Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Scripture – “For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.” Psalm 30:5
Insight – – As we continue our look at how to gain unspeakable Joy as a result of our relationship with Christ, it is important to dispel one big myth. A mentor of mine’s wife had this saying during an intense and painful bout with cancer that made it very, very real, She said during her physical struggle that “joy is not the absence of pain, it is the presence of God!” So yes, we can have joy because of our relationship with Jesus even during our toughest struggles. In order to achieve this, we must have proper alignment in our thinking and our prayer life. We need to learn to shift our focus off of our problems that are riddled with pain, and onto the promises of God found in the Bible. Many people get side-tracked or derailed when painful events enter into their Christian Journey on this earth, but they shouldn’t because Jesus himself told us they were inevitable. We will experience pain and trouble in this world. Jesus said so himself in John 16:33 when he proclaimed “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Jesus was telling us that pain is inevitable as a result of living in a fallen world, but misery is optional. He is bigger and greater than our pain, so therefore we can have joy that is not circumstantial but a joy that transcends our circumstances. It is a deep and unwavering joy, based on who He is and what He has done for us. His love, grace and mercy have set us free.
So we can still choose joy in the midst of pain because we know we have God with us. We can cling to His promises and focus on what is yet to come- the hope that will not be defeated or denied. One of my favorite Bible Verses that keeps me right focused on the future hope even in the middle of severe emotional, relational, financial or physical pain, is 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 which says “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” You see, It is not so much what happens to us, it is how we react that makes all the difference. We can use adversity and pain to fuel us, or we can let it defeat us. Because God is with us always, and he never “leaves us or forsakes us,” as Hebrews 13:5 promises, we can choose to be joyful regardless of our circumstances! We need to take our focus off of our problems and weakness and instead focus on God’s goodness and strength. That way we can still be joyful, even in the midst of deep pain. Our joy can be greater than our circumstances. Hallelujah!
Prayer: Father God, how thankful we are for your promises found in scripture that keep us moving forward even when life seems so hard, like this past year of confusion and living in a global pandemic where any semblance of certainty or self-reliance was removed, which in a way is a good thing as it forces us to rely solely on you 100%. Please keep us and sustain us Lord through your promises in the Holy Scriptures.. Without You, we have no hope at all. Amen!
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