The Fruit of the Spirit is . . . Joy

"Doesn't God want me to be happy?", said a woman one day from my counselor's couch. She was in a bad marriage and was convinced in her mind that she needed to get out. What convinced her was her feeling level of unhappiness.

The most profound thought I had this week while preparing this sermon, was that the happiness we yearn for is not the happiness that God wants to give us. Our happiness is TOTALLY dependent upon circumstances and situations. If everything would just go right we could be happy. The Joy which God has available for us through his Spirit is not created by external circumstances and therefore can never be taken from us.

Paul's question to the Galatians, "What has happened to all your joy?" (4:15), is perhaps one that modern day Christians would do well to ponder.

Joy that Can't Be Taken Away

Joy in the midst of sufferings sounds like nonsense until one ponders how often it occurs in everyday life: having surgery, giving birth to a child, preparing for an athletic contest, agonizing over information before a big test, pushing your muscles to climb a mountain, and on and on. We recognize that in each of these it is not suffering nor joy that is being pursued. Rather, one has set a goal and is doing what is necessary to achieve it. The "Joy of the Lord"comes when one sets his goal to grow in knowledge and imitation of Jesus; believing the promises of God and committing one's self to walk in obedience to God's commands no matter what the consequences. The writer of Hebrews points us in the same direction when he wrote: "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:1-3).