What is your usual reaction when you face trials in your life?
a. Fear/anxiety
b. Anger
c. Joy
d. Self-pity
Be honest. How many of you picked Joy? Don’t worry; it wasn’t my first choice either. But James 1:2 says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds . . .” So, there’s got to be a way to approach the trials we encounter along the path with rejoicing.
I used to watch a show called Mad Men (stick with me; I’m going somewhere with this). It’s a stylish period drama set in the 1960s at an advertising agency. I started watching it because there was a lot of buzz about it in the media and I wanted to see what the fuss was all about. I managed to watch two full seasons but when Season 3 started, I just gave up. There was not one character that I could root for. The lives of everyone on the show were filled with adultery, sexual impurity, divorce, and heavy drinking and drug use. Frankly, it was sad and depressing; none of the characters seemed worth redemption.
I hadn’t really given Mad Men much thought until a few weeks ago when I came upon an article about the sixth season of the show. The article recounts a scene where one of the characters, Roger Sterling, is at his psychiatrist’s office. In this scene Roger says something very profound:
“Life is supposed to be a path and you go along and these things happen to you and they’re supposed to change you . . . [but it] turns out the experiences are nothing.”
What struck me most about this statement was how sad and futile life seemed to Roger Sterling. His view of life was that everything we experience essentially amounts to nothing. We don’t change and become better people.
You and I are often like this fictional character. We look and our circumstances and can’t see what purpose they serve in our lives. Instead we let fear, anxiety, and self-pity take over. We’ll even get angry at God because we don’t understand why this is happening. We do a lot of complaining and little praying. We sound a lot like kids do when they don’t get their way: “Waa, waa, waa. That’s not fair!” We may even walk away from God because we think we’ve gotten a raw deal in life. Where’s the joy in that?
But if we look at James 1:2-4, he tells us how we can have joy during our trials:
(2) Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, (3) because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. (4) Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. (NIV)
Do you see it? We can have joy during our trials because we know we can come through them changed. When our faith is tested, it’s going to produce perseverance (cheerful endurance, and constancy). And if we let perseverance finish what it started, we will become “mature and complete, not lacking anything.” When we come through a trial with joy, we will be changed. Our faith will be stronger, our outlook on life will be full of hope, and we will know the Father better.
Now, let’s get real for a minute. God’s not just going to zap you and suddenly you’ll have joy. And don’t confuse joy with happiness. You’re going to experience every emotion known to man – happiness, sadness, fear, confusion – as you walk along the pathway the Father has laid out before you. But joy is different; it’s a CHOICE.
When I first became unemployed I had a calm assurance that God was going to take care of me and everything would be alright. But as time passed, I began to get anxious and fearful. I cried, “God, why are you taking so long to resolve this situation?” During this time, God has found ways to remind me that he has everything under control and my job is to trust Him. I keep praying, worshiping, reading the Word. I’ve also asked the Father to show me what He wants me to learn through this trial. And He’s doing just that. The Potter is working out the imperfections in my life. Now I choose joy, because I know God has something great for me if I will just wait on Him.
So, it’s up to you. Will you be like Roger Sterling, believing that your experiences don’t mean anything? Or will you CHOOSE JOY during your trials so that your life will be changed and you will become mature and complete?
I’ll leave you with one last scripture:
(8) The LORD says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you. (9) Do not be like a senseless horse or mule that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under control.” (10) Many sorrows come to the wicked, but unfailing love surrounds those who trust the LORD. (11) So rejoice in the LORD and be glad, all you who obey him! Shout for joy, all you whose heart are pure! Psalm 32:8-11 (NLT)