At Life Way we believe in the Abundant life. I do not think poverty of life, poverty of love and poverty of spirit are virtues. I believe that it is the call of all Christians and all churches to preach the good news about redemption, eternal life and the possibility of a great life right now.
We all know the passage where Jesus said so famously, "The Devil comes to steal rob and destroy but I came that you might have life and experience it more abundantly." I suggest that this kind of abundance is an overflowing heart of Spiritual Fruit. When the heart is full of joy the life space will also be full of abundance.
There are a lot of grumpy Christians. I am not sure why but maybe they think spirituality is supposed to be serious business. When I first began to preach and teach in Norway I discovered that the Believers there in the North were often so pious, serious and solemn that they appeared depressed. During one retreat in the mountains the Lord said I needed to teach every day about joy. He evidently wanted me to break that spirit and replace it with a Spirit of God. So every single morning I began with a devotional on joy.
About the third morning as I asked the various pastors and leaders to read and sing about joy Jan Gossner, a New Testament scholar, said with great solemnity, "Dr. Sweeten, here in Norway, joy is very serious business." That sly comment brought the house down and broke the spell of gloom and doom.
Despite the circumstances of life and the constraints of humanity when we have a heart that is overflowing with the goodness and grace of God we will approach those issues with confidence and power. I am not suggesting that we live in denial but another river. The river if Joy.
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