Draw Deep from the Well

Therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. Isaiah 12:3 (NKJV)

My grandparents used to have an old well on their property. As a kid, there was nothing better than running over for a drink of cold well-water on a hot summer day. But that well wouldn’t exist unless someone had done the work to dig it.

Our verse today paints a similar picture. As a believer, you already have access to God’s joy within you—but you need to practice it. You need to dig a well.

This reminds me of a friend of mine. He once told me how he went home from work each day weighed down by others’ problems, and would take it out on his wife and kids. Every family dinner was a time of tension. I told him, “Why don’t you buy a joke book? Then when you sit down for a meal, instead of letting that stress come through you into your family, tell a joke. Force yourself to be joyful.”

When I saw him later, I asked how it was going. He told me the first time he cracked a joke, his family was so stunned, they didn’t even react. But day after day, he kept trying. Eventually, they started to realize his desire to shut down the negativity and bring joy into his home. It took time, but they began to laugh at his jokes. Little by little, the atmosphere in that home changed.

You need to practice joy as well. In the midst of your feelings, get up and shout for joy. Decide to find reasons to laugh. Declare God’s promises. As you do, you’ll draw up His supernatural joy that’s already in you. You’ll be continually refreshed!