Joy

Until a few months ago, I never thought all that much about the concept of joy. To me, it was simple-it meant being happy. I've been challenged to think of joy in a completely different way and have learned that being joyful is comprised of so much more than our day-to-day happiness. It's easy to be happy when things are going right, when life is good and there doesn't seem to be a single "cloud in the sky." But when we're faced with trials, it's our natural tendency to worry, complain, analyze, and stress about our difficulties. Our immediate reaction is certainly not to rejoice, be thankful, and see the problems we experience as blessings. One of my favorite verses dealing with this is Romans 5:3-4, that says we are to "glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverane; perseverance, character; and character, hope." It's amazing to think that even in our sufferings, we can give glory to God, allowing Him to use those struggles to refine us and draw us closer to Him.

1 Peter 5:6-7 says: "Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may life you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."

How amazing is it that God loves us so much that he wants to rid us of our anxieties so that He can take care of us? He loves us more than we can imagine, so He offers Himself to us in place of the anxiety and worry that fills our hearts. He takes all of it away and gives us hope instead. Somehow, it's still so easy to block him out and I think one reason is because giving our struggles to God means giving up control of our life and placing it in His hands. But when we do this, we see Him work in our lives in ways we couldn't have imagined and begin to experience true joy-a lasting contentment that comes from Christ alone.