Day 246 – We’ve the joy, joy joy, joy – down in our heart
Scripture focus: But the fruit of the Spirit is…joy…Galatians 5:22
I love being happy. I prefer good news to bad. I enjoy celebrations more than grieving. Yesterday I celebrated the welcoming home of a newborn into her family, and mourned the loss of my Aunt. The party was a lot more fun than the late night phone call informing me of my Aunt’s passing.
The fruit of the Spirit, however, is not about finding happiness – it is acknowledging God’s gift of joy – which is not circumstantially-driven. Joy – chara – from the word charis, which in Greek means grace, isn’t about fleeting moments of happiness.
Joy is Spirit-given. When the apostle Paul writes of joy, it is usually in the context of suffering. You paid careful attention to the way we lived among you, and determined to live that way yourselves. In imitating us, you imitated the Master. Although great trouble accompanied the Word, you were able to take great joy from the Holy Spirit! – taking the trouble with the joy, the joy with the trouble. (1 Thessalonians 1:4-6 The Message)
Our NSC community is currently practicing our trash talk. We’re trying to discard some old ways of thinking and living, replacing them with living “God’s way.” This is not an act of passive acquiescence. For most of us, it has become a declaration of war. This battle is fierce. It is the fight that rages between our desires to “get our own way all the time” and a call to “live God’s way.”
So when suffering and celebration happen to fall on the same day, we imitate the Master. And in so doing, we receive the gift of joy, which is grace. “We take the trouble with the joy, the joy with the trouble.” And practice the principles of faith that we know, and ask God to continue to teach us what we need to learn.
We have learned that life is not supposed to be easy. We have learned that doing well all the time isn’t really the goal – but living well in the crazy cacophony of sorrow and delight is our responsibility. So we press on. We don’t self-medicate or run from trouble, we face it head on. Why? Because we’re learning how to rely more on the gifts of God than the things we think we need. Knowing these truths gives me joy, joy, joy, joy – down in my heart, down in my heart. May you have the joy, joy, joy, joy, down in your heart - today.
Recommended reading: Ecclesiastes 4 - 6 in the morning; 2 Corinthians 7 and Psalm 38 in the evening
Day 245 – Week 36 – Agape Love
Scripture focus: But the fruit of the Spirit is love…Galatians 5:22 NIV
When Eugene Peterson translates this kind of love in The Message translation, he says it like this - ”things like affection for others.” In the Greek translation, of all the words for love available, Paul chose “agape.” The richness of the word makes it difficult to translate. When Rick Renner attempts to clarify its meaning, he says the following – “Agape occurs when an individual sees, recognizes, understands, or appreciates the value of an object or a person, causing the viewer to behold this object or person in great esteem, awe, admiration, wonder, and sincere appreciation. Such great respect is awakened in the heart of the observer for the object or person he is beholding that he is compelled to love it. In fact, his love for that person or object is so strong that it is irresistible.” (July 23rd, Sparkling Gems from the Greek)
At NorthStar Community, once in awhile we’re fortunate enough to have someone enter our community who is in terrible condition – physically, spiritually, emotionally and mentally. Folks who’ve battled addictions, learned to live on the street, and lost pretty much everything they ever cared about (when sober) – don’t generally show up fit for company. Often they’re angry, sometimes deluded, mostly defensive, and rarely sociable.
We are thrilled when they show up. Hold on – let me explain. We don’t see these down-and-outers as “projects” or “ministry opportunities” or even in need of rescue. We don’t count them and aren’t particularly concerned if we convert them (although we believe that apart from Christ, none of us can do much of anything worth doing). I think I can speak for the vast majority of our community when I say that we are thrilled when they find us – because we love them. They are irresistible to us. They remind us of ourselves – living, at times, “trying to get our own way all the time.” We love them before they embrace the transformation process and even if they choose to go back to the streets. We love them because God has given us a gift - “affection for others.”
I can’t claim to be a proud possessor of this gift all the time, but when I choose to live “God’s way” AND I accept his gift of “affection for others” – all I can say is – wow. It is so awesome to experience irresistible love for one who isn’t presently making it easy to do so. It’s the ultimate to freedom to love – expecting nothing in return. It’s an incredible experience to love one who probably is going to talk bad about you tomorrow, or call you names if they think that in so doing, it will help them get their own way all the time. It’s deeply satisfying to love someone who won’t give you credit for doing so, and will probably tell you repeatedly how poorly you’ve executed. This is agape love. I guess that’s why I enjoy my community so much, because that’s how they love me and others. They demonstrate agape love and inspire me to want to do the same. It’s my prayer that we will be inspired to accept the gift of love God so desperately desires to bestow, and give it away as freely as it was given to us!
Recommended reading: Ecclesiastes 1, 2 in the morning; Ecclesiastes 3 and 2 Corinthians 6 in the evening
Copyright 2008 NorthStar Community
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