The Joy of the Lord Is Our Strength!

The following program is recorded content created by the Truth Network are you ready to have your spirit lifted. How about a little joy for the light a fire with your host scholar and cultural commentator Dr. Michael Brown your voice for more savvy and spiritual clarity: 866-34-TRUTH to get on the line of fire and now there's your host Dr. Michael Brown how about some more uplifting of your spirit about some more of the word of God to point us in the right direction so rather than being pulled down by the press in despair and darkness of the day in which we live. We can be lifted up by looking at the Lord hey friends, welcome to the broadcast.

This is Michael Brown and here's number to call to get on the broadcast 866-34-TRUTH 866-34-TRUTH 87884. You can call in today with any question on any subject, will try to get some calls little later in the show. Any subject you want to talk to me about.

Feel free to call in a bone to pick with me same number 866-348-7884. Let me tell you how I got over to this topic of joy today and why I want to specifically encourage your spirit with the joy of the Lord today. I often pray about God's purpose for my life and ministry. I spent many hours seeking him that I can do everything he's called me to do for his glory and for the accomplishment of his purpose in this world. Why have breath in and around my race was to win the court in the first Corinthians 924 27 meaning within the my life got considered to be well done good and faithful servant. Trust that your heart as well. If you know the Lord that at the end your life you want to hear that the Lord will done and faithful servant.

Six. We got this precious time on the radio every day, this precious time as you're watching online, listen by podcast and into me.

It's a sacred time, but to me it's important that we accomplish what were supposed to do is not some days that's just answering your questions like on Fridays. Some days it's with a special Israel. Folks like the religious Thursday. Some days it's by wiki is made of what's happening in the culture around us or trying to sort our way through the political structures and in controversies get God's mind and wisdom in the midst of it but but I know as I've said repeatedly that my calling is not to be a talking conservative header political pundit but rather to be a gospel based servant speaking to culture speaking to politics.

Speaking to the difficult things around us, originally published an article on daily wire explained why my emphasis is first spiritual then moral, then cultural and political that's that's my orientation. That's how I approach things and as were living in swirling controversies in America as were living in a time when emotions are really running high and when violence could just break out at any moment and someone disgruntled with the government or with the system more with Christians or with non-Christians with Muslims with Jews or whoever could just take to all kinds of acts of violence. Some ask myself, okay, what's was my role. How can I serve this, how can I help you.

How can I be your voice for moral sanity and spiritual clarity.

The time like this.

So last night at a time when I normally will will give myself to writing. I was sitting at my computer and I was praying Lord is resting on your heart tonight that you want me to address is Ruthie want me to write Donald claim that every article I write is written at the direction of the Lord do my best to follow his leading, making the kind I'm certainly not claiming that what I write is divinely inspired.

Every article is divinely inspired. Still on his servant and were supposed to wear her words carefully, and therefore let's go right to write okay it is will he ever work in a book. It is within the project am editing, but a much as consume time to write another opinion. Who cares about my opinion right so I was praying about it. I was thinking about writing about things I talked about in the air yesterday, the state of America week getting better be getting worse. What what things are improving with things getting worse. How do we assess things I should be looking at where were living today in terms of the end times was thinking about writing in that way in. I stepped back.

I just wasn't sure and I start looking at the manuscript. A friend sent me it's it's I can tell you more about the book which can be amazing book when it comes out and in it there was a section about the growth of Pentecostal Christianity worldwide. It's quite exceptional.

