Daily Devotional For Friday, April 10, 2026
Good morning Southside. Today we are going to look at Proverbs 17:22:
“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones” (NIV).
Today, we are aware of the connection and impact our mind has on our body. Stress in the mind causes stress in our bodies physically. There is a psychosomatic connection or relationship between stress in our mind and in our body. Coronary heart disease is not just limited to inactivity or no or low exercise. It can be the result of a mind overwhelmed with stress. Solomon says here, “A joyful heart, a merry heart, a cheerful heart” gives strength to our bodies to endure the hassles from each day. But he also says that a stressed heart zaps what we need to live day to day. In fact, the Hebrew word says it causes us to prostrate – to be on the ground or at the bottom of the barrel so to speak.
Health in our mind, soul and spirit creates health in our body. Our body draws its strength from the mind but the opposite is not true. A healthy body cannot give strength to the mind. We have an unbelievable capacity to sustain ourselves through anything with the power of Christ. The Apostle Paul makes this clear in Philippians 4:13. This is why we have to do what 2 Corinthians 10:5 says – “take captive every thought and it under the lordship and obedience of Christ.” If we do not, our thoughts will take us captive.
The Apostle Paul wrote the book of Philippians from a Roman prison. If anyone had the right to let their thoughts get negative, whiny, complaining and bitter, it was Paul. He had sacrificed so much for Jesus Christ and the spread of the Gospel. But instead of being that way, his attitude was totally different (Philippians 1:1-11). We are to have the mind of Christ. And he tells us how to do that by telling us what to let our minds focus on when they want to wander off the ranch (Philippians 4:8).
So many people have had mental breakdowns that they become non-functional and have to be institutionalized at times or go on medication. I realize that for some of these people, they may have a genetic disposition towards this, inherited from a family member. I know that others have this due to their refusal to trust God and His Word. Sometimes headaches, migraines and neck pain or neck tightness come from mental stress. Relinquishing control is hard for us to do because we tend to think, “If it is to be, it is up to me.” NO! It is up to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Not all of our stress is our fault. Grief from the loss of a loved one or job is stress from outside sources beyond our control. Grief from a bad medical report is sometimes the same way. I was a runner for 30 years. I had a resting pulse of 42-46. My BP was 90/60. In spite of all of this, I still had multiple unexplained strokes. Doctors to this day have not been able to tell me why I had them. Solomon reminds us that the condition of our heart is our responsibility.
A merry or cheerful or joyful heart is one that has been influenced by God’s Word and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Faith in God keeps that heart protected from suspicion, distrust and despair. Others in Scripture and in life have gone through far worse and never lost the “joy of their salvation.” I think of the 5 missionary families (Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Ed McCully, Pete Fleming & Roger Youderian) in 1956 whose husbands/fathers were killed by the Auca Indians in the Amazon. One of the wives, Elisabeth Elliot with her daughter and Rachel Saint (Nate Saint’s sister) instead of getting bitter with God, packed up their camp site and moved right into that village in 1958. Through the amazing power of God, those villagers and men who had killed the 5 men who were missionaries came to Christ. Mincaye, the chief over this tribe and village, went on to be the pastor over that village and a traveling evangelist in South America and the United States.
As Christians we love these stories. We love to tell them BUT, we just do not want to live their lives ourselves. As long as God keeps it “over there,” or “somewhere else,” we are fine. A joy heart, a merry heart, a cheerful heart can shout with the Apostle Paul Philippians 1:21, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (NASB).
Much of our stress is due to ourselves. In America, we have more stuff than anyone else. Our garages are empty of our cars because they become storage units for our stuff. Our attics are pregnant with our stuff. And if this was not enough, we then go rent storage facilities for all our stuff we do not want to use. Keeping up with all of that is stressful. And when we die, our children usually do not want all of it. They either have a yard sale to get rid of it or they throw it all away. And the stuff inside our homes creates stress to maintain it, dust it, clean it, and fix it. A joyful heart is good medicine.
Reflection Assignment: If you were forced to downsize, what is the minimum you would keep? When it comes to stress, how do you deal with it? What is your medicine for coping with stress? As you look at your life, how much is your attitude the same as Christ? If the Lord took everything from you, including your health, like Job, would your response be, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21)? Or, would your response be that of Job’s wife, “Curse God and die!” (Job 2:9)?
Scripture To Meditate On: 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus” (NLT).
Prayer To Pray: “Dear Lord, I have to confess I do not always let “the joy of my salvation be my strength.” Some or much of the stress in my life is by my own hand and choices. My desire to control only enslaves me more. Forgive me for not trusting You. Convict me to start living a more simpler life and to live out Your Word in Luke 12:15. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”
I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly