The Joy of the Lord is your strength, by Schalk Meintjes 

Nehemiah 8:9-11 Amplified Bible (AMP)
9 And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all of them, This day is holy to the Lord your God; mourn not nor weep. For all the people wept when they heard the words of the Law.
10 Then [Ezra] told them, Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet drink, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. And be not grieved and depressed, for the joy of the Lord is your strength and stronghold.
11 So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, Be still, for the day is holy. And do not be grieved and sad.

Dear friend in Jesus. I am sure you will agree that all of us, sometime or another, had a reason to morn or be grieved about something. The worst part of morning or grieving is that you just do not have strength. In these times I care less about being happy; all I ask for is strength. I just want to be normal again. And it seems that the more I try to gain control and force happy thoughts the worst it gets. I do however get skilful in appearing happy or just fine whilst inside I am feeling grieved and sad, beyond all understanding.

Then someone, most probably close to you, with some guts because most of the world is staying clear of you; decides that it is time to quote one of the most popular scriptures in the world. Looking you sincerely in the eyes they utter the following words: “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” By that they mean that you must stop being so grumpy and you have to be joyful and then your pain will disappear. Well this type of advice is like giving a Pannado to a person that was hit with a brick falling of a 10 story building. You say thank you swallow the pill and know at least the person that gave you the pill feels better.

Sjoe Schalk. What bee got into your bonnet? Strangely enough I am feeling great today. I am so excited about what God is doing and has done in my life that I think that is the reason why I can right about this today.

Every now and then an old scripture comes along with a worn-out meaning and it is as if God comes and gives a new prospective on it. The 1st scripture like this was about the Love of Jesus. Can you remember that I spoke about this previously? (1 John 4:18) What I realised then is that the Love of Jesus was something tangible. When I drink the Love of Jesus it removes all fear. His love is not only a knowing but also a physical remedy for fear. When Helta prayed for me and asked that I will receive the love of Jesus. I received something tangible that removed all fear from my life. Knowing that He loves me and trying to love other people did not remove the fear. But when I received the Love it filled my being and changed me life.

The same type of revelation is now applicable to the scripture in Nehemiah 8:10. The Joy of the Lord is your strength (and stronghold). Just take a minute and think about these words. The joy of the Lord is your strength. First of all, it has nothing to do with your joy but the Lords joy and thus has nothing to do with your emotions, how happy you feel or not. It has to do with the joy of the Lord and your strength. The remedy to receiving strength when you are mournful and grievous is to “drink” of The Joy of the Lord.

It is impossible to be joyful when you are grieving. It sends a message that God does not care about your pain. Dear God, I am so sad and I am morning the loss of a person in my life. God: “My child let us ignore your pain and just be glad, just be happy.” It makes me think of that song: Don’t worry be happy. Songs like that are sayings ignore how you feel and make as if you do not feel that way. Now this is also not to say that you must stay in your present mournful state because that is how you feel. God has given us a remedy.

In both these cases God does not expect you to do something out of your own. When you are fearful use the Love of Jesus to remove the fear. When you need strength because you are grieving use the Joy of the Lord to receive strength.

Ok. We know what the remedy is and when to use it but one question still remains. How do we take it? By a simple prayer like…

Dear Father. I am fearful of this situation. Please forgive me for feeling this way. I know that this type of fear does not come from You. Please fill me with the Love of Jesus. Or

Dear Father. I am morning the loss of this person. Please forgive me because I know that You are all I need. I have no strength and my hart grieves. Please fill me with the Joy of the Lord. In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen

In Ephesians 1: 17 Paul speaks about the mysteries en secrets.

Ephesians 1:17-21 Amplified Bible (AMP)
17[For I always pray to] the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, that He may grant you a spirit of wisdom and revelation [of insight into mysteries and secrets] in the [deep and intimate] knowledge of Him,
18By having the eyes of your heart flooded with light, so that you can know and understand the hope to which He has called you, and how rich is His glorious inheritance in the saints (His set-apart ones),
19And [so that you can know and understand] what is the immeasurable and unlimited and surpassing greatness of His power in and for us who believe, as demonstrated in the working of His mighty strength,
20Which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His [own] right hand in the heavenly [places],
21Far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named [above every title that can be conferred], not only in this age and in this world, but also in the age and the world which are to come.

These remedies are a mystery and a secret hidden away from those who do not believe.

Father, thank you for revealing another mystery to us. In Jesus name I thank. Amen.