It's the same with God. When we read his word, we gain a sense of his thoughts, but when we hear his voice, we have a direct line to his brain! From his brain to his lips to our ears to our brains, to our actions and words. That's what Enoch had! That's what many of the saints of old had! 

That's what I want and that's what he came to regain. 

Jesus said that he came to "seek and to save THAT which was lost." He didn't say those who were lost. So what is that which was lost?

What God had with Adam before the fall. What he had with Enoch for a bit. He saves us from our sins so that we can learn to walk and talk with him just like they did. Day in and day out. Night in and night out. 

I'm tired of guessing. I want to know that I know that I know. That requires walking and talking with him. So that's become my prayer. 

God began that answer by answering another prayer. 

You see. I've heard about calvary all my life. I know why he went to calvary. What he did for us on Calvary. I can explain a lot of the ins and outs of calvary from a scriptural and theological basis. But somehow, the facts of calvary had become old hat to me. It was a list of facts that I had become accustomed to and too comfortable with. 

In other words, I could regurgitate the facts, but it no longer touched my emotions. It didn't pull my heartstrings. 

When I thought about it, it bothered me. 

An unemotional response to the sufferings of our savior is like a spoiled pampered child who doesn't appreciate how hard daddy has to work to take care of him. We get angry over things not being given to us. We are upset by not having our way because "daddy owes me."

So, I've been asking God to allow me a renewed picture of Calvary.

And boy did he! 

Through a statement my wife made twice, I was reminded of an old Carman song. After that song, we began listening to a few others. Then we came across this one. Please give it a listen. If ever there was a song that paints a vivid portrait of Calvary, this one does: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fGHTL9E0nE&ab_channel=SarahSouth

When I heard that song again and the Lord enabled me to picture in my mind just what he had to go through to purchase my redemption, I was (and still am) brought to tears. I don't deserve the pain he endured for me! I don't deserve the love that held him there! I don't deserve one drop of his precious blood that he shed to pay my ransom! 

But he did it all. He endured it all. He took on ALL MY SIN that I might have a chance to put on his righteousness! 

What an amazing love my God has for us! He did that for us all! 

This renewed experience has enabled me to pray differently. Rather than a list of "I want this," it's now, "what do you want, Lord?" This has helped me to live differently. It's helped me to live each day with a heart of flesh rather than a heart of stone. My desires are changing to come in line with his. 

But, more importantly, his voice has become easier to discern! 

I'm not where I want or need to be yet. But, I could feel him praying through me today. I could hear him speak a few things. And when it was over, his presence stayed with me! And I could feel his joy emanating through me. I felt like a young boy being picked up and carried by his strong, but loving father! And when he spoke, it was still soft, but it felt like he was whispering in my ear directly! 

I am convinced that I want more of him! He must increase and I must decrease! 

Help me Lord Jesus to walk and talk with you all day every day. Teach me your ways and your paths! Show me your will and give me the strength to do it! I want to know you more and more each day! 

I'm hooked, Lord! Reel me into your arms and keep me there! 

We spend our whole lives looking for happiness. We turn over every leaf to try and find it. We experiment with this and with that, hoping to find fulfillment and joy. We feel like a puzzle piece trying to find the place where we truly fit. 

The truth is, our fulfillment, our happiness, our place where we truly fit, is found only in a real relationship with Jesus. Our joy comes from feeling his approval and knowing we are where we're supposed to be - in his arms. 

It's truly a wonderful experience that I have just been allowed to scratch the surface of. 

I want more and more! 

Don't you?