Living Open-Handed: Devotions for Surrendering Control and Finding Joy in the UnexpectedSample

Good Medicine

A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. PROVERBS 17:22 ESV

What is your most used medicine? After three surgeries in our family in the last three months, I'd have to say ibuprofen. It cuts through pain, and, hello, it’s bubble gum flavored. Scripture tells us about another type of medicine: a joyful heart. There is such power in joy, and we can always access joy through the power of the Holy Spirit. When life gets tough, does that mean we cannot feel sad? Not at all! But we can hold both our situational sadness and choose a joyful heart because God is always good no matter the circumstances. And access to joy through Him is always present. People spend too much of their lives thinking of the worst-case scenario, wallowing in worries, and creating more stress in their souls. Then they wonder why they feel drained, hopeless, and crushed. I’m not talking about diagnosed mental health conditions here because that’s not a choice. However, most people have the choice to create a thought process that leads to a joyful heart or a crushed spirit.

God doesn’t want us to live with a crushed spirit. He wants us to focus on what is good (Philippians 4:8). He wants us to enjoy Him (Psalm 73:25). He wants to walk with us when the burden feels overwhelming (Psalm 55:22). This is also why community matters. We were made to be with people! We don’t have to remove ourselves, give ourselves medicine, and then return to society. If a joyful heart is good medicine, bring that around your friend with the crushed spirit and let them do that for you too. I learned this deeply in motherhood. It has been such “good medicine” for me in the beautiful trenches of toddlerhood. And a joyful heart helps out any heart in the trenches! You don’t need a prescription for this medicine. It is freely offered to you today. Ask for it.

Dear Lord, please fill my heart with Your joy. Please help me give that good medicine to a friend, neighbor, or stranger I encounter today.

Reflect: Does joy always look like happiness? No. But joy can be as simple as prompting your heart to be thankful for God’s blessings even in challenging circumstances. Remember God’s faithfulness in your life today.