The Fruit of Joy in the Midst of a Troubling World

“I speak these things in the world, that they may have my JOY fulfilled in themselves.” (John 17:13)

It is in this joy that we are to live. 

We can take heart, be encouraged and have hope in the midst of the world because the world is not the ruler, Jesus is. He is the one who has overcome the world. In Jesus we are able to have joy in the midst of the trouble of the world.

And it is in this that we begin to see the fruit of joy (of the Spirit) in ourselves. Things like love, JOY, peace, patience, gentleness, kindness and self-control.The trouble of the world is either thrown off its course by the fruit that is present in our lives or it is strengthened by it. 

Either we - through the power of the Spirit - are seeing and cultivating the fruit of the Spirit and throwing off the trouble in the world through the Joy that we have in Jesus. Or we are cultivating through the sin of our flesh and the leadership of the devil the fruits of sin and not only assisting the way of the world in our hearts, but strengthening it too.