Joy in Every Season

So good. So good to see so much life and energy. I asked that young guy's name, Ray, the dancer in the middle. My goodness, we need a dance squad for some of those songs in the future. Well done for everyone.

All the youth who spoke and sang and played Jack, who plays a part in our band now. What a legend he is. Give up a Jack legend. So good. So good.

Hey, we're gonna just take a few minutes this morning just to talk about joy. Obviously, this is Christmas, and oftentimes this is the theme of this time of year. But oftentimes, for many people, Christmas, although it's a time of celebration, is not necessarily a season where they experience joy. And I think I found, as you know, being a pastor a number of years, that two people can be in exactly the same season and going through almost identical sets of circumstances, but have two completely different experiences of that season. And I think Christmas is the ultimate expression of this, isn't it?

You know, you've got those people who just find Christmas challenging, and sometimes they're a bit grinchy because they can't find the parks at the shops, you know, they can't. You know, you know, don't like buying everyone presents. And sometimes there's legitimate reasons because, you know, there's an expectation to buy everyone in the family are present, and it kind of. You have to work out who to. Where to cut that line off.

Right? But, you know, some people don't like carols, and we'll find out who those people are next Sunday, won't we? Right, in our carol service. But all those who love carols say amen. All the Bradfords.

It's basically the Bradford carols next week. Just so you know, it's Annabelle, Renee and I will be having some fun because last year we were away on a holiday. So this year we said, all right, we'll take it team, because they're all on holidays. But, you know, there are some people who. Who find that season challenging for very valid reasons because there's an empty seat at the table where there was once a family member who they loved.

For some people, it's a challenging season because finances are tight. For others, you know, it's a lonely season because everyone else is celebrating with family and you might not have family around or not have a bigger family like other people have. But then there are people who do who do, you know, experience Christmas and just lean in and enjoy that season. And our family is definitely in that camp. We are.

We are a, you know, embrace the season kind of family. We have the Christmas tree up in from the 1st of November, generally, if not late October. That's how excited we are. And Renee basically changes her song playlist to Christmas Carols from November. So the playlist in our house is carols.

That's the rule. I like to finish it on December 25th, though. I'm like, let's. Let's pack the tree away December 26th. Anyone with me on that?

Yeah, I love you guys. Welcome. Come and help me pack up my tree. But, you know, our family is definitely in that camp where we do really lean into and enjoy this season. And it's not that we haven't been through tough times.

You know, there are family members who are not with us this year. There have been Christmases where we haven't been able to afford to buy the presents for our kids that we've wanted to buy because of a season in ministry. There have been seasons where, you know, we've had family challenges and those, you know, those awkward Christmas lunches where, you know, Uncle Bob is spruiking his latest conspiracy theory. And then there's a. There's somebody drinks too much, and then it's all fun.

That's all ahead of us. But we've been through those. Those seasons. But I found something that. It's not the season that determines how you experience it.

It's who you're focused on and where your focus is in that season. Two people can have exactly the same set of circumstances, and one grows bitter while the other grows better.

One is able to see the person of Jesus and the redemptive aspect of that season. The other person is. Gets stuck in a cycle of almost trying to get all the answers as to why this has happened. And, you know, when Jesus arrived, the heavens celebrate his arrival with this incredible statement. I bring you good news of great joy for all people.

This is a very simple but I think, healthy message for many of us here today. It's very simple. There is good news of great joy that is for all people. In that one statement, the angels announced news that is a reason for us to have joy in every season that is available to every person. And I think sometimes if we allow the seasons of life to determine our joy and our peace, it's not true joy and peace.

It's an emotional response to a situation we're facing. And we understand that joy and peace aren't like, you know, happiness. They are something that is supernatural. They are a fruit of the Holy Spirit. Because here's the deal.

You can be in mourning and. And still have joy. I found that you can be in lack and still have joy. You can be in a challenging season right now, this Christmas and still experience joy. And here's the deal.

I've talked to many people over the years who've had everything that this world has to offer. But you know the one thing they don't have joy. Because joy doesn't come from circumstances and things. It doesn't come from a season. It comes from Jesus, who is with us in that season, and our awareness of him in the middle of that.

So I want to give you just three thoughts this morning. Good news, great joy, all people, are you with me today? First thought today is that joy has a source. When the angels appeared to the shepherds, it's important to note that it was news. I bring you good news.

