August 30

If you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. — John 13:17 BSB

You may not realize the deep rest that comes from yielding your will to God, surrendering your personal desires, and letting go of the world’s attachments. When you release your grip on the world, you will find that you inherit something far greater—peace and joy beyond understanding.

There is a special satisfaction that comes from hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and when you are filled with God’s goodness, you will experience a joy that worldly pleasures cannot provide. Rising above that, you will also learn the deeper joy of mercy, forgiveness, and the blessedness of giving rather than receiving. The more you bless others, the more you are doubly blessed in return.

But the greatest jewel in this crown of blessings is found in suffering with Jesus, and then forgetting all the sorrow in the overflowing joy that follows. Like Pascal, we may say, "Tears upon tears, joy upon joy."