Friday, October 4, 2024:
Disciplining in Joy (morning)
Philippians 1:25
Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith.
Pondering Point
It is worthwhile to mention that joy is not the absence of negative emotion but the ability to stay yourself in the midst of difficult emotion. For example, if I had a difficult day but I share with a friend about it, I can readily say to that friend, “I am glad you there for me.” When helpful people connect with us during times of difficulty, it is one more form of joy known as glad-to-be-together joy.
Pray aloud
Lord Jesus, help me see, invest in, love, and celebrate brothers and sisters who continue with me on this discipleship journey of progress and joy in the faith.
Five Minutes
Use your GO TO JOYS and ANTICIPATED JOYS to fill a 5-minute window. Remember: use an alarm. If necessary, review the explanation.
Read the identity in Christ
statement aloud
In Christ, we are people who continue to walk together to help one another progress in the faith and experience the contagious joy of following Jesus.
Closing Prayer
Close with Thanks to God for these moments together.
Ask Him to bless the upcoming day, then…
GO – in JOY, with JOY and anticipating JOY.
I‘ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart (Where?)
Down in my heart to stay.
“Joy is awesome! Joy is a high-energy feeling that you can’t wait to share with others. It motivates us to be with people we love, and we feel alive and on top of the world when joy is present in our interactions.”
~ Warner, Coursey, The 4 Habits, page 9.
Friday, October 4, 2024:
Sometime During Your Day
Level 3: Savoring joys of the past.
2 Corinthians 1:24
Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm.
There can be great relational joy and peace when someone works with us for our benefit – not in a patronizing way, but as one truly interested in our personal welfare (God included). Yet we don’t always benefit from God’s peace and joy. Why? Consider this quote from JJ:
The third reason we miss God speaking to us is that we don't stop to check the characteristics of our thoughts to see if they are poetry that rhymes God's thoughts. We will explore how to check our thoughts more completely later, but now let us examine the main test. Thoughts that rhyme with God's produce shalom. Shalom is a state of harmony where every-thing works together, makes sense and is good. Shalom is the "peace of Christ."…Once Shalom is restored, we feel grateful. Gratitude and shalom are the hallmarks of thought-poetry with God so we have made them the beginning and ending points for Immanuel journaling.
~ Wilder, Kang, Loppnow, Loppnow, Joyful Journey, pages 3-4.
Journal Prompt:
People who bring or brought you joy:
Key Words:
Immanuel Thought
You could all use an ‘Apostle Paul’ type to encourage you to stand firm in your faith, to work with you for your joy. I enjoy working through such people – and it is joy to work through you to encourage others in their faith. By the way, this thought bubble will represent opportunities to receive or seek out the thoughts or voice of God using the Word of God to foster a conversation with God. It’s part of the Immanuel experience you’re learning.
Discipling in Joy (evening)
Friday, October 4, 2024
Philippians 1:25
Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith.
Pondering Point
We can all use ‘Apostle Paul’ types encouraging us to stand firm in our faith, to work with us for our joy. I can imagine Jesus enjoying opportunity to work through such people like us to encourage each other in their faith.
Pray aloud
Thank You, Jesus, for those who further my progress in the faith and the joy that comes with along that, including those who blessed me today.
Review
Scour the day for ANTICIPATED or SURPRISE JOYS. You are training your brain to look for joy. This builds the habit. Recall the body sensations and emotion.
This solidifies the habit. Remember: use an alarm
Read the identity in Jesus
statement aloud
In Jesus, we are connected to each other in order to help build one another up in the faith and complete our joy.
Evening Prayer
Thank God for blessing the day, ask for peaceful rest, then GO to sleep – in grateful JOY, anticipating new JOY tomorrow under His grace.
Shalom checklist (Wilder, Kang, Loppnow, Loppnow, Joyful Journey, page 54)
- Do I feel peacefully calm?
- Am I sensing God’s loving presence?
- Am I confident that nothing can take me away from God’s love?
- Am I portraying my weakness accurately?
- Am I still sensing God’s interactive presence in my painful memory?
- Have my joy, peace, and hope increased?
- Has my desire to love and serve others increased?
Do these items resonate with you by presence or absence?
Journal Prompt:
Do these items resonate with you by their presence or absence?