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Most of us used to hear “Peace be with you all” greeting before Sunday sermon. Last Sunday, brother David Cheung used “Joy be with you, brothers and sisters” to greet us before his sermon. Then he explained to us why he used this unorthodox phrase instead of the common “Peace be with you!” He mentioned that after Jesus being crucified, the disciples of Jesus were afraid of persecution and their frightened hearts do not have peace. Not until Jesus resurrected and appeared to them saying, “Peace be with you!” then peace returned to their minds and subsequently, they were overjoyed. Since Jesus has been resurrected, we should use “Joy be with you” to represent the joy is truly down to our hearts.

This is an interesting insight that I have overlooked. My immediate question to myself is “Am I a joyful Christian?” I guess I can’t say that I have it always. If not always, then, what is the secret to be a joyful Christian? I think there are a few things that we can learn in order to unlock the secret. The first one is to have a thanksgiving attitude. As the words for grace and joy come from a Greek word charis, which is at the center of the Greek word for thanksgiving eucharistia, we can be joyful if we have an attitude of thanksgiving.

The second is to acknowledge God’s unfailing love. Apostle Paul indicated to us that he is convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39). If we have such love, how can we not being joyful?

The third one is we should not forget that God is omnipotent. In one of our Friday night gatherings, we were discussing about James’ warning to the rich oppressor (James 5:1-6), who used his power and wealth to oppress people. One brother told us an interesting story. He said, “There is an old couple lives in his hometown, both husband and wife are very nice and friendly.  Though they are very rich, they live a thrifty and somewhat miserable life because just don’t know how to use their wealth” This serves as a reminder to us that sometimes we are like the old couple. Though we have a heavenly Father who has an unlimited wealth and resource, we still live a miserable life without joy because we don’t know how to ask Him.

Finally, let us learn to realize that we are weak and God’s grace is sufficient for us. Apostle Paul’s experience in pleading with the Lord three times to remove the thorn from his flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7-9) teaches us that His grace is sufficient for us under every situation we encounter. This assures us we can have joyful mind when we learn whom we can trust. Oftentimes, the first sign of trouble to our mind is we think we can do everything. The result is we lose our joy because of our prideful mind. Let’s be reminded once again: “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.驕傲在敗壞以先．狂心在跌倒之前。(Proverbs 16:18)”

My dear brothers and sisters, next time when someone asks you “Are you joyful?” I hope your answer is “You bet I do!” because our Lord is risen.