Life Coaching: Joy and Sorrow

I wrote this three years ago, but I think it’s very pertinent for the upcoming year.

Hebrews 12:2 "Looking unto  Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

I have been thinking about joy. And I have been really questioning the Lord  about some things that are going on right now in my life. Classic struggle of should I stay or should I go on a number of things right now. Some physically, but mostly emotionally and spiritually.  Discouragement set in. Despair tried to follow. The temptation to run away and not worry about the consequences is a real possibility, because the opportunity for pain is great. I do not like pain. I don't even care much about the end result if I have to suffer pain to get there. It doesn't seem to be worth it. This is not Kingdom  thinking but since I'm being absolutely honest, I might just as well tell the truth and be done with it. I want to bury my head in the sand and sit down for a change. The lyrics from that Beatles song "It's Getting Better" are running through my head..."Me used to be angry young man. Me hiding me head in the sand. You gave me the word. I finally heard and I'm doing the best that I can." Well, I DID finally hear, after a couple of hours of mulling  things over and searching the Scriptures, and this is what I've concluded:

Comfort zones are a trap from the enemy, I firmly believe, and since I've never really been much of a believer in complacency, then I must, by my nature, do that which isn't the easy thing. Oh, how I wish I'd been born slow and steady instead of fast and driven...how much easier my life would be!

Now, this seems to be random, but hang with me for a minute...as I was reading the aforementioned verse, I started to think some more about that "joy that was set before Him" business...it does not seem to me that Jesus' situation was in any way joyful. In fact, it seems to be the opposite. It's a good thing I am not Jesus, that's all I have to say, because I would have hit the county line at a dead run. Jesus knew what He was getting into and endured the cross anyway. He looked instead at the joy set before Him. I keep thinking about this and wondering what this "joy" could possibly be. Was it the glory of being back in the presence of the Father? Yes. It surely was. Could it be the exhilaration of a job well done? Almost certainly. But could it also be that I am the joy that was set before Him?  Did He look down through the millennia, see my face and say, "It's worth it for her! That one gives me joy!" Absolutely. I can't even begin to imagine the unconditional love and restraint it took for the Lord of heaven and earth to humble Himself, come to this earth in the form of a baby, live as a human, die as a criminal (in the eyes of His accusers), and rise as a victor. That, my friends, is a Hero I can follow. And the fact that He did it for me, (And the fact that He keeps giving me "Do-Overs"!!), is enough to bring me to my knees in shame at my behavior. It is the goodness of God that leads me to repentance. I can't even type this without tearing up...

The intertwining of Joy and Sorrow are aspects of "Joy" that I've never really given a lot of thought. Joy had become my buzzword for 2015, but the sorrow part never entered my head. Too busy being fast and driven, I guess. But now that I have somehow stumbled across this, it certainly explains a lot. So maybe I will weep today. And that brings to mind the OTHER thing that leads to repentance...godly sorrow. I believe these two things that lead us to repentance speaks of the duality of the Lord God Almighty. So weeping is not necessarily  a bad thing. It's cleansing. It's draining. And it leads me to the one who can dry the tears.

The Bible tells us weeping may endure for a night but joy comes in the morning. Each day is a second chance...a second chance to live our lives humbly, joyfully, willingly dedicated in service to the Lord. And even if I sometimes feel sorrow. I must remember that Joy is here NOW, in fact, because HE IS HERE! I will not live my life in complacency. I cannot. I am called to march to a different drummer. Not all hear the same beat that I hear, but that's okay, too. March to the beat He gives you. This is my beat:  I will not give up. I will never give in. I will stand. I am loved and that is enough.