Searching for JOY - Part 2

Monday, June 26, 2023

Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God.  Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now.  And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.      Philippians 1:3-6

We ended yesterday’s thoughts with the question:  Can you really experience joy?  We can all probably agree on the definition of joy; the main question is:  what produces it, and how can we have joy in our everyday life, continuously? 

I want to show you two realities about joy – first, the characteristics of our contemporary culture’s stab at joy; then, tomorrow – the Apostle Paul’s thinking. 

Culture Characteristic #1 – We are ALONE

Philosopher Thomas Wolfe said, Loneliness is and always has been the central and inevitable experience of every man.^[1]  In the contemporary scene we are isolated behind our air-conditioned walls, transfixed moth-to-light-like, to our blaring computer games on Smartphones and DVD players; we are protected from interruption by our straight-to-voicemail.  Isolated from, and insulated against human touch, we find out about ourselves from the nightly news.  And the news is lonely!  There's little joy in that Mudville.

Culture Characteristic #2. We are ASSERTIVE

From the first stamping of little, two-year-old feet that don't want to go where mother said, to the constant mashing of the horn buttons on freeways, assertiveness is the America we've come to know and despise.

 Sacrifice and service have become foreign words in America; corporate raids and takeovers make billions, and no longer does it matter what happens to the person on the assembly line, or the family having to stand in line for a handout.

Culture Characteristic #3. We are AMBIVALENT

Ambivalence is a strange development for a land of such passionate beginnings.  America was born in the hearts of people with fire in their bellies.  There was a sense of right and wrong; of good and evil.  Today’s culture is as dependent upon the direction of the prevailing winds, as on any code of morals or values.  A newspaper columnist pointed out how this slide towards ambivalence has made us a nation of orphans where child-guidance is concerned:

We are infinitely more comfortable dealing with each other in the gray vastness of 'how does it feel for you?' than in terms of right and wrong.  One look at the status of our children and we know that what we are doing isn't working.  Children need right and wrong.^[2]

One of the reasons our children take drugs, take little interest in life, and take other students’ lives is that they see no firmness of commitment to an ethic, ideals, or to each other.  Options dominate our thinking. 

·       If I don't like this circumstance I'll change it. 

·       If I can't change it I'll go elsewhere, where it feels better to me. 

I like you alright, but if you do something that displeases me I just might 'option you out' with a .357 magnum – or a divorce -- or an abortion – or some cocaine – or even just a glance.  Hey!  I can take you or leave you, dude! 

For You Today 

Alone…Assertive…and Ambivalent is our culture.  But we were created for better than that; we are hard-wired for community and its’ blessing…more tomorrow.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,500 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  

 

Title Image:  via Pixabay.com   Images without citation are in public domain.   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from NLT^©  

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[1] Thinkexist.com

[2]Edwards, Drew, Article, VIEWPOINT, (Jacksonville, Fl, The Florida Times-Union, Oct 3,1992)

 

Searching for JOY - Part 1

Friday, June 23, 2023

Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God.  Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now.  And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.  Philippians 1:3-6

The classic poem Casey At the Bat^[1] tells the story of Mudville, a little town at the turn of the 20^th century, where baseball is everything.  The Mudville team is losing by two runs, with two outs, and everyone is dejected.  People start leaving the stands. 

There is little hope because two of the worst players are scheduled to bat next; certainly one of them will make the last out.  But, against all odds, both get a hit, and are safely on base.  They represent runs that will tie the score, and now it is the turn at bat for the local baseball hero and legend, The Mighty Casey!

With every confidence in their man, the people anxiously await Casey’s heroics.  But he lets the first two pitches go by without so much as a wave of his bat.  The next pitch will tell all.  An out would be unthinkable with Casey; certainly it will be a home run and a win for Mudville.  The scene is set…two outs, two on, two runs behind…One pitch will create happiness, joy unrestrained….or…

They saw his face grow stern and cold, 

they saw his muscles strain, 

and they knew that Casey wouldn't let 

that ball go by again.  

The sneer is gone from Casey's lip, 

his teeth are clenched in hate; 

He pounds with cruel violence his bat upon the plate.  

And now the pitcher holds the ball, and now he lets it go, 

and now the air is shattered by the force of Casey's blow.  

     Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright; 

     the band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light, 

     and somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout; 

     But there is no joy in Mudville –mighty Casey has struck out.

