Joy with Courtney Doctor
On today’s episode of the Journeywomen podcast, we’re chatting with Courtney Doctor about joy. Amidst a lot of other things, we talk about how God is both joyful and the source of our joy! This conversation is such a potent reminder to look to the Lord as the source of our joy.
So you’ll know a little more about our guest, Courtney Doctor is an author, Bible teacher, frequent conference and retreat speaker, and periodic blogger. She received an MDiv from Covenant Theological Seminary and is the author of From Garden to Glory and Steadfast: A Devotional Bible Study on the Book of James (2019). She currently serves as the Coordinator of Women's Training and Content for The Gospel Coalition and as a Visiting Instructor of Communication at Covenant Theological Seminary. Courtney also has a love for education and serves on the advisory board for Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, GA.
Can you share a little about who you are and what you do?
One of the things we've been talking about in this series is how the fruit of the Spirit are really an invitation to mirror the character of God. How is God joyful?
Throughout Scripture we are encouraged to be joyful and to be filled with joy! Where does joy come from?
What is it that distinguishes Christian joy from all other joys in life?
What sustains our joy?
How does our joy in God bring him glory?
How do we cultivate joy in God when it doesn't come to us easily?
In 2 Corinthians Paul says that we can be joyful and sorrowful at the same time, even though he also says in Philippians that we should rejoice always. How is this possible? What does this look like practically? How can we rejoice even when we're going through great difficulty?
THREE QUESTIONS I ASK EVERY GUEST
What 3 resources would you recommend for someone who wants to learn more about joy?
What are your 3 simple joys?
Who has had the greatest impact on your own journey with Jesus?
NOTEWORTHY QUOTES
“Joy is probably an aspect of God’s character that is probably a little less obvious.”
“Absolutely God is love and has a steadfast love and is abounding in it. We know he is patient and are told to mirror those things. We know God is kind, faithful, gentle, but I don’t think very often about the fact that God is joyful, but he is!”
“Those of us who are in Christ, when we stand in the presence of God, we are going to experience a fullness of joy that we have never had before simply by being in his presence because that’s where joy is.”
“The joy of the Lord is not just something that he gives, but is part of his own character. We serve a deeply joyful God and he longs for us to know his joy.”
“It would seem that our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” - C.S. Lewis
“The source of our joy actually affects the quality of our joy. If the source of our joy is volatile, then our joy will be volatile. But if the source of our joy is God, then that means that our joy can remain regardless of our circumstances.”
“Joy is the flag flown over the heart of the believer announcing that the King is in residence there. It’s a defining mark of a Christian.” - Unknown
“The source of our joy is Christ himself.”
“We abide. We remain. We ask. We live it out. And at the same time it takes work and effort, our will is involved.”
“We remember what God has done in the past. We see our own salvation accomplished and how Jesus did that. It is important for us to remember the gospel message. There is a present day aspect that we need to believe that God is doing a good work. We actively believe that he is working, sustaining, defending, providing, believe that he is working out all things. Ultimately it has to be set in our future hope.”
“There is an aspect of taking our thoughts captive, remembering, believing, and trusting (past, present, future) that helps to sustain our joy. Then like the farmer we can say, ‘I don’t even know how he’s done it but he’s cultivated it in me.’”
“Humility is a huge part of joy, that we rest in knowing that he is God and we are not. If he is working this situation out, then we are trusting him for the sure hope of our future glory and trusting him in the present.”
“When our circumstances are not going according to my plan, then joy actually declares that I trust the Lord’s plan and I’m humble enough to accept it. A humble remaining and a trust that ends up cultivating joy.”
“Ultimately joy declares our trust in him. That we trust what he’s doing, his promises, his goodness, his ways. Joy is a megaphone to the watching world that there is something greater out there. We want God more than what he can give.”
“It brings him delight and glory that we trust him.”
“Joy and sorrow can coexist.”
“To rejoice in Christ is to rejoice that we’ve been united to him. We rejoice in the fact that he will never leave us nor forsake us and that our salvation is secure. For those who are in him, he’s working all things out for our good and his glory. The rejoicing comes in understanding that we are eternally united to the Son of God.”
“The realization that I needed to shift from seeking more joy to seeking more of God. We pursue him and we submit our wills to his will. We submit our ways to his way. As we do that, he is in the process of giving us a joy that is an infinite joy.”
RESOURCES
Surprised by Joy by C.S. Lewis
When I Don’t Desire God by John Piper
In All Things by Melissa Kruger
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
What is joy? How does the Bible describe joy?
What is it that distinguishes Christian joy from all other joys in life?
What is the source of joy in your life?
How have you seen joy through difficulty in your own life or others?
What will abiding in Christ look like for you this week?
SCRIPTURE MEMORY
“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11
IMPORTANT NOTE
Journeywomen interviews are intended to serve as a springboard for continued study in the context of your local church. While we carefully select guests each week, interviews do not imply Journeywomen's endorsement of all writings and positions of the interviewee or any other resources mentioned.
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