Joy in the Middle of Troubles
Are you able to find joy in the middle of your troubles?
Verse of the Day
“I have spoken to you with great frankness; I take great pride in you. I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.”
Today’s Devotional
Paul clearly has a special place in his heart for the believers in Corinth. One commentary says this about 2 Corinthians as a whole: “The single theme running throughout this book is that God will comfort us in all of our troubles, and we will offer this comfort to each other. This models the life of Jesus himself, who suffered first and then was comforted. We are weak, yet we live in God’s power.”
In looking just at today’s verse, let’s think about how we relate to other believers. Are we building the kind of relationships that allow for “great frankness”? I don’t do well with tiptoeing around the elephants in the room. But I have also learned that there is a time and a place for being lovingly direct with others. It really does require that we first have a certain level of intimacy. If I don’t have a deep relationship with someone, their words will likely feel like criticism and unwanted opinions. So I need to be deepening all of my relationships. I need to be telling my friends that I invite them to lovingly correct me when I am wrong. I need to ask them if I have their permission to do the same.
Next comes taking pride in others. Do the accomplishments of other people make me just as happy as if they had happened to me? If not, then I may be struggling with apathy or envy. We are called to rejoice with those who rejoice. Not just lightly applaud from the sidelines. Do I have a stake in the spiritual lives of others? I think we get so self-focused that we forget to take pride and joy in the spiritual accomplishments of our tribe. I think the sin struggles that we know about in those closest to us should drive us to our knees, just like our own struggles do. Because this life is not all about me. Or you. We are all members of one body of Christ. If one part is sick, we should all notice. If one part is healed, we should all celebrate.
Do you get encouragement from others? I do. I see hope in the victories other people have. It makes me want to imitate the steps they have taken. It’s easy to get verbal encouragement from fellow believers. As long as we are taking the time to talk to them. There is danger in isolation, and we were not created for that. We should be intentionally spending time with other believers that encourage our walk with God.
Last is joy in the midst of troubles. The key to this, for me, is my focus. I must make the choice to intentionally focus on God instead of my current difficulties. This can be a very hard choice to make in those private moments of struggle. I often remind myself of the verse from Daniel 3 where 3 men (Shadrach, Meshach and Adebnigo) are about to be thrown into a fiery death. They tell the king, who they have chosen to disobey because it would violate their faith and allegiance to God, that God CAN save them. But “even if he does not”, their faith remains only in God. Isn’t that beautiful?
Even if things don’t work out the way I would choose, I can choose to have joy in God. Even if the answer to my prayer is “no”, I can choose to praise the God of the universe. Even if the people in my life hurt me, God is still worthy of trust and praise. There should be joy in having a God who is for us, even in the middle of our struggles. This is the kind of joy that is ALWAYS available to us.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
Do you have friends that can speak with great frankness to you? If not, ask God for those kinds of relationships.
Do you struggle with apathy or envy?
Are you too self focused to notice the joys and/or struggles of others?
Are you an encourager? Do you get encouragement from others? If not, ask God to help you to pay attention.
Are you able to find joy in the middle of your troubles? If not, start keeping a gratitude list EVERY SINGLE DAY.