And this is key because if something is news, it doesn't begin with something we do. It begins with something that has been done. If I come to you and bring you news, I. I'm not telling you a set of instructions on how to get joy, good news of great joy. I'm actually coming to say there is something that has already taken place that is a reason for joy. That's what the angels were announcing.

It wasn't advice or self help on how to get joy. It was the declaration that something had happened. That if you believe, it has the power to shape the way in which you see everything else and that you experience in life.

I love that God chose the shepherds to be the first to hear this. It's so interesting. There are many different people who encountered Jesus upon his arrival, but it was the shepherds really who got this heavenly announcement. And I love that the angels didn't turn up at the temple or at church. They didn't turn up to people who were even praying for revival.

They weren't even asking God for a sign. They were literally just doing their job on the night shift at fifo. They're doing. They're basically FIFO guys. They're out in the fields doing their job.

And the angels bring this incredible message to them. And the shepherd's joy didn't start when their circumstances changed. It started as Jesus was revealed to them. You know, I think sometimes we assume joy will come once life feels different, once the pressure lifts, you know, when we finally get out of that tough season. But the angels didn't announce a change of circumstance to the shepherds.

They announced the arrival of a person, which was the good news that brought them great joy. You know, when oftentimes it's when a person arrives that a situation doesn't necessarily change, but something lifts in that situation. You know, Covid was a challenging season for many people. For us, it was tricky. Right as Covid was hitting, we were in this interesting stage as a church.

There were some challenges. We were navigating with people. It wasn't an easy season for us as leaders. And so we found ourselves. For me personally, I found it quite lonely.

I found, like I didn't really have people who were with us as much as I know we have plenty of people who are with us, but sometimes you can feel a little isolated as a leader. And I remember one day the answering machine in the foyer, just so you know, it's not there right now, but anyway, there's answering machine in the foyer popped up with this message. And the message was, hi, this is Jeff Morton from Thermo Fisher. I just attended a service recently and I wanted to catch up with Pastor Josh and just see if there's anything we can do to help. I'm so glad I didn't ghost Jeff at that point.

Right. Met with Jeff and you know, the beautiful thing about their arrival was that it wasn't like they came and our circumstances changed. We still had to walk through that season. But boy, oh boy, did something shift in me as I knew that I wasn't alone in the middle of that. I'm so grateful.

And when, you know, when Pastors Brian and Moira turned up to our church, gee, something shifted in us knowing, hey, we're not alone. We're not alone. We've got people who are with us, you know, and I think nothing externally changed, but there was this sense that God had sent somebody to be with us. You know, I don't think the joy we long for is. Is found as we change the season.

I really believe it's as we become aware of exactly who Jesus is. He is Emmanuel. God with us. The good news was, hey, God's with you. God is not distant.

He has come. The incarnation is that he is not just coming to visit you. He's become man. Fully man, fully God. What an incredible thing that God did.

Joy has a source. And it's not the season you're in, it's the person who's with you in the middle of that season. And it's easy to miss that. You know, joy actually begins to grow in us as we believe this. Because as we see, the angels said, this is good news.

But not just good news. It's good news of great joy. And I love the Original language that tied into this. It's the word megas. Chara.

Chara, I think, is the word. And chara is the root word of charis, where we get grace. And I'll often think of this concept of great joy as. As basically this idea of great grace that we've recognized and are responding to. In other words, it's not necessarily describing an emotional state or a surface level excitement.

It's describing what happens when grace is truly believed. When you actually believe the good news. Great joy is the actual response. I could tell you here today that you are a billionaire and that might be true. But if you don't believe it, your response will be very different, won't it?

And so great joy grows when grace goes from something we hear about to something that we actually believe. And I think Mary's an incredible picture of this as we look in the scripture. She wasn't in an easy season of life. She was a young woman. She was betrothed to a man.

And God literally interrupts her story and changes her season of life. Not from good to great, from good to incredibly challenging. Think about this for just a moment. God turns up to you and goes, hey, I just want to let you know. The angel of Lord turns up to you and says, hey, I just want to let you know that you're about to become pregnant.

By the power of the Holy Spirit, you're gonna conceive God's son. And she's already engaged to Joseph. Put yourself in her shoes for just a minute. That's a tough set of circumstances. And in those times, having a child out of wedlock wasn't just a point of shame.

