NorthStar Community Daily Devotional

May 3 - Joy delayed but not denied

Scripture focus: Each one of these people of faith died not yet having in hand what was promised, but still believing. How did they do it? They saw it way off in the distance, waved their greeting, and accepted the fact that they were transients in this world. People who live this way make it plain that they are looking for their true home. If they were homesick for the old country, they could have gone back any time they wanted. But they were after a far better country than that—heaven country. You can see why God is so proud of them, and has a City waiting for them. Hebrews 11:13-16 (The Message)

I was listening to Michael J. Fox give an interview about optimism. He said, "I find that happiness increases in direct proportion to our level of acceptance, and decreases proportionally as our level of expectation rises." He's earned the right to talk about optimism. Parkinson's disease is marching through Fox's brain but his body, soul and spirit have learned how to live the abundant life – not in spite of the disease, but because of it. Fox has had to grapple with the frailties of the human condition and has somehow risen to a level of life satisfaction that most of us only dream about. His life is a beautiful example of Sleigh's approach to fear – find the gifts that come hidden within times of hardship and suffering.

In the next couple of weeks, we're going to explore some skill sets that each of us needs to acquire and use on a daily basis if we're going to find our bliss in the transformed life.

The soul is here for its own joy.

rumi

Recommended reading: John 7 - 9

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