“Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit” (Psalm 51:12).

Without JOY, we have no strength. Without strength, there is no ability to withstand our next attack. This is the meaning of the word strength.

When time comes to complete a project or a season of our life, we must have strength to push forth to the end. Nehemiah 8:9-11 says, “And Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, ‘This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn nor weep.’ For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law. Then he said to them, ‘Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our LORD. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.’ So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, ‘Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved’” (NKJV). The time had come to complete the Temple. The people of God had realized their sin that had led them to captivity. However, Nehemiah said, “This is Feast time. Rejoice and new strength will come! Let the past be behind you! Gain new strength to move forward.”

To birth, we must have strength. 2 Kings 19:3 says, “This day is a day of trouble, and rebuke, and blasphemy; for the children have come to birth, but there is no strength to bring them forth” (NKJV). When the time comes, must have strength to bring forth our next season. To have STRENGTH, we must have JOY!

Our enemy longs to rob us of our joy and get us out of the salvation process. That does not mean that he can steal our salvation by robbing our joy, but he can steer us away from the forgiveness, healing, prosperity and restoration that are by-products of our salvation. His strategy many times is the same one he used on King David: he causes us to sin. Nothing will rob us of the joy of the Lord as effectively as sin in our lives.

But these are days in which God is longing to restore joy to His people through deeper levels of repentance. In repairing the breaches that sin has caused, God is able to restore joy. Proverbs 17:22 says, “A merry heart does good, like medicine.” Joy works like a medicine and brings healing to our bones. That is why Scripture says that the joy of the Lord is our strength (see Nehemiah 8:10); it brings with it the power to heal and maintain the health God has for us.

Even though David sinned and lost his joy, we see from Psalm 51 that he was able to ask the Lord to restore that joy to him. Through the blood of Christ, we are positioned with even greater favor than King David had to ask the Lord to forgive our transgressions and restore the joy of our salvation.

Blessings,
Chuck D. Pierce
Glory of Zion International Ministries
Website: www.GloryOfZion.org
Email: chuckp@glory-of-zion.org

Charles D. “Chuck” Pierce serves as President of Global Spheres, Inc. (GSI). This is an apostolic, prophetic ministry used to gather and mobilize the worshipping Triumphant Reserve worldwide. GSI facilitates other ministries and participates in regional and national gatherings to develop new Kingdom paradigms. Peter and Doris Wagner complete the leadership team of this new wineskin. Chuck is President of Glory of Zion International Ministries, a ministry that aligns Jew and Gentile and is known for his accurate prophetic gifting which helps nations, cities, churches and individuals understand the times and seasons in which we live.