Joy At All Times

Consider it pure  joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds (James 1:2)

 What in the world is James talking about?

Consider it joy when times are tough, when everything seems to be against me, when I am struggling? What is that all about? It sounds like some kind of masochistic mantra from a back alley fight club. Paul had the same thought in Romans 5:3 (we also rejoice in our sufferings . . .). Who were these guys and just what were they smoking? How am I supposed to be happy in the midst of pain?

I'm not. Neither are you.

Joy is not happiness.

Happiness is about living in the moment. It is a response to the current environment and situation. Being happy is a reactive emotion--it's all about what I'm feeling now. Happiness is narrow minded--it takes into consideration neither the past nor the future. Being happy lasts only as long as the right conditions are there; once things go south, happiness goes bye-bye.

Joy isn't like that. Joy is an acquired emotion, not a reactive one. Joy doesn't depend on the environment or the situation--joy is all about attitude. It looks beyond the present into both the past and the future and anticipates something great and wonderful--even in the midst of despair. Joy can exist in the middle of the worst situations because joy isn't only about the now. Happiness dissolves in the face of trial like the sun burns away fog; joy doesn't.

Let James and Paul explain.

Both of these guys understood the difference between joy and happiness. James said we should consider it joy when we face trials because . . . Because we know that the testing of our faith develops perseverance, and it is through that perseverance that we mature in our faith.

Paul and his companions could say they rejoiced in their sufferings because they knew that suffering produces perseverance, which leads to character, which leads to hope.

Both of these men understood that, unlike happiness, joy is not about instant gratification. Happiness is an island; joy is a river. An island is a fixed point, affected by what is around it. Joy flows and affects everything it touches. Happiness cannot go with you; joy can take you where you want to be.

Joy is a gift and a choice.

Joy is one of the fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5:22). It is something that comes from God as the result of living by faith. Joy is the result, not of our immediate circumstances, but rather our relationship with God. Because joy looks forward, it sees beyond the immediate. If we truly have our eyes fixed upon Jesus, we will have joy. It is a product of a Spirit filled life.

Joy is also a choice in that how we live determines if we live by the Spirit, or our sinful natures (Galatians 5:17). Depending on which we choose, we will either reap the fruits of the Spirit, or the fruits of the sinful nature. Read Galatians 5:19-21 and then 22-23. Which list sounds better to you?

How can you consider it joy when life is hard? It's pretty easy, really. Live for God. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things. Look forward, beyond whatever you're going through right now. This life is temporary; there is eternity to come. If that eternity is with God, the worst this world has to offer is nothing in comparison.

It's up to you.

You get to decide. You can live your life hopping from island of happiness to island of happiness, with depths of despair in between, or you can ride the river of joy, looking forward and over the swells and valleys this world will send your way.

I know which I choose.

I choose joy.

I Am Blessed

I don't mean to brag--unless you would allow me to brag upon the One from whom all blessings flow--but I am blessed. With life, with joy, with health. Security. Salvation. Family. Friends. Provision. There is no end to my blessings, to my reasons to give thanks.

To simply be given the breath of life is a blessing. What an honor, a privilege it is that God chose to give me life. That He carefully and purposefully willed me into existence. Where there was nothing, He brought me forth. A miracle. Me. From an infinite well of possibilities, He chose me. Incredible.

Not being satisfied with that, God gave me joy. He allows me to experience the wonders of His creation, to share it with other miracles I love, and who love me. To give me eyes which see, ears which hear the joys of what He has made. The crisp smell of the air after a rain is mine to enjoy. The soft caress of the wind I freely enjoy. The fruits of His bounty please my tongue. He has given me love to receive and return. Joy. That is a blessing.

Not stopping at bringing me to be, nor providing me with joy, He has given me health. Not only has He created me, He sustains me. With care and kindness, He gives me strength, vitality, and the spirit of life. My body is strong, and works in such perfect harmony we will never fully understand it, but He does. He is there--here--orchestrating every breath, every pulse, to give me health.

To keep me from being distracted from His other blessings, God has granted me security. From the place I live to the people who surround me, He has seen to it that I am safe. Protecting me from harm, guiding my paths, He leads me by a lighted path lest I fall into a pit. Like the shepherd He is, He watches over me as one of His flock, guarding me with His strong right hand.

So that I may enjoy His pleasures for all of eternity, He gave of Himself that I might be saved from my sins. Of all my blessings, none can be greater than the salvation I have through Jesus Christ. I need have no fear, no trepidation of the future, for my portion is Christ, and my life through Him. This blessing, among all the others, will never end. It can never be taken from me, nor I from Him. He has saved me. I am truly blessed.

Blessings upon blessings, He has given me family. To be raised and nurtured among those who love me, and then to experience it once more through my own wife and children is to better understand the love God has for me. I understand all the more God as Father, having children of my own. I better perceive the love of Christ through the eyes of marriage. With the blessings of family has the love of God been only more clear.

In my friends I have those ones who are closer than brothers. Those who stand beside me, who lift me up, who bring me alongside to share in the blessings God has given them. A blessing themselves, they multiply the blessings God showers down. To share life with friends is to live life to the fullest.

Day after day, God provides. He blesses. He never fails to give to me all I need and more. I truly see that my cup overflows, and yet His fountains never stop. From the richness of His storehouses, He gives, and gives, then gives some more.

I am blessed. Not because I deserve it, nor earn it. My blessings are gifts, given to me from above.

God is good. All the time.