Reflection 6

What is joy? Feeling content with everything. When I buy something I want.
Rejoicing in Christ
(Philippians 4:6-7)
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, but prayer and petition, with
thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and
your minds in Christ Jesus.
Is joy/rejoicing the opposite of anxiety? Yes, partly. Anxiety however, takes joy away.
1. What things do you tend to get anxious about? School tasks, life problems, future.
2. Respond to this in the context of your personal anxieties. “When we rejoice in the Lord,
anxiety is swallowed up.”
I would say that my anxieties can be destroyed when I rejoice in the Lord. It will not
matter as much if

Rejoicing in Christ
1. It’s not about escaping reality
2. What are things we have to rejoice in Christ about?
The blessing that we receive for our family, wealth, happiness, being alive.
For everything he has done for us.
3. The certainty of eternal life
a. This is the hardest to rejoice in as I have always been contemplating whether or
not I will be accepted eternally by God.
4. The joy of sins forgiven
a. This is the easiest to rejoice in as this state of mind reminds me to be reminded
that God will always forgive me. This does not mean I could just sin any time I
want but it constantly reminds me to trust him.
5. Key Truth #3 – To reduce anxiety, we should fill our minds with excellent and praise-
worship things.
a. This helps us to reduce anxiety that we have because we will be focused on
praising God even in the worst situations that we have. When we put our minds
into worshipping God, it will not lead to the wrong way. We will only grow
stronger in God.
6. Comparison is the thief of joy
a. Yes, I agree with this because we will never be joyful if we keep comparing
ourselves to those who are better than us. Our comparison with somebody else
or something else, it steals our joy because we will keep pushing to satisfy
ourselves.
7. Contentment vs complacency
a. Wisely accept or foolishly settle
8. Never let the things you want make you forget the things you have
a. This quote relates to me the most as I’ve always learnt growing up that things
that I want only lead to forgetting what I already have. When this happens, I
 focus on what I want and I forget about the million blessings that I already
received from God.
b. This caused me to be unsatisfied and therefore, I was ungrateful.

Content in Christ
a. Have you ever bought something because an advertisement made you feel discontent?
a. Yes. For example, skin products appeal to me the most as they point out skin
issues. I am very sensitive when it comes to having skin issues and therefore, I
buy the product as an attempt for better skin.
b. You were trying to ‘keep up with someone else?”
a. No. I just wanted to get rid of what makes me insecure which is my skin.
c. Do you have a vulnerable spot when it comes to certain products?
a. Yes, I have a vulnerable spot for bags and shoes.