I have been attempting all week to write this blog in such a way that would describe to you the beauty of something that I saw / experienced last Sunday. It was not the mountain views, though those are incredibly beautiful here, or the flowers that were blooming in a dear lady’s garden in Mogollon. It was my view on Sunday evening in the church service as I watched Brianne worship the Lord.
I guess I should give you a brief background of who I am talking about. Brianne is a 12 year old girl that my team has had the privilege of getting to know over these past few weeks. She and her sister Marciel are two of the girls that spend a lot of time with us when we are ministering in Mogollon, even if we aren’t specifically doing a children’s ministry at the time. Brianne doesn’t have any material possessions to speak of. I have never actually seen her, or most of the children in Mogollon for that matter, with even a single toy. Her home is small with dirt floors, curtains for doors, and holes in the walls. However, she is such a happy child, always smiling and talking about how blessed she is by God.
I was especially impacted by watching her worship this past Sunday evening. She was singing and raising her arms in worship to the Lord with such commitment and passion that it actually brought tears to my eyes. As I watched her praise the Lord, I caught a glimpse of true JOY, which can only be found by delighting in God himself. It was such a sweet sight to see a girl so young that has found that!
True JOY is found by first delighting in God himself, not just his gifts. In Psalm 16, we see that David delighted in God and then in the blessings of God, such as His counsel. In verse 2, he says “You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.” David realized that God is Enough, and so does Brianne! In John 15:11, Jesus says, “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” God is all that we need for complete JOY and He wants for us to experience it!
I challenge myself and each of you to praise the Lord like Brianne. REJOICE daily in the Lord, in times of abundance and times of struggle, and experience true JOY given by the spirit by delighting in God himself.
