James 1:2-6 has taken on a special significance for me in the past few months. I find myself coming back to the verse again and again as my view of circumstances changes. Like a buoy cut loose on the rough sea, I find myself driven again and again into the rocks by certain moods and emotions. As the cliff faces cut at me and lacerate all workings of grace, I have to remember "Count is all joy when you fall into various trials". The greek verb "count" (hegesasthe) means to do some mental work in your view....adjust your perception of the situation. Trick yourself? No...just see "trials" in light of verse 4. Trials are working patience, so that you may be complete. Now if you value your peace more than your spiritual maturity, this will not be good news. But after you've fought that battle you are ready to move to verse 5...ask for wisdom to see the trial in this way, and don't doubt that God can give it. If you doubt, you will continue to see the trial as against your faith, and not for your faith...so do not doubt...don't be tossed about.
We know biblical wisdom is not man's wisdom. Man would not say to count trials as a joy. We don't value trials, nor patience, nor completeness.
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6 comments:
Today honestly I cannot find much joy in my life although I seriously should....
I seem to have stumbled across the same problem, rather quickly after making this post...but that's what this passage is for I suppose....
Hi again - does happiness equal joy?
Happiness and joy are reactions to either obtaining or not obtaining a specific goal.
How valuable that goal is determines how deep and lasting that happiness or joy is. I'd say they can be synonymns...
Someone once told me happiness is something on the surface while joy is something that goes deeper. What do you think?
In modern english that may be the way the words are used...they both mean the same as the old english "bliss" (where we get the word "blessed" which mainly means happy) and joy comes from French and Latin....
They mean the same thing in essence...
If you are happy in your ice cream....and it melts in the hot summer air, your happiness is ruined because it was based on something very "fleeting"
If you are happy in the warm summer air, a little melted ice cream won't change that.
Whether it is joy, or happiness, what it is rooted in will determine how happy you stay.
Example: A relationship ends...
After the necessary time to heal emotionally...you can either still be sad because your joy was in that person...or you can be joyful even in the loss, because your joy is rooted deeper in God's plan for your life...of which this heartache is only a means to bring you to completeness...
I hope that explains it a bit.
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