Joy In All things

Ever since we found out my son has been accepted to West Point, it’s been one big roller coaster ride. We have been hit with required information requests that have us running all over town: Immunizations and tests, dental appointments, eye exams, etc. And it all has to be in yesterday. Joy tempered with a lot of have to do’s.

Life mirrors our current experience, joy tempered by demands, at least it seems that way sometimes. A great new job offset by a longer and more irritating commute, or a bundle of joy baby that never sleeps when you need to; a new home that requires a time and monetary investment to maintain unlike renting. The fact is there are always things that conspire to lessen or even rob us entirely of joy. Blessing added with sorrow is how someone once put it.

But God doesn’t add sorrow to his blessings. They are completely joy based. Proverbs 10:22 says, The blessing of the Lord makes rich, and he adds no sorrow with it. It is his intent that his blessings bring joy, abundant joy. He delights in our laughter and light-heartedness. He delights in giving good gifts to his children. Life just sometimes dishes out stress and we end up losing our grip on joy. Add to that the fact that Jesus told us Satan, the enemy of our soul, comes to steal, kill and destroy. He actively works to wrest our joy from us. It’s like a double whammy.

The good news is we don’t have to give in to joy robbing feelings. In Galatians, Paul listed the fruit of the Spirit and joy is the second one listed right after love. God joy. In spite of life’s demands and the efforts of the evil one, we can find joy in what God has done and continues to do for us. If we ask, he will give us sight to see the blessings that are always a part of our lives as believers. That baby that won’t sleep will charm with smiles and giggles. The realization that having a house, however humble and needing of repair is more than most of the rest of the world’s population can boast. Having a job, any job is something some do not have.

There are those who face great challenges, some good, some not, and God has promised joy can and will be a part of that experience. Joy, though it may be lost temporarily, is given by a good and loving God and Jesus promised it will never be taken away (John 16:22). Blessings and joy, God joy, is what God intends for his children to experience in this life, not just the next. We can all pray together and we can share with one another our joy and those things that seem to diminish it, and like a light that cannot be extinguished, joy will creep into every dark place and burst out when we seek it. That’s a promise.