Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. James 1:2-3
Joy. Webster defines it as: The passion or emotion excited by the acquisition or expectation of good; pleasurable feelings or emotions caused by success, good fortune, and the like, or by a rational prospect of possessing what we love or desire; gladness; exhilaration of spirits; delight
My definition of joy is summed up in my friend, Joy. I got to know her through my job at the university. She worked in our Student Accounts/Cashiers Office and often dealt with delinquent accounts; that is, angry parents and unhappy students. Not an easy job, but she did it with grace and a smile that would warm the coldest heart. Her name fits her so well, Joy is a joy to know and have as a friend. We are close in age, and I knew some of her husband’s family before I knew her, so we enjoyed sharing stories and life experiences with one another. She left the university about the time she and her husband bought an auto repair place, which I frequented. We kept up with each other’s lives over oil changes and tire rotations. Even after she took a bank job, we went to lunch a couple of times. Lately, I’ve kept up with her on Facebook and a blog her husband writes.
Which brings me to my picture of the day. It’s of a group of ladies that meet over their lunch hour twice a month for a prayer shawl ministry. Now mind you, I do not consider myself a knitter or a crocheter, but my mom was, so I thought I’d give it a try. I don’t knit, and I’m not sure I want to try, but if I have a simple enough pattern, I can make a crocheted shawl. I have lost count how many I have made, but with each one I have wondered who it would go to; and I have prayed for the recipient and what ever adversity they are facing. I know when I went through some difficult days of uncertainty and loss; the smallest acts of kindness and words of comfort meant so much. The shawls we make are representative of the arms of God wrapping the person in love and a tangible reminder that someone is praying for them.
I believe even in adversity, God gives joy. I can’t explain it, other than I know it. Not the laugh out loud with giddy happiness, but a deep, down in the soul joy. It’s the knowledge I possess something of great value, an eternal love. Jesus promised us the Holy Spirit and told us we would never be alone. To think the God of the universe is with me everyday gives reason to my joy. Another of my favorite quotes, God isn’t interested in my comfort, He’s interested in my character. Adversity brings out the best in those that believe. Joy isn’t dependent on circumstances, health, wealth, or fame. It resides within. Adversity makes us totally dependent on God, and who better to depend on than our Creator?
My friend Joy posted a picture of herself on Facebook a month or so ago, wrapped in a turquoise shawl I had made over this past summer. She was on a doctor’s exam table waiting her first round of chemotherapy. She had a double mastectomy and has a couple of months of chemo to go through. She had the same lovely smile on her face as always. Joy knows pain, uncertainty, waiting, hoping, and seeing your loved ones with tears in their eyes when they look at you. But, in her smile and in her eyes I see joy because God knows Joy, and she knows Him.
I had no idea this summer as I worked on the shawl it would be for someone I knew personally. I didn’t know the prayers I prayed where for my friend Joy. I’m thankful for the opportunity.
One of my recent favorite songs is Won’t You Be My Love by Mercy Me. Making shawls may not seem like much, but by doing it, in some small way, our group is sending out His love, and His joy, to the Joys among us. The last lines of the song go like this:
We will be your voice calling
We will be your hands healing
We will be your feet walking
Into a broken world
We will be your chain breaker
We will be your peace maker
We will be your hope and joy
We will be your love
We will be your love
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