Grace Upon GraceSample

Free (This Joy): True Joy and Worship

To be honest, joy is something I haven’t always had in my life. I had a very tough upbringing that led to a lot of insecurity, hurt, and fear. I craved joy, but I tried to find it through relationships with others or getting attention.

One day at my youth group I was randomly asked to play drums during worship. I didn’t know the songs and I didn’t really even know Jesus, but I just thought it was cool and I really loved music.

During worship I really thought about the words and I started to think about my life. I went back to the hurt, the pain, and the bad things that I experienced as a child. And I realized that God had actually been there with me the whole time. It was in that moment that, for the first time, I experienced true joy.

I couldn’t help but give my life to God and thank Him for what He had done—I was all in. In real time I was experiencing what verse one of Free (This Joy) talks about:

I am stepping past the fear and doubt

And there’s nothing that can hold me down

’Cause I know

You’re working for my good

In worship, a lens shift happens. A beautiful shift, where the focus moves from our problems in the moment to His presence. You could be having a terrible day. You could be focusing too hard on the past. But the moment you enter worship, you start to see things more clearly through the highs and lows of life.

When I think about all that God has done for me and how He’s been there for me in every season of life, I can’t help but feel joy and freedom.

Hallelujah

I’ve never been so free

Joy is a daily choice that we get to make. In my life I’ve found that I experience true joy through worship.

When you choose joy, you experience true worship.

When you choose worship, you experience true joy.

—Life.Church Worship Pastor Jordan Dupree

Worship with the song Free (This Joy).