If you ask 100 people what it means to have “joy” you might get about two-billion different viewpoints, everything from Rocky Road ice cream, to balancing the checkbook, or their dog’s latest cute trick.  Most will give you some variation of the dictionary definition, the emotion evoked by well-being….^[2]  That is not far from what Paul said to the Philippian church when he wrote to say he’s praying with joy.  The ancient Greek word he uses is χαρά (kharah'), calm delight^[3] 

Calmly-delighted in the inner man; content, having a sense of well-being!  No matter what storms may blow around me, I am at peace inside!  That is so different from what we see in contemporary culture, where circumstances – your health, friends, position, toys, and affluence –seem to dictate whether you can experience joy, or ever be happy at all.

For You Today 

Well, can you?  Can you really experience joy?  We can all probably agree on the definition of joy; the main question is:  what produces it, and how can we have joy in our everyday life?  Stay tuned…Apostle Paul is going to unfold the answers.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,500 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  Go HERE to explore and dig a little bit deeper.                                        

 

Title Image:  via Pixabay.com   Images without citation are in public domain.   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©  

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[1] Ernest Lawrence ThayerÓ

[2] http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/joy

[3] Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries© 2003, QuickVerse

 

Confrontation With God

[i]

Friday, April 7, 2017

Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am in distress.  Tears blur my eyes.  My body and soul are withering away.  I am dying from grief; my years are shortened by sadness.  Sin has drained my strength; I am wasting away from within.  I am scorned by all my enemies and despised by my neighbors—even my friends are afraid to come near me.  When they see me on the street, they run the other way.  I am ignored as if I were dead, as if I were a broken pot.  I have heard the many rumors about me, and I am surrounded by terror.  My enemies conspire against me, plotting to take my life.  But I am trusting you, O Lord, saying, “You are my God!”  My future is in your hands.  Rescue me from those who hunt me down relentlessly. Psalm 31:9-15^(NLT)

“Be silent now and leave me alone.  Let me speak, and I will face the consequences.  Why should I put myself in mortal danger and take my life in my own hands?  God might kill me, but I have no other hope.  I am going to argue my case with him.  But this is what will save me—I am not godless.  If I were, I could not stand before him.  “Listen closely to what I am about to say.  Hear me out.  I have prepared my case; I will be proved innocent.  Who can argue with me over this?  And if you prove me wrong, I will remain silent and die.                                         Job 13:13-19^(NLT)

For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better.  But if I live, I can do more fruitful work for Christ.  So I really don’t know which is better.  I’m torn between two desires:  I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me. Philippians 1:21-23^(NLT)

Six years ago I felt like King David; my years were being shortened by sadness.  I’d had an interview with the Board of Ordained Ministry and was deferred for a year.  The reason given me was that I had too much sadness in my life; really?

I was angry at their decision for obvious reasons; their decision was a blow; I was being treated like a broken pot, set aside; oh, brother, can we say victim?  You get the drift! But in hindsight, after some years of reflection I see things a lot more clearly.  My mother had recently passed and, like King David, I’ve realized that when I’m sad, even my friends want to cross to the other side of the street when they see me. 

In my angry grief at having my career delayed and feeling sidelined unfairly, like Job I learned to snip at those closest to me.  The result was the church I was serving objected to a snippy preacher and our relationship suffered.  (Spouses of snippy preachers aren’t all that thrilled with them either!).  Eventually, like Job, I found myself emotionally alone, drowning in trying to figure-out what God was up to.

The apostle Paul found himself in a Roman jail under sentence of death by beheading.  He had trouble figuring out if God wanted him dead or alive.  And Paul didn’t know which was better.  Frankly, I also wanted to quit; if God wasn’t going to use me like I thought He should, well…again, you get the drift!

There is one reality I shared with King David, Job, and Paul; eventually all four of us learned to place the whole mess we’d made of our attitude firmly in God’s hands and wait for the answer.

Folks…that ain’t easy!

Well, there is an up-side to this tale of woe.  God used the circumstances to teach me an even greater trust with the smallish details of my life, and to accept where He is taking me as a man, husband, father, grandfather, (dare I say great-grandfather?) and as God’s servant.

I like that about God!                          

For You Today

Those of you who live below the Mason-Dixon Line understand the meaning of the word, mess.  Making a mess of greens means you’re going to also have cornbread for dinner.  So, for you, today…if you’ve made a mess of your attitude, friendships, and other relationships and circumstances, give that mess to God; He will make a meal out of it that will surprise you!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road…have a blessed day!

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NOTES

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 ^I Title image: By Artist: Chaim Koppelman (Chaim and Dorothy Koppelman Foundation), via Wikimedia Commons