Applying 7 themes of Sukkot to my daily life! Day 2: This day reminds me to be joyful – part 2!! The feast of Sukkot (or Tabernacles) is known as the “season of rejoicing” or “the time of our joy” because God commands us in Lev. 23:40 to “rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days.”
When your primary focus is on how much He desires intimate relationship with you, AND on not allowing anything in your heart that would block that intimacy, you will experience true freedom in your life which will result in great joy!
No matter what messages are coming at you directly from the enemy, or through others or from the world around you, when you are focused on maintaining that intimate relationship with God, you don’t have to let any message into your heart other than messages from Him. That means you are free from all of the accusing messages, e.g., you’re bad, you should, you should have, you’re not doing enough, you’re not good enough, the pressure-filled messages, the condescending, judgmental messages, etc. All of these messages block your joy and they block your intimacy with God.
You have the freedom in Yeshua to say “NO,” and not allow them into your heart! You only have to let messages in your heart that are from God, i.e., how HE sees you — as a son or daughter of the King, as pure gold, as holy and blameless, as someone that He loves to spend time with (He can never get enough of you), as someone of great worth (His life) and value to Him.
You are free to recognize that fear is NOT from God (2 Tim 1:7 – He has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, of love, and of a sound mind), and therefore you are free to NOT take it into your heart. You are free from dwelling on the negative about your circumstances. When you only take into your heart what comes from God, you can focus on what God’s Word says is true — that He is for you, His plans for you are good, He will work all things for your good, that you can call things that are not as though they were according to His will — and you can experience joy instead of what the enemy wants for you which is fear, hopelessness and depression.
The freedom of knowing that if it’s not from God, (i.e, it’s accusing, rejecting, condescending, unforgiving, fearful, negative, dreadful, pressure-filled, etc.), you don’t have to take it into your heart, will bring you true freedom, greater intimacy in your relationship with God, and pure joy! Be free to experience His joy this Sukkot!
Neh. 8:10 – the joy of the Lord is your strength!
Chag Sameach!