It's it's quite mind-boggling effect when we read a few things to Alan Anderson is emeritus Prof. of mission Pentecostal studies at University Birmingham, England, wrote in 2013, worldwide the number of Christians has doubled in 40 years, from 1.1 billion in 1970 to 2.2 billion in 2010 in Africa was estimated that Christians succeeded Muslims for the first time in 1985 Christians in our almost the majority, a phenomenon so epochmaking that mommy and sauna describes it as quote a continental shift of historic proportions during our four times as many Christians as Africa and Africans during 1970 in almost the same is true nature while the Christian population of Latin America and the spirit has almost double this is from his book to the ends of the earth. Pentecostalism and the transformation of world Christianity. So what's the driving force behind this extraordinary growth. Anderson points to the worldwide Pentecostal charismatic movement, noting that the most frequently quoted statistics of the growth of this movement quote or those of Baron Johnson, who estimated the Pentecostalism had some 614 million adherents in 2010 1/4 of the world Christian population, which they protected would rise almost 800,000,000 x 20 25. This figure was placed at only 67 million in 1970 is the norm in this enormous increase has coincided with Europeans. Europe's secularization zenith.

So you're getting more and more secular, more and more unchristian, more more anti-Christian as Christianity is growing worldwide at an exponential pace, especially Pentecostal charismatic Christianity.

That's the great bulk of the growth worldwide. So Anderson asked the question why and how we explain this growth will there many factors, but according to Anderson, one of them is infectious enthusiasm. This is what my friend Prof. Gerald McDermott wrote there is joy in most Pentecostal gatherings and joy attracts people often feel fear and despair but seeing joy from the apparent presence of the spirit causes many to want that experience. So I read those words and it jumped joy is contagious of gun article in Laguna S Dr. Brown's K dear Brown.org and check out the article I wrote on contagious joy and I thought that's that's willing to write. I am not going to write an article right now the culture and politics go to write an article on show why some 16 in his presence is fullness of joy while near my eighth. The joy of the Lord is our strength. Paul's exhortation writing from prison to the Philippian believers.

What was he say what he said. Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice.

And he says again rejoice and then again rejoice at an emergency.

In Psalm 22 that God inhabits sits enthroned on the praises of his people.

So as we praise him and adore him. His presence is there in his presence is false of joy and that joy is our strength and that joy is contagious and that joy transcends circumstances and that joy transcends darkness. In fact, it shines like light the darkness. It's it's like a flare sent up in a dark place and people seated and people are drawn to it. I read a quote but one of the Puritans many years ago where he said just like we don't like living in a dark house, but God does not like living in a melancholy, depressed person now that the quote was, not criticizing someone that struggles with chronic depression and ended his wants to get out of but doesn't know how little was rather saying that the people who make choices to just focus on what's wrong to focus on what's bad.

Focus on the negative, caught up in all the world everything is wrong and bad that God does not enjoy living inside of that person where's the person was is not just an optimist because optimism can be foolish optimism can be denial optimism can be sticking one's head in the sand that that when when someone leaves God because they believe God they have hope and that hope radiates to others that is the kind of person you want to be around, it just think about this treatment. Yet one person that whenever you talk to like you look at what's wrong here little comfortable with Biden to look at that, but this test will know much. I got everything wrong is pretreat this off. Would you rather hang out with that person. If you need some encouragement.

If you need your faith built if if if you need some holy positivity in your life. In other words, word-based positivity would you hang around with that person or the person when you get around in the spring, Connie Socha. He is amazing he is so faithful we just would go through really financially hard time but we just determine less than what I can a complaint with the worship type change though. I just know I've been reading this in the word today and it is such a blessing you want to be around who brings life to please encouragement you who brings hope to. I have found in my own life that that when there is this overwhelming confidence of God's love for me and it's something I I live with all the time but sometimes in a very intense way sometimes and in a way that it is just like supernatural wind in my sales that that that that deep confidence of God's loving God is with me and his will will be accomplished and his purposes will come to pass in the light will triumph over darkness and in the promises he's made to me personally will be fulfilled. The joy that comes out of it. The godly energy and vitality that comes out of the encouragement I can bring to others and how like I could speak to large crowd of people and and that joy and that faith inside of me just spreads them. I hope it spreading to some of you that based on who God is based on the promises of his word. Based on his faithfulness based on his track record its contagious people grab hold of it. It's life-changing we come back. I want to tell you one of the most amazing joy of the Lord stories in my life.

