Counting Joy

 

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.   (James 1:2-4)

 

This has been my favorite bible verse since I was 13.  It has gotten me through an awful lot of difficult times.  My eight grade Youth Leader Travis taught us the book of James while we were on a 15-day trip out west to see the Grand Canyon.  I can still hear him reciting the words, “Count it all joooooy, my friends.”  I hear it every time I’m tempted to let go of joy.

 

My friends, there is joy in each and every moment of life.  You might not believe that, but I assure you it’s true.  There are obvious moments of joy - the birth of a new baby, the A on the exam you were worried about, the promotion, etc – but I assure you, there is joy in moments when joy seems impossible.  You have to intentionally seek it or it will not be found.  It won’t be found, because if you’re not looking for it, you won’t recognize it for what it is.

 

A few years ago, I was asked to leave a job I loved.  I won’t lie; I was devastated.  At my lowest point, I heard Travis say from the recesses of my memory, “count it all joooooy, my friends,”  and I was reminded to look for the joy in the moment.  It was over the next few weeks that I saw how there were people who were rallying around me.  I discovered who my real friends were because they were running toward me and not away from the trouble.  I realized that I was in a situation I had feared being in for years and it wasn’t nearly as world-ending as I had imagined it.   I could go on and on, but the long and the short of it is that when I started looking for joy in the moment, it was as if I were given special eyeglasses to see what I could not see before.

 

The other aspect of this verse that I want to point out is the first two words: “Count it. . .”  It has been helpful to me rephrase this as “Name it.”  Name it all joy.  This is to play the long game.  In the unbearable moment, to say, “I name this joy” is to submit to the truth that, with God’s help, this moment will be what I look back on at some point and say, “it was that moment” that brought this growth, or led me to meet this person, or allowed that next thing to happen that’s got me in this good and strong place now.  This moment's name shall be joy.

 

Look for it. Name it.  There is and there will be joy.

“…weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.” Psalm 30:5b

 

Prayer:  O Lord, our Lord; how majestic is your name in all the earth.  Even in my misery, your name is Majestic and your joy comes in the morning. Praise be to name of the Lord!  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people struggling with depression today.

 

Song: It is Well With My Soul – Audrey Assad

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zY5o9mP22V0n

Consider it Pure Joy?

James 1:2-8 - Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,  because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.  If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.  But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.  That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.  Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

 

This text has been one of my favorites since I was a teenager.  It is one that I return to whenever I find myself in crisis and/or difficulty.  As you can imagine, it’s come to the forefront of my mind many times over few years.  The opening phrase, “count it all pure joy…” always trips me up.  “Pure joy” has never been the phrase I have used to describe periods of trial.  I guess I’m not that spiritually mature.  It is always much later that I can look back on the time of trial and take joy from it.  But here’s the key to that;  in the moment that I realize that I am in the midst of trial, I need to resolve that it is an opportunity for growth and joy to happen.  I may not be especially joyful about it at that moment, but the resolve to be open to the growth makes future joy possible. 

I am aware that many of you are in the midst of trial right now as well.  I know that, even if you are not personally, chances are that someone you care about is..  We have many who are fighting cancer.  We know families that financially are on the verge of losing everything.  There are other trials that we are not even aware of at this time.  In addition to that, I am aware that there are many trials ahead of us in the coming days, weeks, and months.  I know it is hard, but I ask you to open your hearts to the possibility that, as these trials confront us, joy is not only possible but can be expected on the other side.  As Psalm 30:5 says, “weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.”  Count on that. Expect it. Look for it. God is good all the time and all the time, God is good.

 

Question:  How have you experienced strength and blessing coming out of trial in the past?

 

Prayer:  God, you can take any trial and squeeze joy out of it. Do that for all of us who are in the midst of trials this day.

 

Prayer Focus:  Though we are effectively emerging from the COVID pandemic, 1.1 million people died since January 2020.  Pray for all those families today who are still grieving this unimaginable loss. 

 

Song:  Graves Into Gardens ft. Brandon Lake | Live | Elevation Worship

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwX1f2gYKZ4&list=PLRZlMhcYkA2HCg8PZnI1EaqcnIhU-Kd3T&index=3

It’s Okay to Be “Salty”

Mark 9:49-50, NLT - “For everyone will be tested with fire.  Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? You must have the qualities of salt among yourselves and live in peace with each other.”

 

                Jesus finishes this difficult teaching session with a summary statement; “everyone will be tested with fire.”  In other words, following Jesus will involve difficulty and unpleasantness.  No one gets through this life without their faith being tested.  Other translations say, “everyone will be salted.”  The common quality of fire and salt is that they change that with which they mix.  The path that God lays out for us means that we will come through the process changed.  As some have said, change is the only constant.  If, as a Jesus follower, you aren’t being transformed, something is wrong.

                Jesus then flips the salt metaphor and further teaches that we must have that same transformative effect on each other.  This is Mark’s parallel teaching to Matthew’s “you are the salt of the earth.”  (Matthew 5:13)  Not only is something wrong if we aren’t individually growing in our faith, there is something wrong with the Christian community where the transformation of people isn’t happening.  In fact, it’s nearly impossible for the former to happen without the latter. 

                I think back to my life as a Christian teenager who was just beginning to own for myself the faith of my parents before me.  As I do, I am at once both amazed and disappointed with myself.  I’m amazed at how strong my faith seems now when compared the shakiness of my teens.  I’m amazed at how my understanding and experience of God has expanded and deepened from the narrow-minded faith of my youth.  I’m absolutely blown away by all the difficulties and trials God has brought me through and how those very trials brought the strength and expansion of my relationship to God.  It has been an incredible journey.

                But I’m also disappointed in the fact that I still have some of the bad habits and attitudes that have persisted since I was a boy.  I still struggle to show as much of the fruits of the Spirit as I think I should by now.  There are still people I really struggle to love.  And there are still moments when my faith seems as shaky as it was when I was twelve.  I note these disappointments and it seems that I have farther to go now than when I started.  Ironically, for someone who has been invited by God to embrace eternity, this is exactly how it should be.  The more you know, the more you know that you don’t know.  The more you grow, the more you become aware of your need to grow even more.  Everyone will be salted/tested with fire and the Christian community is the very place where that salting/testing is supposed to take place.

Question:  How has your faith changed/grown since you first decided to follow Jesus?

 

Prayer:  God, thank you for the way you have brought me through my life to this moment.  Thank you for loving me through the joyful and sorrowful times.  Show me my growing edges and teach me to trust You and Your community to accomplish that growth. Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people who are homeless right now facing extreme temperatures. 

 

Song:  I Have Decided to Follow Jesus – Lydia Walker

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OWWqS1jnOw