A Meditation by Sam

I Thessalonians 5:16-18

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Habakkuk 3:17-18

“Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”

Happiness is a desire that is within all of us. The professions we choose, the people we marry, the city where we live, and even the restaurants that we visit are all reflections of our attempt to pursue joy and happiness. Make no mistake, both the Old and New Testament encourage and even command us to be joyful in all circumstances. In spite of this, one of the common themes of modern Christians is the lack of joy in our lives. Feelings of anxiety, stress, exhaustion, boredom, loneliness, etc are common, yet feelings of joy and contentment are few and far between. The word joy is described as: “a state of happiness or felicity - a source or cause of delight.” As of late, I think I preoccupy myself more and more about this source/cause and ways to obtain it. I think about my future, career, family, pets, etc. as well as ways to maximize my joy and happiness in each category. But then the question remains, why does God wants us to be joyful at all times regardless of circumstances.

A few years back when I got my very first cell phone, I also started dating a girl. At the time, I thought “Man did I waste my time playing sports? I should have chased girls like all my friends a little sooner”. I don’t know if it was the excitement of getting a cell phone for the first time or the joy of having a girlfriend for the first time, but I used to be, as my friends said, “stationed” outside the library with my cell phone in hand, talking to this person day and night. I remember getting my first cell phone bill, which was over $400 – a huge sum back then! I didn’t care, because I had “joy” in my heart. My friends made fun of me; a month’s worth of grocery money on cell phone bill, the chill of the winter outside the library did not matter in comparison to the “all-surpassing” telephone conversations with this person.

Putting that example in the context of joy in Christ, Paul states in Philippians 3:8 -  “What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ”. I believe that God’s ultimate goal is His glorification and that of His Son. He is glorified through our joyful relationship with Jesus Christ. In the words of John Piper, “God is most glorified in me, when I am most satisfied in Him”. He doesn’t want/need us to glorify him through an imperative relationship. To “love God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind, and with all our strength” should not be done out of duty. We should love God because He is the source of true joy, ultimate satisfaction, and the only One who can quench our insatiable thirst. 

I believe that God did not promise a life without suffering and difficulties. But He did promise us a life full of joy, a joy based on knowing that God is our father, a joy that comes from fully trusting in the faithfulness and goodness of the Lord, a joy based in the knowledge of the grace of God shown in Christ Jesus.

The joy of the Lord in my life is independent of my haves or have-nots, and transcends any circumstance, inadequacy, feelings and emotions that I might have at a particular time. In our times, we might not own an olive crop, or a field of wheat, or a pen filled with sheep and cattle. But I pray that although we might lose our financial stability, our close ones might suffer from illnesses or even depart this world, our professional goals not get accomplished, or just sit at home by ourselves longing for home and family, that we might say with full confidence “YET I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior”, for “THE JOY OF