My husband and I, along with a small group of friends/ministry partners were invited to do a youth camp this past week in Wisconsin.  Four days with junior and senior high kids, eight services, games and the rest.  It was an awesome experience, while being physically, emotionally, and spiritually draining at times.  We have come to notice in these past few years, along with other’s observations, that certain groups, certain towns, certain regions often have a common “feel” or attitude.  I don’t know how to explain it exactly, except that when you go into certain situations that you are unfamiliar with, both you and the people that you are with are impacted by the same emotions.  The Bible says that certain principalities (spirits) are given authority over different regions for a time.  I don’t know exactly why but it’s the truth, and for the glory of God.  This area was very oppressive, depressing.  We all felt the pressure of performing and doing everything “right” by man’s standards, and we could’ve fallen into those things, but we fought through.  And here is the cool part: despite this atmosphere, God ministered to us and the kids in powerful ways.  And in the middle of it all, I got to experience the joy of the Lord.  The Bible talks a lot about the joy of the Lord, but I’ve had such a hard time just “getting it”.  I’ve tried and tried to understand it and experience it, but I could never do it on my own.  Probably because I’ve had a lot of those nasty things on me that I talked about earlier.  I’ve struggled so hard with performance and earning, and trying to not do anything wrong, that I’ve had a hard time trusting God and knowing His goodness.  I mean, how can you when you’re living a different way, trying to be good enough so that an angry God doesn’t punish you.  Think you’re going to experience His peace and freedom that way?  Uh uh, because you’re formulating your own concept of God instead of surrendering to who He really is and what He says.  I know at least that’s what I was doing.  So anyway, getting tired of hitting that wall all of the time, wanting to receive but not able, I started just giving up.  And that’s where He met me! In giving up, in surrendering.  In saying, ok God, I’ll trust you, I’ll believe you. I want to know the real you.   And there, in the midst of exhaustion and oppression, the joy of the Lord came to me, and I started seeing Him happy, and laughing, and rejoicing.  Several times, and it is so good.  I am on the worship team, and sing about God’s joy and goodness all of the time, but finally I’m getting to experience it, and I love it. I would never go back.  While singing at camp, I saw Jesus just laughing and dancing as the kids were worshipping Him- kids that have done a lot of bad things, but surrendered their lives to Him, and He didn’t care anymore about any of those sins, because He already paid for them.  So He just has a party for each one because they were lost and now they’re found, and He loves them so much, more than the world.  And I think He had a party for me too, because I stopped believing myself and started believing Him.  When we do that, it doesn’t matter what the circumstance.  It doesn’t matter, the power of the enemy, or the thickness of darkness. When we just trust God, His power breaks through, and Heaven realities come to earth and take over. Amen, that is awesome, and He is happy to do it, because He is a Happy God!

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