Author: lakewooducc

I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.
John 15:11

I started reading a book yesterday given to me by my daughter. It is about a pastor serving a church in the South Bronx in the 1980’s. The circumstances were extremely challenging and the pastor felt ill-prepared. This got me thinking about what it takes to be prepared for ministry. Not just ministry as pastor of a church, but the ministries to which each and every Christian in called. Ministry to friends, neighbors, ministries of advocacy, ministries of witness, ministries with students and strangers, ministries in health care and business. What does it take to be prepared as a Christian for the ministries to which we are called? Of course, it takes faith, and what is evidence of that faith? Joy.

Eighteenth century Puritan preacher, Jonathan Edwards, commented on discerning true religious experience from false religious experience. As a sign of the authenticity of religious experience, he recommended that we look for joy. [See Weavings: A Journal of the Christian Spiritual Life, Nov/Dec 1993, “Good Tidings of Great Joy,” by Doris Donnelly] So true Christianity will be evidenced in joy. Joy is a key characteristic of Christian witness, according to Edwards, and according to Jesus in the Gospel of John.

In the scripture above, the Gospel of John tells us that the intent of Jesus’ ministry and teaching is to share joy, to be infused with joy, to experience joy. This is very interesting. I wonder how many Christians would say when asked about their faith or religion, “I’m a Christian because of the joy.” Or, “Christians believe in joy.” Or, “The point of Christianity is to spread joy in the world.” It’s not that Christians would disagree with these statements, but I don’t think this would be the first thing to come to mind. “Why are you a Christian?” “Because of the joy!” is not a typical conversational exchange.

In the Gospel of John, joy is mentioned seven times. So clearly, joy is important to the gospel writer. The references show us that joy is a central feature of the Christian path. Personally, I think Christianity could do with more joy and less judgment. Take some time to consider, How does your faith bring you joy? How is the joy of Jesus in you? What would a more joyful Christianity look like? How can the church embrace joy to a greater degree? What’s holding us back?

Prayer
Jesus came to bring us joy; to help us see the joy within us and in the world around us. As the light of each day shortens this time of year, may our awareness of the joy of our faith increase. Amen.

The theme for this Advent season at Lakewood United Church of Christ is JOY to the World. Each day during the Advent season, a reflection on a scripture passage related to JOY will be posted. We hope these daily reflections help you to have a joy-filled Advent.

Embrace those circumstances you can’t control;
for who can correct what God makes crooked?

Be full of joy in times of prosperity;
in bad times consider this:
one is the work of God; the other is too —
and because of this, no one can discover the future.

Ecclesiastes 7:13-14

If we were to have full control in designing our lives, I don’t think we would put much heartache into the script. I don’t think we would plan hardship, illness, tragedy, or trouble for ourselves. Wouldn’t we plot a life of pure happiness and prosperity? What might that look like for you?

And yet, when you think about it, we often learn the most from our difficult experiences, from our challenges, and from our problems. We learn about ourselves, human nature, others, God, faith, and trust particularly from those life experiences we would probably never choose for ourselves. Can you think of something difficult that you have faced and how you have learned from it? Was there a Christmas past that is shadowed in bad memories? Maybe there are many such experiences for you to look back on and hopefully appreciate given the passage of time. Good times and hard times are both simply part of the fabric of life, and when you think about it, we are the richer for it.

Bad times and good times also provide contrast in life. If everything went well, if everything we did was successful, if we never hit a bump in the road, we could loose our appreciation for the good times, the blessings, the smooth sailing when it comes. So we want to remember that adversity and prosperity give us contrast and deeper appreciation for the scope of life’s journey.

Accepting that hard times and good times are ahead, we position ourselves for both and take what comes with faith and trust. We can’t control everything, so a spirit of acceptance contributes to our making it through the rough patches. As life goes on, we can look back at our good times and bad, and face the future with faith and joy which diminish fear.

To appreciate the joy of this life, we need to expect prosperity and adversity and learn from both.

Prayer
Sometimes we want our lives to be all sunshine and rainbows. But storms come crashing in. Even Jesus faced many challenges in his life, which eventually led to his death. But he did not pray for an easy life. He prayed for God’s will to be done. May that be our prayer as well. May we keep our focus on the joy of life, even appreciating the knowledge and growth that come with hardship. Amen.

The theme for this Advent season at Lakewood United Church of Christ is JOY to the World. Each day during the Advent season, a reflection on a scripture passage related to JOY will be posted. We hope these daily reflections help you to have a joy-filled Advent.