Rejoice! Choosing Joy in the Midst of our Mess (1)
Scott Bayles, pastor
Blooming Grove Christian Church: 10/4/2015
What makes you happy? What brings a smile to your face and joy to your heart? You might think it would be money, power or fame. We may fantasize about going on a tropical vacation, buying a luxury car or winning the lottery, but according to a new survey, we don't actually need any of that fancy stuff to find happiness; rather, it’s the simple things that really make us feel fabulous.
U.K. healthcare group, Bupa, sponsored the survey that asked 2,000 people what brought them happiness. They compiled the top fifty answers which include things like:
1. Feeling the sun on your face
2. Finding a $5 bill in your jacket pocket
3. The smell of fresh baked bread
4. A random act of kindness from a stranger
5. Snuggling on the sofa with your spouse
6. Finding good bargain
7. Freshly-brewed coffee in the morning (Pepsi)
8. Waking up before the alarm and realizing you have more time to sleep
9. Seeing a rainbow
10. Laughing so hard it hurts
11. Popping bubble wrap
12. Watching your breathe float away in cold air
13. Dancing like no one’s watching
The list just goes on and one with things like that. I would add to it: The sound of my children laughing. The feeling of a hot shower. Warm chocolate chip cookies. Sitting in a movie theater beside my wife watching the newest superhero movie.
There are so many little things that bring joy to hearts. But if our happiness depends solely on these sorts of things, then what happens when the sun is hidden by grey clouds, your pockets are empty, the Pepsi’s flat, or the kids are screaming instead of laughing. Often our joy disappears and disappointment and discontentment set in.
Not surprisingly, the Bible has a lot to say about happiness. It speaks of indomitable joy as a fruit of God’s Spirit welling up in the life of a believer—joy that runs deeper and stronger because it’s anchored not in our circumstances or successes, but in the love of God and the person of Jesus.
The Apostle Paul had a lot to say about that kind of joy. His letter to the Philippians is often called the “epistle of joy.” The Philippians believers enjoyed a special relationship with Paul and so he wrote them a personal letter expressing his joy and emphasizing the real joy of the Christian life. The words joy or rejoice appear no less than sixteen times in four short chapters, and the pages radiate with this positive message, culminating in Paul’s exhortation: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4 NIV). What makes Paul’s words even more profound is that he wrote this letter from a Roman prison awaiting trial and possible execution—yet the dominant theme of the letter is joy!
I don’t know about you, but I could use more of that kind of joy in my life. So for the next few weeks, I’d like to dive into the book of Philippians and see what we can learn about experiencing joy in the midst of our messy, mixed-up world.
In the first chapter, I see at least three lessons we can glean from Paul’s writing about experiencing joy. First, Paul reminds us to focus on partnerships.
• FOCUS ON PARTNERSHIPS
Like I said before, Paul had a special relationship with the church in Philippi. He highlights that relationship, saying, “Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ” (Philippians 1:3-5 NLT).
This is the first appearance of the word joy in this letter. Just the thought of their friendship stirred feelings of thankfulness and joy in Paul’s heart. He remembered them in his prayers with joy because they partnered together in sharing the Gospel and building God’s church. Even though he was miles away and wrongfully imprisoned, he felt joyful because he knew there were people who loved him and cared for him. Later, Paul mentions the “care packages” they sent him and how much they meant to him.
Partnerships—relationships—can be a tremendous source of joy.
In fact, positive psychology guru, Martin Seligman studied happiness and found several characteristics common to happy people. Number one on the list: Happy people spend time with others and spend the least time alone. Friendships and meaningful relationships bring us joy.
On the other hand, loneliness is one of the biggest barriers to joy. There are more than 300 million of us in the United States, and sometimes it seems like we're all friends on Facebook. But the sad truth is that Americans are lonelier than ever. Surveys show that 1 out of 4 people feel lonely at any given moment and, of Americans who ate dinner last night, more than 22% ate alone. Loneliness largely affects children, teenagers, college students, newly married couples, mothers, and especially senior citizens.
I recently read a newspaper ad that highlights just how lonely people can be. The ad ran in a Kansas newspaper in personals, saying, “I will listen to you talk for 30 minutes without comment for $5.00.” Sounds like a joke, doesn’t it? But the ad was serious. Did anybody call? You bet. It wasn’t long before this individual was receiving 10 to 20 calls a day. The pain of loneliness was so sharp that some were willing to try anything for a half hour of companionship. People long to connect, to enjoy meaningful relationships.
I think this is why God gave us the church. Paul was either divorced or a widower. He had no children that we know of. But no matter where he was, he had a church family that brought him great joy. I think there are two lessons here for us. First, whenever loneness starts to steal our joy, we focus on partnerships by reaching out to someone in our church family and connecting with them in a meaningful way. But secondly, we can be on the lookout for people that might be susceptible to loneliness. You don’t have to be in a Roman prison to be vulnerable to loneliness. There may be people here this morning feeling isolated and alone; but we can bring a little joy into their lives by connecting with them in a meaningful way.
The first key to genuine joy is focus on partnerships. Furthermore, Paul shows us that we can experience joy by focusing on the positive.
• FOCUS ON THE POSITIVE
Paul continues, saying, “Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear. It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry…But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice” (Philippians 1:12-18 NIV).
