Isaiah 55:12-13 Complete Jewish Bible
12 Yes, you will go out with joy,
you will be led forth in peace.
As you come, the mountains and hills
will burst out into song,
and all the trees in the countryside
will clap their hands.
13 Cypresses will grow in place of thorns,
myrtles will grow instead of briars.
This will bring fame to Adonai
as an eternal, imperishable sign.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Being a Carrier of Joy
As children of the Most High God, we are to be marked by contagious, unceasing joy. Through the Holy Spirit we have access to an unending supply of joy that comes from the wellspring of restored relationship with our heavenly Father.
God longs to fill us with his immeasurable joy that we might live the abundant life Jesus died to give us. He longs to make us children fashioned in the image of our Father that we might each share his unending joy to a world without hope.
By the Living Word and Power of God, may we discover the greater portion of joy available to us through the Spirit as you encounter the heart of your Father.
Isaiah 55:12-13 Amplified Bible
12
“For you will go out [from exile] with joy
And be led forth [by the Lord Himself] with peace;
The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you,
And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
13
“Instead of the thorn bush the cypress tree will grow,
And instead of the nettle the myrtle tree will grow;
And it will be a memorial to the Lord,
For an everlasting sign [of His mercy] which will not be cut off.”
As disciples of Jesus, we are to carry the joy of our salvation everywhere we go.
You and I have the power to change atmospheres on earth with the joy of the Spirit. We have the power to brighten people’s days, break off heaviness, and lead, guide and direct and inspire people to a deeper revelation of the goodness of our Lord, Savior Jesus Christ when we instinctively reflect his joy to others.
God is a joyful God.
He is the inventor of happiness and fun.
Luke 15:10 says, “Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
The Story of the Lost Coin
8-10 “Or imagine a woman who has ten coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and scour the house, looking in every nook and cranny until she finds it? And when she finds it you can be sure she’ll call her friends and neighbors: ‘Celebrate with me! I found my lost coin!’ Count on it—that’s the kind of party God’s angels throw every time one lost soul turns to God.”
Nehemiah 8:10 tells us “the joy of the Lord is [our] strength.”
Nehemiah 8:6-10 The Message
5-6 Ezra opened the book. Every eye was on him (he was standing on the raised platform) and as he opened the book everyone stood. Then Ezra praised God, the great God, and all the people responded, “Oh Yes! Yes!” with hands raised high. And then they fell to their knees in worship of God, their faces to the ground.
7-8 Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah, all Levites, explained The Revelation while people stood, listening respectfully. They translated the Book of The Revelation of God so the people could understand it and then explained the reading.
9 Nehemiah the governor, along with Ezra the priest and scholar and the Levites who were teaching the people, said to all the people, “This day is holy to God, your God. Don’t weep and carry on.” They said this because all the people were weeping as they heard the words of The Revelation.
10 He continued, “Go home and prepare a feast, holiday food and drink; and share it with those who don’t have anything: This day is holy to God. Don’t feel bad. The joy of God is your strength!”
In order to truly declare to the world who our heavenly Father is, we must be carriers of joy. We must be a people marked by the joy that only comes from restored relationship with an all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-loving God.
I have to confess before God here that it has taken me a long time to learn and an even longer time to realize the truth that circumstances, people, trials, work, and worldly stress do not have the inherent ability to thump on, steal, my joy.
It’s when I open my heart to outside elements that I allow stresses to come in like robbers and take what is rightfully mine in the Lord.
It’s only when I allow a fellow driver, a time crunch, a negative comment, or a troublesome problem to sledgehammer me down, take precedence over the joy and the hope I have in Jesus that I step outside of my allotted portion of peace.
Galatians 5:20-24 The Message
19-21 It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on.
This isn’t the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God’s kingdom.
22-23 But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.
23-24 Legalism is helpless in bringing this about; it only gets in the way. Among those who belong to Christ, everything connected with getting our own way and mindlessly responding to what everyone else calls necessities is killed off for good—crucified.
To be carriers of joy, we have to choose to value the fruit of the Spirit over worldly emotions.
We have to choose to only open our hearts to the things of God and shrug off that which is fleeting. If we don’t take control of our thoughts and cast any fear, worry, or doubt on the shoulders of our heavenly Father, the circumstances of this world will rule our emotions rather than the steadfast joy of the Spirit.
Isaiah 55:12 says, “For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”
The Lord longs to make us a people that go out in joy.
He longs to make us children who are overwhelmed by his love to the degree that the cares of this world pale in comparison to his grace and affections.
Ask the Lord for your share of Grace and His perspective today.
Psalm 139:23-24 The Message
23-24 Investigate my life, O God,
find out everything about me;
Cross-examine and test me,
get a clear picture of what I’m about;
See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—
then guide me on the road to eternal life.
Allow the Spirit to help you focus your attention on the true purpose for which you were created: restored relationship with your heavenly Father. Choose the joy of the Lord, resurrection of Jesus, over the stress and cares of the world.
Choose to “be led forth in peace” rather than led by your flesh. And experience today the lifestyle of carrying the joy of the Lord with you everywhere you go.
May others come to know the abundant goodness of our heavenly Father through the way you exude joy.
Guided Prayer:
1. Meditate on the importance of carrying joy.
Allow Scripture to establish a new emphasis on joy for you.
“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” Proverbs 17:22
“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Romans 14:17
“For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.” Isaiah 55:12
2. What do you allow to steal your joy?
What circumstances, negative comments, or people have been robbing you of peace? Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the root of whatever is stealing your joy.
“The hope of the righteous brings joy, but the expectation of the wicked will perish.” Proverbs 10:28
3. Surrender your emotions and thoughts to the Lord alone.
Ask the Spirit to help you open your heart only to the things of him instead of the things of the world. Ask him to make you a carrier of joy.
“And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.” 1 Thessalonians 1:6-7
Our heavenly Father is much more patient than we often believe.
He is not in a rush with you.
He will not let you miss his perfect will for your life if you are willing to follow him in obedience.
Trust in his timing.
Cast off the burden of paving your own way to an impactful life. Take time to become a carrier of joy by resting in his presence and getting to know his heart.
Allow his perspective of patience to become your perspective. May you be filled with His peace and His joy in the knowledge of your God’s greater love for you.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 121 The Message
121 1-2 I look up to the mountains;
does my strength come from mountains?
No, my strength comes from God,
who made heaven, and earth, and mountains.
3-4 He won’t let you stumble,
your Guardian God won’t fall asleep.
Not on your life! Israel’s
Guardian will never doze or sleep.
5-6 God’s your Guardian,
right at your side to protect you—
Shielding you from sunstroke,
sheltering you from moonstroke.
7-8 God guards you from every evil,
he guards your very life.
He guards you when you leave and when you return,
he guards you now, he guards you always.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 