Psalm 16:11

" You make known to me cthe path of life;

in your presence there is dfullness of joy;

at your right hand are epleasures forevermore."

Psalm 16:11 

“Fullness of joy.” This is the phrase that has stood out to me while memorizing this verse. It’s easy to have fullness of joy when things are going our way, but what about when they’re not? Can joy still be found? In James 1:2-4 it says, ^“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” I understand that we’re  to consider trials joy because of what they are producing in us, but let’s be honest that is not necessarily an easy thing when we are walking down a difficult road. So, how can we find joy when we’re hurting?

Galations 5:22 mentions joy as a fruit of the spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.” The fruits of the spirit can only be produced when we remain attached to the true vine, Jesus Christ.

 In John 15, Jesus tells His disciples to abide in Him. He mentions in John 15:5 that if we remain in him and him in us, we will bear much fruit—Joy being one of them. John15:11, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”  It is only possible for us to have the fullness of joy that He describes when we abide in Him. We can’t try to muster it up on our own strength, it has to come from remaining in him when life is good and when it seems bad. Apart from him we can’t do it.

So, I can conclude that “in His presence, an intimate relationship of abiding in Christ, I can find joy even in the dark hour of my soul. At his right hand pleasures forevermore.” In God's presence there are pleasures that can't be counted and can't be found anywhere else in anyone else. When we are in his presence forevermore our joy will abound and abound. The joy of knowing what Christ has done for us so we may enjoy his presence now and one day even more intimately is our strength today (Nehemiah 8:10). He has told us all these things so that his joy may be in us and that our joy may be complete (John 15:11).

Help me, Father, to remain always in you so that life’s circumstances do not wrip me of my joy. Give me a joyful spirit that outshines my circumstances so that others will want the joy you bring too.