The Power of Rejoicing

About midnight, as Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God . . . Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the very foundations of the prison were shaken; and at once all the doors were opened and everyone's shackles were unfastened. 
—Acts 16:25-26

Throughout the Bible, God instructs His people to be filled with joy and to rejoice. For example, Philippians 4:4 says: Rejoice in the Lord always [delight, gladden yourselves in Him]; again I say, Rejoice!

Any time the Lord tells us twice to do something—the Philippians were told twice in this verse to rejoice—we need to pay careful attention to what He is saying. Many times people see or hear the word rejoice and think, That sounds nice, but how do I do that? They would like to rejoice but don't know how!

Paul and Silas, who had been beaten, thrown into prison, and had their feet put in stocks, rejoiced by simply singing praises to God. We don't often realize the "rejoicing" that can release so much power can be just as simple as smiling and laughing, having a good time, and enjoying ourselves. And doing that in itself often makes the problem go away!

If you have a personal relationship with the Lord—if you are saved— the Holy Spirit dwells within you (SEE John 14:16-17 AND 1 Corinthians 12:3). If joy is a fruit of the Spirit, and the Spirit is in you, joy is in you. You're not trying to get joy or manufacture it—it is already there, just as are the ability to love and the other fruit of the Spirit— because the Spirit is there.

It is very important to understand that we as believers are not to try to get joy—we have joy. Joy is in our spirit. What we need to do is learn how to release it.