Having a child out of wedlock was literally potential risk of her life being ended. But Mary's response is significant because she says, I am the Lord's servant. May everything you've said about me come true. Note that she didn't say, I understand. That completely makes sense.

Can you just fill me in on how this is all going to work over the next 30 to 100 years? Can you give me some time to have a think and meditate on it for a little while? No. She believed the message that was given. And her yes and trust in the word that was given made her natural circumstances a lot tougher.

But it was a reason for her to literally carry great joy within her. Joseph faced exactly the same set of circumstances, but from the other side. He was a man who, from his perspective, his future was completely changed when Mary told him this news. And scripture says that he'd planned to quietly divorce her. Which is interesting because it actually speaks to his character, because many men in that time would have actually, you know, had their, you know, betrothed woman stoned, which is.

Which is incredibly challenging. But he wasn't cruel. He was heartbroken. But through an angel, God spoke to Joseph without a full explanation of the timeline or what was about to happen. And Joseph had a choice to trust God in a season that he didn't choose.

You ever found yourself in a season you didn't choose, and there's a choice. You got to trust God or not. It says that when Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord commanded them. You know, so often I think what we do is we pursue answers to situations out of a desire to get peace and joy, because we believe that if we. If we get the answers to a situation, then we'll get some peace, then we'll get some joy.

But the reality is often the opposite. You know, I'm very grateful to Jesus. You know, last year, my sister passed away, and I still don't have answers. I still don't have answers. In fact, I was traveling, and because of the way in which she passed away, through the hospital system, not the one on the Sunshine coast, but there was a coroner's investigation.

I got a letter from them saying, hey, we're still investigating this. We're still trying to get answers as to the why. And there are many questions I have that remain unanswered. She was young. She had dreams and vision to be married one day, and I could easily live stuck in a search for answers around that season and that circumstance.

But, you know, I really am grateful to Jesus because he gave me something far greater than answers. He gave me a promise. He gave me his word. And I can tell you, when you're in a challenging season, the temptation is to try and work out all the answers. But peace and joy only come when you trust the promise.

And so this Christmas and last Christmas, you know, we experience joy. And it's strange because some would say, well, how can you do that when you've just lost a loved one? Well, joy is not, you know, a response to circumstances. Joy is a fruit of the presence of a person. And I can still experience joy because that person who was with me gave me a promise that she is seated at a different table, and one day I will see her again, and she's free from pain.

And so I hold onto the promise instead of trying to work out the why. Sometimes we're desperate to have a why, so we can get peace and joy. But sometimes I think the greatest and fastest pathway to peace and joy is by saying, Jesus, this is in your hands. There are some things I am not going to know this side of life. I think Pastor Bill called it the mystery box when he spoke a couple of years ago.

There are just some things that stay in the hands of God, and I don't know why. And I have to trust that he's got it and he's with me through it. You know, some of us here today are in a season that we don't understand. And I want to encourage you today when it comes to joy, you don't fake joy. You don't have to force joy.

Joy in the middle of a challenging season. I grieve. I go up and down on the emotions sometimes, you know, but it sounds simple. But the greatest need for each of us is to trust Jesus Promise in the middle of every season, the good seasons and the tough seasons, that's how you live with joy. Finally, joy is to be shared.

I think joy really begins to multiply in our life as we share it. As we understand that it's not about circumstances. It's about the presence of someone in the middle of every circumstance. It's about the fact that one who is with us has given a promise in the middle of it and that we are called to carry that message, the good news of great joy, to people around about us. You know, this is key for some people here today.

Joy is not meant to end with you. It's meant to flow out of you.

Sometimes we think of joy as something we need to get instead of something that is produced in us. If joy is a pursuit, not a fruit, then your orientation is wrong. It's actually a fruit. You know, it's interesting. It's one of the fruits of the spirit.

And nowhere in that whole text does the Bible actually tell us to produce the fruits of the spirit. You know what it says? Walk in the spirit. And the byproduct of partnership and journeying with the Lord is that he will produce in you supernatural fruit. There's something interesting about fruit, and it's interesting it uses that analogy because fruit is meant to be picked.

It's meant to be shared. In fact, the tree grows stronger as that fruit is taken from the tree. Fruit is meant to be shared. And what's interesting is the shepherds have this incredible supernatural encounter with the angels. And we know the sky lights up.

And what I find really significant about this is the angels then point them to something very ordinary. So they have this crazy encounter. And then they didn't say, stay here in this moment and chase another experience like this. Don't try and get more of this. They actually direct them to a baby lying in a manger.