I try to squeeze it all within the next segment and give you some practical principles as to how to walk in the Lord will take your calls as well. Six is the line of fire with your host Dr. Michael Brown on the line of fire by calling 866-34-TRUTH here again is Dr. Michael Brown yeah yeah my news book political seduction of the church. We've got copies that everybody else you can go to our website right now Esther could Brown the Lord and still get first edition signed, numbered copy sent to just send a bunch more today. Can't wait to get them out to you get this well ahead of everybody else… Now, ask Dr. Brown.org and I opening book that will help you put your trust in the gospel like never before. All right, so yours back. Went to Italy with team minister.

There are number of times before went to Italy with team and some of the team left to go back to the states ahead of the rest of us and then others stayed on so once it stayed on my wife Nancy or older daughter, Jennifer, dear friend Brad was worship leader with the Lord now and then two young moms with their babies. So that's that's who stayed along for the rest of the strip so we we we end up with the delay were were insistently the planes ready to go. It's really early in the morning with barely slept at all.

Plane is ready to go. Some the team since some of their luggage ahead with with others in any way got everything ready to go were on the plane and we sit for almost an hour. We are to wait for more passengers. They came out of their Mafia have never seen off anyway until we get to the airport in Rome. We missed our connection to the states and sitting around for hours look at it and put us in the plane in this place going to connect a Kennedy airport and from there it's school take us back to Maryland Virginia area were we lived in and okay okay so where the long day.

It's been hours and now that the babies there. There will cough cold in others.

The seem to be getting a little bit run down the motorist in the young moms and babies on stilts so long that it and it's freezing cold out we it happens to be Nancy's birthday November 30 and we we now get into what Kennedy airport right what retired Brentwood where Butner just John got hours to chill and then we have to go over to another terminal and then from there catch our flight back so the flight from Rome to the Kennedy airport all good. No problem.

Okay, so we both were worn out, so I hate since his birthday get semi-custard yogurt with Everett that the airport okay so it's a long walk over there and Jen comes back, her daughter, "given the right change enough money in go back in everyone just sitting around eaten there.

There yogurt: size because liver was so the milk will wait a second, please. We will be late. Now we gotta hurry and get over to the other terminal so we would go outside it's freezing cold is absolutely freezing cold and the buses or completely overfilled and so there's a long line of people in front of us waiting for the bus to go around to the part of the airport to get to the other terminal I think. I can't believe it that we were there all those hours is killing time and now were to be late. Now we gotta run.

The last thing you want to do and because we check some of the other luggage. We had extra carry-on luggage with us and so wanted to help accommodate whatever the deal was we got loaded down with extra stuff and we can't get on the bus of the trust or bribe the driver, let people on in there ahead of us and they can't get autonomy rose by the time the express, and gets all whatever to get on it so when the wonderful excess weight that I can see the terminal it's over there so we said let's run so work at repairing car seat for the baby were Awkward just overwhelmed with luggage and thou were running through the parking okay with Jen running through the parking lot climbing over barriers to try to get to this things like 1/2 mile away at our and suddenly the shoreline of the Lord hits me for no good reason in the freezing cold and kind of the absurdity a moment the joy of the Lord hits me and I just start with with Jen are our older daughter and she was on the tooth of teenager that point I just start shouting in the parking lot I just start shopping price. Thank you Lord your good eye. I am overflowing with holy joy, for no good outward reason and completely overflowing and shouting praises to God, it does look like dad, you crazy does not accredit alike what the world is going off so we climb over the now we we we get to the place were not there for weight but there's like a wall. You can't get walk there you have to drive and so were standing literally in the road and airport road with our luggage analyte and an and there there is an Orthodox Jewish man sitting there and not a look at him and Can you help us and he just looks at me so I asked him if he were at the title is all on. Can you help us in the modern he was much better than that. It is now.

So I explained it was a flight flight.

We have mothers, babies.

