A Joyful Heart

By Ruby Ramsey [Autobiograpy]

 Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!  Serve the Lord with gladness; come before His presence with singing.  Know that the Lord, He is God.  It is He who has made us and not we ourselves.  We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.  Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise.  Be thankful to Him and bless His name, for the Lord is God.  His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations. (Psalm 100:1-5) NKJV

I learned these verses when I was a child, and as a Bible class teacher I have asked my students to learn them, too.  Though I do not pretend to know the depths of the meaning of these verses, I think there are things here that are needful for all of us. 

Make a joyful sound to the Lord, whether it is a shout of praise or a song.  We should all be filled with joy because He loves us so much.  He cares and provides for us, and most importantly, He forgives our sins and grants us salvation and eternal life. 

For these reasons we serve the Lord with gladness of heart and soul.  We study His word so we know His ways and His will for us.  We know from His word how He wants us to worship Him and how he wants us to live our lives to please Him.  From His word we can know that the Lord is God.  He made us!  We are His people! 

Our hearts overflow with thankfulness and praise and devotion for this awesome God who is so good.  He loves us with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3).  This agape love is far deeper than we can understand, but we know it is perfect love because it comes from the heart of the perfect God Almighty.  His mercy is also everlasting. His mercy is His compassion for us sinners.  All these things cause us to shout for joy!  We praise Him and glorify Him and honor Him!  In Matthew 5:12 we are told to, "Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven...."

 His Word is Truth.  It is good to know in this age of so many lies and deceptions, we can know for certain that God is Truth.  God's Word is Truth.  We can be sure of everything He said is correct, truthful, honest and good.  We can rely on every promise He made.  We can be assured that how He tells us to live is good for us and will make us happy and productive citizens, good neighbors, and good family members.

 "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (I Thessalonians 5:16-18).

 When we think of God and how much He does for us and how good He is to us, how can we not rejoice?  How can we not be thankful?  How can our hearts not be overflowing with love and joy?  God wants us to have joyful hearts.  

He made us to be joyful people.     

ISBS Ladies Daily Devotional 

04/11/05

............Article 209............

Return to: I.S.B.S. Ladies Daily Devo. Archives

 

Writer of the Week:

Ruby Ramsey

 

My name is Ruby (Kinnison) Ramsey.  I was born in a small town (Logan) in southern Ohio on July 12, 1937 to Homer and Irene Kinnison.  I was the second born in the family.  I have an older brother and a younger brother and sister.  My parents are both deceased, but they instilled in me a love for God.  I married James R. Ramsey on August 5, 1955.  We have four sons:  Bob is 47, Tom is 44, Dan is 42 and John is 40.  They are all married and have given us 12 grandchildren.  I went to work at the local public school in the office in order to help send my boys to Christian colleges.  They all have college degrees and good jobs. 
 
I worked at the school for 19 years, and retired.  I am now back at the school volunteering in the reading program.  I help elementary students with reading problems.
 
Jim and I bought the house we still live in back in 1960, before our second son was born.  Jim is very handy around the house and can fix everything.  He has built on to the house and fixed it up and you would never know it is the same house we bought years ago. 
 
Jim was a truck driver for 35 years. He retired in 1995.  He drove long distance for several years when our boys were young; and later he worked locally and did pickups and deliveries in the Warren/Youngstown area of Ohio. 
 
I worshipped with the local Church of Christ most of my life.  I was baptized at age 17 and have walked with the Lord since that time.  However, four years ago a young preacher came into the church and instituted so many change agents you hear so much about, that several of us left.  We now have a small congregation that meets in my house, but it is a Biblical Church of Christ.
 
I have written a book I call "A Daily Dose of God's Word."  It was published two years ago by Star Bible in Grapevine, TX.  I love the Word of God.  It has helped me more than a few words can say.  I have written children's stories to amuse my grandchildren, and I may get those published someday.  I also write poetry.  My "talent" has caused my friends to ask for special poems for special occasions.
 
One of my hobbies is crocheting.  I have made close to 100 afghans and have given them away.  I love to garden.  I have both an extensive flower garden and a vegetable garden.  I love to work in them and enjoy the things they produce.  I love the outdoors and all of God's beautiful creation.  I love to cook and bake.  I just wish I had someone to go around me cleaning up the messes I make.  I like to try new recipes and making up some of my own. 
 
Most of all I love the Lord and put Him first in my life.  Any talents I have I do not take credit, because the glory belongs to the God who gave them to me.