And so after this supernatural encounter, they're sent back into a very natural situation. And you know, oftentimes we think of the birth of Jesus as, you know, like all of the way in which we've kind of commercialized it these days. But I like that little video we watched before there was poop there, it stunk. It was literally a feeding trough. It was very human, very ordinary.

Yet God was actually saying in that moment, through that encounter with the angels, hey, this supernatural encounter was directing the attention of these shepherds back to the fact that God and joy was in a very ordinary place. I think sometimes we chase these hyper spiritual experiences as they're the moments when I get joy, when I finally get together with the church and we have those moments where we touch heaven in church. I love those moments. But I want to tell you those moments are meant to translate into us going back into the very ordinary moments of life and bringing the joy we experience there there, because that's actually where the joy is. That's where Jesus is.

You know, the shepherds and I love that as they turned up to the stable, the shepherds didn't sort of say, well, that was a letdown. Well, that was a letdown. You know, I expected something more super than natural. Right after they heard Jesus and saw Jesus, they spread the word, it says, and. And their joy was multiplied.

And I think if we're not careful, we can constrain joy to the angel moments of life and see joy as a pursuit instead of a fruit. We can constrain joy to the angel moments when the angel moments. Are you following me here Today are meant to point us to the stable moments because the stable moments of life, the ordinary moments of life, is actually where the incarnation is. That's where God oftentimes works. And if you don't get this, I just want to say you will become a super spiro weirdo.

You're allowed to laugh at that. That's okay. Maybe you are all super spirit weirdos, so you're offended, but that's okay. Who chasing counters to get joy instead of living on mission in the mundane as a carrier of joy?

Are you with me today? Joy is meant to be shared. It's not meant to be something that's kept behind the four walls of a church on a Sunday. It's Meant to be taken into the streets. Come on, Ben, you can join us.

But, you know, yesterday I was here at the church tidying up out the front, and I wasn't, you know, praying in the Holy Spirit. I probably should have been praying in the Holy Spirit before preaching the next day, but I wasn't. I was just going about a very ordinary moment. And this gentleman turned up outside there and he says, hey, you got a couple of minutes to chat? And we began to talk.

And as he began to talk, I realized that this. This person had been in church before, but they'd been through some. Some church hurt that experienced the ugly side of what people can experience because church is filled with people, and people aren't perfect. And as I sat with them, I realized, hey, this is a divine moment. This is not just another natural moment.

There's something very super in this natural moment. And as I began to share more my story and some of the things that God did to help me heal through similar experiences, you know, there was no keyboard playing, although that does change the atmosphere. There was no lights. There was no screen. It was just sitting out the front having a chat.

This person says to me, you know what? I might actually come to church again.

Thanks for hearing me out there. Thanks for actually being there for me. I can tell you I left that conversation with a whole lot more joy than I might even leave today's sermon with, because I had an opportunity to share the joy that God had brought me through the tough season I'd walked through. You know, we can forget that Jesus is with us in our everyday lives, in our everyday conversations. Sometimes joy is meant to be shared.

It's a fruit that grows on our life. And to see joy abound in your life, you don't need to be a theologian or pray in the spirit for 10 hours a day. You just need to share it. Just begin to share the good news. You know, let me finish by saying this.

Joy isn't found in. In the seasons of life, working out the way you wanted them to work out.

And there are many people in the room today who, in a. Maybe a challenging season, maybe this Christmas for you is going to be not an easy one. Maybe it's. Maybe you're in a great season. Hey, that's wonderful.

But you can be in a great season, still not have joy. And you can be having a very tough season this Christmas, but experience the joy that only comes as Jesus becomes more present and more of your awareness than the reality of a situation. You know, I think the gospel isn't complicated. But sometimes it's hard to accept and see when circumstances get overwhelming. And I'm so grateful to be in a community of people where when circumstances get tough, yes, we sit with one another, we stand with one another, but we always encourage each other to look to Jesus.

We lift our eyes because joy isn't about sucking it up or feeling a certain way. It isn't about a season or even a feeling. It's a fruit that comes as we bring our attention to the person of Jesus. You can actually have joy today. In fact, I believe that it's growing in you today.

Because if Jesus is in your heart, if the Holy Spirit is in you, he's doing a work in you. We stand today because I just know there are people who are. Who've been on the search for answers. I just feel that that's a real, real thing for some people here, that you're in a season and you're trying to get an answer you don't know. And for some people, it's like you're like, I just.

