Matt Odum takes us through the inner dynamics of Christian Joy.

Every person, at some point in their lives, has wrestled with the question, "Why am I here?". In Ps. 145 David invites us to consider that our singular purpose is not for ourselves, but for God alone. And, contrary to the belief that this brings misery, it actually brings great joy for life to not be about 'you.'

Many of believe that if there is a God, He can't be bothered with the affairs of our everyday lives. Psalm 139 shows us how involved God is without lives and why He would want to do so

Here the psalmist asserts that everyone, everywhere makes something supreme in their lives. The Bible calls this posture 'worship'. How do we fix our 'worship disorders' such that Life is given to us? NOTE: Poor recording quality. Bummer, we know. Sorry.

In God's being in love (among other things, to be sure). But His goodness, doesn't 'stay' there; it gets expressed to his creation...and especially his people. This sort of love is uncomfortable, at times, but is the very thing that makes our hearts sing.

The Psalms give us a range of human emotions. Most of us, however, never really explore the sorrow and pain that are often in our lives. This leads to burying or denying what is really there. Psalm 88 gives us language so that we might express our darkest of moments before God.

It is easy to believe that when the 'bad guys' are winning, God must not be involved (at best) or he doesn't care at all (at worst). Psalm 72 reminds us of what is REAL and how this gives us the ability to face the dark side of life in the world.

What do you do when you're 'busted', when you've been found out? The 51st Psalm is a confession (of sorts) of a man who was found out by God. In it we see the inner workings of repentance that ultimately lead to real freedom.

Ps. 34 invites us to examine the ways that God gives us His grace in times of difficulty. This psalm invites us to sing in the midst of our difficulties.

In this classic Psalm, David models singing our weakness before God. Instead of burying them or denying them, he is able to name them honestly. Only a God who has first become weak for us can free us to do this.