“The joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10b
That verse has been rattling around in my head for the last several weeks. For anyone who doesn’t know me or hasn’t figured it out yet, I enjoy physical strength and conditioning training, particularly Crossfit and Strongman style training. The Crossfit competition season just started yesterday and will continue into July where the best of the best will compete in the Crossfit Games for the title Fittest Man/Woman in the World. To be the best in the world in any sport, an athlete must not only be physically tough, but mentally tough as well. Most of the athletes at the Crossfit Games are pretty much the same physically speaking, however their mental toughness is what separates the first place from 30th place. The ability to push harder and continue fighting when the pain and fatigue start to set in. The ability to tell your body’s feelings to shut up because you know you have more effort to give despite what all your senses are telling you is what separates the champions from the rest of the competition.
What keeps us as Christians following Christ when everything and everyone around us may be telling us to quit. It’s not worth it. Your not strong enough. Your not skilled enough. What enables us to deal with difficult situations like an unexpected death of a loved one or a loss of a job and financial income. The joy of the Lord. Knowing that no matter what comes up against us, we have hope in our Savior Who is bigger and stronger than whatever we are facing. When others may turn to material or chemical “saviors” to help numb the pain of life’s struggles, we as Christians can continue to have a spirit of joy resting in the knowledge that God is always faithful. He doesn’t give up on us or leave us to figure it out on our own. He’s always with us. Strengthening and encouraging us. Thank you Jesus for supernatural joy and peace.
“And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” -Philippians 4:7
