{"id":3017,"date":"2018-02-09T21:46:32","date_gmt":"2018-02-09T21:46:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.wordpress.com\/?p=3017"},"modified":"2018-02-09T21:46:32","modified_gmt":"2018-02-09T21:46:32","slug":"pure-joy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/?p=3017","title":{"rendered":"Pure Joy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Consider it pure joy,<\/strong> my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. \u00a0Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.<\/span><\/p>\n

James 1:2-4\u00a0(emphasis mine)<\/span><\/p>\n

A long time ago I heard or read an interview with author Phillip Yancey.* \u00a0He talked about how differently Americans prayed than people in other, less prosperous, nations. \u00a0He said Americans pray more for God to overcome, to resolve, to heal their difficulties and pain. \u00a0In other countries, according to Yancey, people prayed, not so much for relief from their suffering, but to be made stronger, more persevering throughout their suffering. \u00a0It’s taken me a few decades to understand the latter is the better prayer.<\/p>\n

I used to do a bit of an eye rolling inside whenever I would read James’ counsel, \u00a0“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,\u00a0whenever you face trials of many kinds …”<\/span> \u00a0Accepting trials, I can appreciate. \u00a0Even thanking God for trials, I can understand. \u00a0But consider it JOY? \u00a0Really? \u00a0For decades I just couldn’t connect to that. \u00a0But I’m starting to see. \u00a0I’m starting to see just how different life would be if I could be more like Jesus. \u00a0More gracious. \u00a0More present. \u00a0More engaged. \u00a0More long suffering. \u00a0And so, more than ever before, being like Jesus is what I want and I’m seeing with a clarity I never had before that I will grow in Jesusness through the trials. \u00a0Just like Him. \u00a0For\u00a0Jesus “learned obedience from what he suffered”<\/span> (Hebrews 5:8). \u00a0So, though I’ve held this verse close for decades, I am only just now feeling a certain joy, in the midst of heartache and pain, longing and waiting, knowing it is doing a needed transforming work in me. \u00a0Yes – joy. \u00a0Crazy, huh?<\/p>\n

I’m not talking about a giddy joy. \u00a0If that is what James meant, than, obviously, I still have a way to go. \u00a0I’m talking about a solid hope that anticipates something wonderful and that can’t help but produce a small internal smile even while hearts are breaking.<\/p>\n

How do we find this experience of joy in the middle of trials of all kinds? \u00a0Three things, at minimum, need to be active in our hearts and minds if we are to taste this very special kind of joy. \u00a0First, we must know and accept that we will never be done wrestling out and confessing sin. \u00a0Not until Christ appears and we become like Him, having finally seen Him as He is (1John 3:2). \u00a0We are deep and complex people and our flesh messes with every bit of us (Proverbs 20:5). \u00a0Just because we are not aware of sin, doesn’t mean it’s not there. \u00a0That is God’s grace over us. \u00a0If being a therapist has taught me anything, it is that there are always more layers of desire, pain and sin.<\/p>\n

The second flows right out of the first: \u00a0we must never think of ourselves as good Christians. \u00a0We must understand that our “good” falls short every time of the holiness we are called to. \u00a0Isaiah refers to our efforts as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) compared to God’s. \u00a0And God is the standard bearer. \u00a0Even Jesus practiced this mindset (Mark 10:18).<\/p>\n

And finally, \u00a0we must constantly remind ourselves that if goodness does flow from our lives it is not us but God at work in us (Phil 2:13). \u00a0 These awarenesses will lead us into the humility that compels us to embrace our need, yes need,<\/strong>\u00a0for our difficulties and afflictions, if we are to be like Jesus (Psalm 119:67, 71). \u00a0Times of perseverance are an essential part of what brings about our maturity, our completeness, our perfection.<\/p>\n

To have the lives of love and purpose that we hunger for, we need to be more like Jesus. \u00a0To be more like Jesus, we need some serious training. \u00a0And trials of all kinds provide that training. \u00a0So, maybe it’s not so outrageous to be joyful when the opportunity to grow comes my way, even if it is in the form of a trial.<\/p>\n

Unconvinced? \u00a0Try this every day for a month: \u00a0think about something really hard in your life. \u00a0Then look at God, your Father, and say, “I trust You. \u00a0I trust that You have allowed this for my good. \u00a0I look forward to the transformation You are doing in me. \u00a0I want to be more like Jesus.”<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

*Of the five excellent Phillip Yancey books I’ve read, What’s So Amazing about Grace?<\/em> is my favorite. \u00a0I would recommend it for anyone wanting a more gracious heart.<\/p>\n

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Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. \u00a0Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4\u00a0(emphasis mine) A long time ago I heard or read an interview […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3017"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3017"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3017\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deeperricherfuller.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}