Finding Joy When Life Isn’t Enjoyable
Joy is more than light-hearted levity based on happy circumstances. It’s not a fleeting feeling; it’s a fruit of the Spirit—a by-product of God’s presence in your life.
By Michael C. Mack
1. How did you act justly and show mercy to another person over the past week?
2. What is the best (or your favorite) thing you have built or rebuilt?
Ask two people to read aloud Amos 9:5-15 one after the other, preferably from different Bible versions. Then ask a third person to summarize the passage in two minutes or less.
3. What characteristics of God do you see in or infer from this passage?
4. What traits of humans do you see in or infer from what God says (vv. 7-15)?
5. In what ways can people be presumptuous about how God will work?
6. One word used to describe God in this passage is Sovereign (v. 8), which means he has supreme authority and power over all creation as well as the absolute right to exercise his will. How do you see his sovereignty played out in this passage?
7. The Lord has the power to repair, restore, and rebuild. How have you seen (or are you seeing) him do that in your own life or in the lives of others around you?
8. Who among your friends and family needs to hear about the Lord Almighty, the Sovereign Lord, our Creator and Redeemer, who repairs, restores, and rebuilds? (How will you share the message from this study with them?)
9. Based on our study and discussion, complete the sentence: “I will . . .”
10. What are you seeking and praying for the Lord to repair, restore, and/or rebuild in your life?
For Next Week: Read and reflect on Amos 5:6-15, 21-24. You can also read next week’s supplemental texts as well as the Study and Application sections as part of your personal study.
Joy is more than light-hearted levity based on happy circumstances. It’s not a fleeting feeling; it’s a fruit of the Spirit—a by-product of God’s presence in your life.
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What kind of spiritual fruit delights God’s heart and reveals his character to the world? Here’s the answer: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23).
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