Sunday, December 27, 2009

Joy, Both a Feeling and an Action

This is my offering to Faith's "12 Days of Christmas Prayer" devotions this year...

Joy, Both a Feeling and an Action

Opening Prayer: Lord God, open our hearts and minds that we might come into greater communion with you in this time of prayer and reflection. Amen

Philippians 4:4-7 (New Revised Standard)
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

As Christians I think that is the feeling we feel when we talk about Joy, “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding.” Yet that is often a feeling that eludes us. But if we read earlier in the passage we find that it requires an action on our part, to rejoice! Rejoice, the action verb of joy. We are to rejoice, revel if you will, in the fact that the Lord is near and approachable. We rejoice in the true meaning of Christmas, Emmanuel, God is with us.

From the Blog: Solitary Broomtree
“There are times when rejoicing is down right easy – when finding joy in the Lord is almost a natural response. We receive good news about the health of a loved one, and we praise the Lord. We get reacquainted with an old friend we haven’t seen in years, and we rejoice in one another’s company. Our family arrives for a visit, and we rejoice in their safe travels.
[…]
And finally, there are those times when rejoicing seems counterintuitive – almost insulting or inappropriate – like when a loved one dies. Or when they receive dire news of a terminal illness. Or when we learn that our position in the company is being eliminated, and we’ll be out of a job. Or when someone we care about is convicted of a crime and sent to jail. What is there, at times like these, to rejoice in?
[…]
Rejoicing in the Lord isn’t about finding a treasure in life’s trash heap of bad news. It’s about being joyful because of our relationship with God. It’s about giving thanks for the hope that we have in God’s love for us, proven in Jesus Christ. If all of our hope is found there, and “the peace which surpasses all understanding” emanates from Him, then we will be filled with joy in the Lord regardless of our present circumstances.”

But wait, it gets even better than that!

Zephaniah. 3:17 (New Revised Standard)
The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing

God rejoices in US! What more could we ask for to give us that feeling of joy?

Silent Prayer

Closing Prayer (read together):
Lord God, Abba Father, you came to be with us to share new hope in the form of a tiny baby. That baby grew up with us to lead us in your ways. And finally that baby sacrificed himself for us that we may be free to rejoice in you eternally. Halleluiah, Amen!

1 comment:

DSM35803 said...

During our time someone commented on a mother that had lost a child. You cannot tell this mother she should rejoice! On the ride home a thought occurred to me. Those are the times, as a community of Christians, that we are supposed to rejoice for that mother. Knowing that God will hold her in his hand until she can feel that joy in his presence again.