Second, could you drive them over so he does not evince a word just nodded no religious Jews not supposed to be alone with another woman will hear it was Nancy Ann and her daughter Jan and the two young moms with babies at so it they drive off Emmett and anyway we just now were they drive off work written in the middle-of-the-road. A police car comes up policewoman. She looks a single look.

We got there was a flight delay in insisted because that were released for the flight from Rome with Mr. connect where we gotta get over to connect you hear it at an American and an enemy.

It just got an Orthodox Jewish man who just eaten for the wisely could you help us. It is not Sarah's list. I'm not exaggerating us in order get the car so Brad not get McCarthy makes his future and cuts across his ability goes is an American American Eagle.

I said Americans whose okay that's over your drops us off. I say to Brett, you run, you go ahead I'm going to go because the ladies are ready. I gotta go get the rest the things checked out totally sweaty at this point is been running outside the cold without hot with the winter close at all this so Brad runs ahead. Brad runs ahead.

I'm sure the ladies are ready there right so I go through the whole thing and exclaims have this at all. You want American Eagle pits all the way at the other end of the terminal go go for so I go running okay and I think I'm gonna miss the fender all the way for me and Ed, I don't have might my ticket because I gave everything to Brad to run ahead of me. I don't have my stuff so I get to security God is my witness, I get to security test exposures up as we we we believe there's a flight and in Italy we can get the leader killed Regan orthotist. We hope that the latest babies are sick. Drove over to the terminal.

But my friend went ahead of us. I can can you help police of gotta put purse a police escort to come over here. They just log, they let me through. I get to the gate.

I'm the only one there.

The Orthodox Jewish guy had to make another stop so he just left them in his running car while he went into another terminal to take care of something. Brad realized that he had put some is ID whatever whatever he needed. He put that in a in a bag that got checked in, instead of carry-on with the confusion here. They did let him through.

I got through. I get to the gate and they said there's a delay on your flight unless father said that's because of me and our folks so the ladies from the made it over. Brad had to go actually to find his luggage which they were able locating get his take whatever he needed to get through them and we we get on the plane and the flight attendants is a little nervous because it's the pilots first flight. What is on me my first one is the flight attendants are literally there is the outside of the plane. Results of the duct tape that was both holdings of the got a kid you not. We got home safe and sound. That was my most remarkable traveling experience and one of those times where inexplicable reasons. Joy comes and it was that joy that carried me through what we know Paul and Silas, and imprisoned in Philippi. We we know what happened there severely flogged. I've never been flogged, let alone severely flogged, it must be agonize and remember there and some pit some filthy pit and there there shackled, so who knows what creatures are biting their wounds were crawling it and they begin at midnight and this is for the faith.

The right they begin singing praises to God, and what happens earthquake come sets and free. I heard Pastor Jack Hafer, himself a white brother, saying that he heard a black brother preaching about this long time and that the word of God says that heaven is God's throne and the earth is his footstool. And when God heard the music that he likely started tapping his foot on the footstool, and an earthquake came, he was just having fun. It is preaching but that joy that praise literally liberated. Here's what you do meditate on the promises of God speak out what the word says about the character of God determine the matter what's going on on the list by us in worship and praise and give thanks may be put on some some praise music. In fact work really do that little while, put on some music that lifts your spirit and and determine worship of the work and as you do.

You.

You may start to feel yourself with.

I assure you, if you do this consistently, your attitude, your mindset, your outlook will change light shining in the darkness friends. I hope this is encouraging you today that's that's what we hear will take some calls we come back and then encouraging more take businesses joy filled with hostility to the line of fire with your host Dr. Michael Brown got on the line of fire by calling 866-34-TRUTH here again is Dr. Michael Brown heart good, like medicine right. The joy of the Lord is our strength. There is a time to mourn the time to dance. So we weep, we grieve, we feel pain we feel burdened and then we rejoice, we praise we celebrate. These are both aspects of our lives in the Lord in both healthy and important aspects some of us just want to put her head in the sand and try to deny human suffering and that's not realistic and the site helpful. Others of us just so morbid in focused almost