Now here is the situation. For 24 hours a day Paul is chained to Roman soldiers, each serving a 6 hour shift. So every 6 hours a new soldier comes in and chains himself to Paul, ensuring the prisoner couldn’t escape. But Paul saw this as a wonderful opportunity to tell the soldier about Jesus. There was no way that the soldier could escape. And some of these guys actually ended up accepting Jesus and changing their whole lives. As a result, the believers in town could preach the gospel openly without fearing the Roman soldiers!
But then there’s another problem: some of these preachers were just doing to make a name for themselves. They just wanted an audience. But again, Paul says “Look at the bright side! Either way Jesus is being preached. So I’m happy!”
Paul was the ultimate optimist. He found reasons to rejoice where many of us would have found reasons to complain. That same study I mentioned earlier by Martin Seligman also found that no matter what happens, happy people stay optimistic. They look at the glass half full versus half empty.
I read this week about a young woman named Kate who was driving with her dad when he showed her what it really means to look on the bright side. As they were driving along, they ran over some debris on the road and a moment latter they felt that all-too-familiar thump-thump, thump-thump and knew instantly they got a flat tire. Kate’s face sank, but her father’s face lit up. “Oh good!” he said. “I’ve been meaning to teach you how to change a flat tire and now we have the perfect opportunity!”
That’s one of the most positive reactions to a car trouble I’ve ever heard. But it’s also a perfect example of how much power we have over our point of view. Our happiness isn’t really about the situation we find ourselves in, but about how we see our situation. Our perspective is everything. No matter how rough a day we have or how hard a year has been, there is always a different way to look at it.
ILL. A couple of good old boys heard that a wildlife organization offered a bounty of $5,000 for each wolf captured alive. So Sam and Jed started hunting wolves. They spent a week in the woods scouring the forest and mountains with no luck. One night they were exhausted and fell asleep in the woods dreaming of all the money they were going to make. Suddenly Sam awoke to see that they were surrounded by fifty hungry wolves. He jabbed his friend in the side and said, “Wake up, Jed. We’re rich!”
If you want to experience more joy, then focus on the positive. Look at the bright side, the silver lining. There is good news if you choose to find it. Yes, your car broke down, but the good news is…you had a cell phone to call for a tow. Yes, you have the flu, but the good news is… you now have a perfect excuse to binge-watch your favorite TV series on Netflix. Sometimes you may have to dig a little to find the good news, but the point is—so much of your happiness is in your hands.
Paul could have seen his chains as a problem, but he chose to see them as an opportunity. He could have complained about money grubbing preachers, instead he rejoiced because Christ was being preached. It just takes actively seeing your situation from a brighter, more positive perspective.
So, focus on partnerships and focus on the positive. Finally, Paul shows us that joy can be experienced by focusing on our purpose.
• FOCUS ON PURPOSE
There is a story involving Yogi Berra, the well-known catcher for the New York Yankees, and Hank Aaron, who at that time was the chief power hitter for the Milwaukee Braves. The teams were playing in the World Series, and as usual Yogi was keeping up his ceaseless chatter, intended to pep up his teammates on the one hand, and distract the Milwaukee batters on the other. As Aaron came to the plate, Yogi tried to distract him by saying, "Henry, you're holding the bat wrong. You're supposed to hold it so you can read the trademark." Aaron didn't say anything, but when the next pitch came he hit it into the left-field bleachers. After rounding the bases and tagging up at home plate, Aaron looked at Yogi Berra and said, "I didn't come up here to read."
Hank had a purpose and stayed focused on it. Paul did too.
Near the end of the chapter, he writes, “To me the only important thing about living is Christ, and dying would be profit for me. If I continue living in my body, I will be able to work for the Lord. I do not know what to choose—living or dying. It is hard to choose between the two. I want to leave this life and be with Christ, which is much better, but you need me here in my body. Since I am sure of this, I know I will stay with you to help you grow and have joy in your faith. You will be very happy in Christ Jesus when I am with you again” (Philippians 1:21-26 NCV).
Paul had a clear sense of purpose in life. Jesus was everything to him. As such he had a mission to accomplish. He wanted to see the Philippians grow in their faith and be happy in Jesus. That purpose—brought him great joy.
The Nobel-Prize-winning playwright, George Bernard Shaw, once said, “This is the true joy in life: being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one, being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap, and being a force of nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy.”
He was right—there is great joy in being used for a mighty purpose. In Christ we all have a purpose in life. That purpose may manifest in different ways, it may result in different careers, but it all comes down to living for Christ. I’m reminded of the old acronym JOY—Jesus, Others, Yourself. If you keep it in that order, your life will overflow with joy.
Conclusion:
I’m grateful for Paul’s epistle of joy. I don’t know if your life has been joyful or joyless lately, but one thing I do know is that joy is a choice. Regardless of your situation or circumstances, you can choose to focus on partnerships, you can choose to focus on the positive, and you can choose to focus on your purpose. This week I want to encourage you to choose joy. Next week, we’ll delve a little deeper in Philippians and see what else we can learn about joy.
Invitation:
In the meantime, maybe you could use a little boost of joy. Since joy is a fruit of God’s Spirit, one of the best ways to experience more joy is by receiving God’s Spirit. If you haven’t done that yet—or you could just use a refill—then I want to invite you to talk with me while we stand and sing.
