Balloon

 Like most kids, I liked balloons. I still think they’re fun. We went to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade a few years ago and thoroughly enjoyed watching the giant balloons go by.

 

A balloon is pretty unexciting and not much fun when it’s not inflated. But, fill it with air or helium and it becomes a thing of joy. You can’t see the air that goes into the balloon, you can’t weigh it or measure it without fancy equipment, but it makes all the difference when you inflate your balloon.

 

Many people are walking around today like somebody just popped their balloon, without joy or a purpose in life.  We should be witnesses by our actions and demeanor to the “good news” we have received. We can encourage others to draw near to God, who is the source of all joy and encouragement through His Holy Spirit.

 

If you are feeling a little deflated today, ask for an extra filling of the Spirit’s presence in you.  Jesus promised, “ If you then…..know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him” (Lk 11:13).

 

If you haven’t read the Psalms for a while, you might want to go through them again. Psalm 100 is one of the shortest psalms but it is filled with joy:

 

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth;

Worship the Lord with gladness;

Come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the Lord is God.

It is he who made us; and we are his;

We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

And his courts with praise;

Give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;

                             His faithfulness continues through all generations.