Joy In the Presence of the Lord

King David says, “In Your presence there is fullness of joy,” (Psalm 16:11). This tells us that to enjoy life we have to live in the presence of the Lord. We have to realize that we have an amazing Father-son relationship with God. Therefore we should not be afraid to utilize that special privilege we attained through our Lord Jesus Christ. We have to be in constant fellowship with Him and we will realize the fullness of joy that David experienced when he wrote the psalm.

I have observed with appreciation the words of aging men in the Bible. In most cases they speak experience, maturity and authority. In his old days David stated that he had not seen one who belongs to God forsaken. Here is a man who had lived his life in perpetual danger of being killed - at some point he  had to be on the run because his own son wanted to kill him – declaring victory.

Although he was continuously troubled David always rejoiced in the Lord. He had unspeakable joy that made him long for the Lord even in times of trouble. At some point he was in the wilderness running away from Saul, obviously hungry, thirsty and tired. But take note of his words (Psalm 63:1-5), disregarding his circumstances;

“O GOD, You are my God

Early will I seek You;

My soul thirst for You;

My flesh longs for You

In a dry and thirsty land

Where there is no water.

So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,

To see Your power and Your glory.

Because Your lovingkindness is better than life

My lips shall praise You.

Thus I will bless You while I live;

I will lift up my hands in Your name.

My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,

And my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips.”

No wonder when he was advanced in years he testified that he had not seen a man belonging to God being forsaken. He lived his life in the presence of the Lord and experienced the fullness of joy.  When he was supposed to be thinking of his safety and well-being, he longed to fellowship with His God. That is one man God endorsed as to be after His heart.

Another old man who knew living in the presence of the Lord is Joshua. When he was old and about to die, he called the people of Israel to deliver his farewell speech. He instructed them to hold fast (cleave) to the Lord.  He said, “Behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth. And you know in all your hearts and all your souls that not one thing has failed of all good things which the LORD your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one word of them has failed,” (Joshua 23:14).

Our God is a faithful God. When we cling to Him we will not fail. No matter what we are going through at that particular moment, it is all complete in the presence of the Lord. When we are in constant communion with the Lord we shall not be afraid because we know that He will be with us. This therefore means that we are not bothered by what is happening but we have an everlasting joy knowing that we are more than conquerors.