A Merry Heart - All The LORD is near Daily Devotionals for 2024

The LORD is near - Wednesday, August 12, 2021
by Jacob Redekop, Brian Reynolds, John van Dijk, Eugene P. Vedder Jr

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A Merry Heart

A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.
Proverbs 17:22

A Merry Heart
Whenever I read this verse I think of a very special brother whose life overflowed with the joy of the Lord. Now with the One whom he loved and served, his life yet speaks. My whole family still remembers the fragrance of that home where we sometimes stayed. Mostly we remember the contagion of his merry heart.

What produces such a merry heart? Why do the lives of some saints bubble over with the joy of the Lord while others rattle harshly with the dry bones of a broken spirit? What will produce in our lives the cheerful countenance and continual feast which brings glory to God and blessing to those around us? Is it merely a matter of a good disposition, a keen sense of humor, an optimistic attitude? I don't think so. Such things are human characteristics and can be observed in unbelievers as well as believers. Furthermore, believers of a melancholy disposition would be deprived of the medicine of a merry heart if it were only a matter of temperament. Also, there are the severe trials of the Christian pathway, which can quickly dry up even the most radiant heart.

No, the merry heart comes rather from keeping close company with the only source of true merriment: God Himself. Recall the provisions of the Father as He welcomed home the returning prodigal: the kisses of compassion, the best robe, the ring for his hand, the sandals for his feet, and the fatted calf. Then the Father said, "Let us eat and make merry." Indeed, they began making merry, and it never says they stopped! Such is the experience of returned prodigals who keep close to the Father and feast at His table. Are we among them?

Grant W. Steidl

Happy they who trust in Jesus; sweet their portion is and sure;
When the foe on others seizes, God will keep His own secure:
Happy people! Happy, though despised and poor.

T. Kelly

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