Laughter—just good bone-shaking, belly-jiggling, light-in-the-head laughter, is a sure sign of health. The only one who hates it is Satan and all his wannabes.
Joy
Kris Vallotton
One of the greatest misconceptions people have about pain is that time heals. This couldn’t be further from the truth! If time healed, people in prison would be the most whole people in the world. Over the course of many trials and tribulations, I have learned the value of finding joy in the process of my pain and of looking forward to the outcome. Joy—or the promise of joy—gives you the ability to face seemingly impossible circumstances and helps you to thrive when life is hard. Remember, James tells us to consider it all joy when we face trials because of the fruit that is produced in us.
James Hudson Taylor
It is the consciousness of the threefold joy of the Lord, His joy in ransoming us, His joy in dwelling within us as our Saviour and Power for fruitbearing and His joy in possessing us, as His Bride and His delight; it is the consciousness of this joy which is our real strength. Our joy in Him may be a fluctuating thing: His joy in us knows no change.
Charles R. Swindoll
In vain I have searched the Bible, looking for examples of early believers whose lives were marked by rigidity, predictability, inhibition, dullness, and caution. Fortunately, grim, frowning, joyless saints in Scriptures are conspicuous by their absence. Instead, the examples I find are of adventurous, risk-taking, enthusiastic, and authentic believers whose joy was contagious even in times of full trial. Their vision was broad even when death drew near. Rules were few and changes were welcome. The contrast between then and now is staggering.
Sally McClung
On the days when the grief is there, I know that joy will also come. It’s easy to feel that I’ll always be sad because of the weight of things. But that’s not true. The sad times, the times of grief, are hard, but our loving Father will walk with us through them. He’ll bring good – joy!! – into our lives in ways that only He can. How grateful I am for His lovingkindness!
Edward McKendree (E. M.) Bounds
Prayer should not be regarded as a duty which must be performed, but rather as a privilege to be enjoyed, a rare delight that is always revealing some new beauty.
Phillip Ware
One of the great blessings of church, for all of its imperfections, is the gift of a genuine laughter – a laughter shared and bequeathed to us by our perfect Father. This is a laughter that we will share in even greater measure when all the sorrow is gone and every tear is wiped from our eyes. One day, like the captives many years ago said, we too will sing:
We are like those who dream. Our mouths are filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. It is said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.” Yes, the LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. Psalm 126:2-3
Christopher Fowler
[Believers] have joy and comfort that joy that angels cannot give, and devils cannot take.
Gilbert Keith G. K. Chesterton
Pessimism is not in being tired of evil but in being tired of good. Despair does not lie in being weary of suffering but in being weary of joy.
C. S. Lewis
I think we all sin by needlessly disobeying the apostolic injunction to rejoice as much as by anything else.