Joy in life

Psalm 100:1-3

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come into his presence with singing.

Know that the Lord is God.
It is he that made us, and we are his:
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Yesterday we lit the Advent candle of joy. Perhaps this is the sentiment and the feeling that is difficult to experience when we look at the turmoil and the suffering in the world. How can we feel joy when our brothers and sisters are in pain? And yet we are called upon to be joyful, to immerse ourselves in optimism and light, not just for the future, but for the present. Psalm 100 provides the reason to be joyful; we are God’s people, the sheep of his flock. Just the thought of this gives us a deep down happiness. Joy is there because God is there, and soon to be among us as we prepare ourselves for Christmas day. Serving the one true God is a source of unbelievable joy, even in times of sorrow, because the two emotions are often the two sides of the same coin. It is not unusual for us to shed tears both when we are sorrowing, and also when we are in a state of bliss.

In John 16:24, Jesus tells us, “Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.” Our Lord is often regarded as the man of sorrows, but he wasn’t just that. He rejoiced, and partied with his friends and loved ones, and this deep wellspring of joy had its source in God the Father. Jesus wanted to make us happy and he did this by giving of himself in the most complete way. In the passage from John’s gospel he’s telling us that not only are we to be joyful, but he’s there to make us so completely happy that nothing else can make us happier. It’s hard to imagine that kind of limitless and complete bliss. But it’s there for the taking; all we need to do is ask in his holy name.

But what makes us genuinely and truly happy? It’s definitely not material things; I don’t think that we need to waste God’s time by saying, “God if you help me to pay my power bill that would make me really happy.” Paying off the power bill would be a relief, but not a joy, not the joy that Jesus had in mind when he offered himself. I believe that lasting and real joy comes from seeing joy in others and acting to maintain that joy in those around us, and avoiding at all costs doing or saying anything that diminishes that joy. If we are to ask anything of God in Jesus’ name this Christmas I think a good prayer to go at the top of the list is this:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace, where there is hatred, let me sow love, where there is injury pardon, where there is doubt faith, where there is despair hope, where there is darkness light, and where there is sadness joy. Amen

May joy be yours this Christmas!