Until I get that answer, I'm not gonna find peace. Until I get that answer, I can't be at rest. I can't find. I just believe God has a promise for you today.

He has a promise for you today. There are people here today who've taken their eyes off the one who's with them. And they're more aware of the waves than the one who's walking with them in the waves. We close our eyes, Jesus. We just thank you that you are with us.

I honestly think one of the biggest fights in today's generation is the fight for our attention. Fight for our attention. So much distraction, so many things. Trying to pull our focus to the natural. When Jesus wants us to see he's with us in those very natural situations.

So, Jesus, I pray this Christmas that every one of us would bring our hearts awareness to you. Hey. With every head bowed, every eye closed, if you're in a challenging season, I want to pray for you. I want to believe the joy would be your experience.

I believe that for that circumstance to change. But more than that, I'm believing that you will become aware of the one who is with you right now. You are not alone. Jesus is with you. If that's you, just pop your hand up.

I want to pray for you, Jesus. I'm in a tough season. I just need to know that you're with me in this season. Help us become aware of your presence. Help us become aware that you are with us.

We are not Alone. Father, I thank you for your presence. Holy Spirit, would you come you love to reveal Jesus. I ask that every person who's just reaching out to you and saying, hey, I'm in a tough season right now. I need to know that you are with me.

Would you make yourself known to them in a very real way? Would you give them a promise to hold onto that's far greater than even any answer they will find? Would you give them reason to share joy? Father, I pray for those you can pop your hands down. But I pray for those who are here today who've held on to.

Who've seen. Joy is something to hold on to or to or to pursue. I pray that we would see it as something you've given us and as a fruit and we would begin to share it. May we lift our eyes off ourselves towards you and towards others. This Christmas I ask that conversations at the Christmas table will be filled with conversations about Jesus.

May we have moments this year where we share with our family members the transformation in our lives and others lives. In fact, I just feel to encourage people here today share the testimonies even you heard last week with your family this year why don't you begin to tell your family, hey, God's doing good things in people's lives. God can change your situation. God has been with people through the valley and there are stories of him walking them through and bringing them into freedom and deliverance. So I thank you this year that we will be joy bringers in every situation as we carry your presence this year in Jesus name Let's sing these words and turn our attention to Jesus, Jesus, Jesus we lift our eyes he's worthy of our praise from the mountain Shout Jesus from the mountain Let Jesus in Come on, let's mandate this is that co Jesus in the darkness for every.

That's it. Jesus won my family I speak the holy name Jesus Come on then, let's sing it. Shout Jesus Shout Jesus from the mountain Jesus in the street Jesus in the darkness over every enemy Jesus on my enemy I speak holy name Jesus Reach out your hands and tongues declare Shout Jesus from the mountain Jesus in the trees Jesus in the darkness over every enemy Jesus for my family I speak the holy name Jesus yeah so Jesus we just lift you up in this place today we fix our eyes and our hearts on you let's be joy carriers in every season Bringing good news of great joy to all people in Jesus name With every head bowed and every eye closed. If you're here today and you have yet to believe the Good news. This is the good news.

God came. He's not distant. He is very present. And he didn't come to condemn the world, but to save the world. He came to give his life for yours so that you could have peace with him, so that you could know him, so that you could walk with him and experience the life that he deserved.

He gave his life for yours in every way. The invitation is to surrender to him and make him Lord. So Jesus, I trust my heart, my life. If you've never done that before, maybe you need to do that today afresh, just with every head bowed over our cross. I just want to pray for you today.

If that's you, you'd like to pray that prayer, would you just do something brave and lift up your hand so I can see it and then you can pop it back down. We're going to pray prayer together. Good on you, man. Who else? Just lift it up.

I see you, man. Who else? Yeah, good on you, mate. Who else? Jesus, I want to give you my life.

I've done this alone. I need your help. Who else? Just lift it up high. I'll see it.

Pop it back down with two people. To anyone else who would say, jesus, today I give you my life.

Just give you one more moment.

Let's pray this morning together. Father in heaven, I thank you that you love me. I believe that Jesus died and rose again. Forgive me of my sin.

Fill me with your Holy Spirit. I declare you lord of my life.

In Jesus name. Amen. Amen. And why don't we give those who pray that prayer, well, a great welcome to the community.