Happy

Doesn't this just make you feel good?

Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof,

Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth,

Clap along if you know what happiness is to you

Clap along if you feel like that's what you wanna do.

Before starting, let me say: I love the song. Catchy tune. Feel-good message. And it does have some elements of godly joy in it, especially the idea of not letting anything bring you down.

But it does have a problem right smack in the middle of it. How so?

Happiness is not the truth.

You see, in our society we have made being happy the ultimate goal. Whatever makes you happy, that's what you should do. We use it to justify all sorts of things:

• We pursue pleasure with every spare moment, instead of taking time to serve others. Because, well, that makes me happy.
• We drown out the voices of Scripture and our consciences when it comes to certain behaviors, because if it doesn't make us happy it can't possibly come from a loving God, right?
• We think that being happy is the reason to get married. So when we are no longer happy, well...that's what divorce is for.
• And it's not just marriage. We quit when things get tough in all sorts of areas. Whether it's at work, church, or just a friendship that's hit some rocky times. "This doesn't make me happy anymore. I'm done."
• We blame God when we encounter death, sickness, or financial troubles. "This doesn't make me happy, God. You must not love me. Do you even exist?'

Yep, we've bought the lie..."happiness is the truth."

If life and Scripture combine to tell us anything, it's that God wants to shape us back into his image through our time here on earth. Paul consistently wrote about how suffering was part of God's plan to shape us into the image of his Son, using his own suffering as an example. So did Peter. Jesus told us to take up our cross (an instrument of death!) and follow him.  He also told the religious leaders that a man who was born blind did nothing to deserve it and said that the Father causes the sun to rise and the rain to fall equally on the just and the unjust (Matthew 5:45). 

There is nothing in the words of Jesus or his followers indicating that being happy was the goal of life.

And then there's Job. In the first two chapters of this amazing book, we learn that Job is going to suffer and suffer a lot. And then it happens, and we are told that none of it is because of his sin. How happy do you think Job was? Exactly. And yet he was right smack in the center of God's will, as the Lord used his circumstances to teach him and make him more of an image-bearer.

But really, go ahead...clap along. I do. Through faith in the Messiah Jesus, I am determined not to let life bring me down.

But when I'm not happy, when life is pressing down on me, I've got something better than happiness to carry me through.

Faith. Hope. Love. These are the truth.

Rejoicing and mourning…at the same time?

Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. (Romans 12:15)

A simple instruction, one that even makes sense. We probably would know it was a good thing even it it weren't in the Bible. In context, Paul is describing what it's like to have you mind renewed. To think like God thinks.

And so we see that God does this. When you're happy, God is happy with you. He is having a party in heaven about your promotion...your son's wedding…that awesome date you had last night. When you're sad, God is right there with you. He feels the pain when you lose a loved one…when you get chewed out by your boss…when that girl breaks your heart.

At any given moment, millions of people are rejoicing and millions others are mourning. And God feels it all. At the same time.

How can that be? How can he be happy and sad at the same time?

This is just one of the things about God that we can't fathom. He is infinite and incomprehensible. The only way we can know anything about him is that he has chosen to reveal himself. But that doesn't mean we can understand it all.

As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9)

The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law. (Deuteronomy 29:29) 

You know, if we can't even understand how God can be happy for you and sad for me at the same time, is it any wonder that we can't understand creation? Or how the infinite God can be clothed in human form? Or how the death and resurrection of Jesus can atone for our sins and bring us into a right relationship with him?

No, we can't understand it all. Not even close. But we can look at Jesus and see what God is like. He has chosen to reveal himself and I am grateful.


 Have you experienced the joy of God coming along side you in your joy? Have you experienced his presence in your grief? 

Do you feel like you have to understand everything you believe? How can that be, if your mind is finite?

The other side of Christmas

YHWH is close to the brokenhearted,

And saves those who are crushed in spirit.

- Psalm 34:18

It was seven years ago, and Christmas was not normal. Not by any means. My dear mother had just passed from this life 12 days earlier, and it was there second year in a row where pain seemed to cast a shadow over the joyous holiday. The previous Christmas had been one of trying to find joy in the midst of her very serious illness. And now she was gone.

It was not the first or only time that I had to dig deep beneath the tinsel and bright lights to find the joy of Christmas. There was 1996 after my sister had been taken and my niece was gravely ill. There was Christmas Eve 1995 when I was inexplicably sad - for no reason I could think of. There have been less severe bouts with loneliness, in short bursts between truly joyous times with family.

Does any of this sound familiar to you? If you're human, I'm guessing it does. Especially if you have your mind saturated with the expectation that the lights, the trees, the presents, the music, and the whole extravaganza will be happy, no matter what.

Well, I've got good news for you. These emotions you struggle with - they are exactly why God took on flesh and entered this world. He knew that, left on our own, we were empty, lonely, and prone to base our happiness on our circumstances. He knew that there would be times where we would be brokenhearted. Poor. Blind.

And that's why he came. He told us so when, some 30 years after that remarkable night in Bethlehem, he began his ministry by quoting from Isaiah 61, saying,

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; he has appointed me to preach Good News to the poor; he has sent me to heal the brokenhearted and to announce that captives shall be released and the blind shall see, that the downtrodden shall be freed from their oppressors, and that God is ready to give blessings to all who come to him." (Luke 4:18-19, Living Bible)

And then, after a long dramatic pause, he declared that this passage was about him and his mission.

So if you're down this Christmas, if you are brokenhearted, God has good news for you. If you are dealing with sickness, death, uncertainty, loneliness, divorce, work problems, or a dozen other reasons that it might be tough to put on a smiley face and say Merry Christmas, take heart. THIS is exactly why Jesus came. This is why he was born to humble parents in a dingy corner of the world and was only visited that night by the poorest of the poor - shepherds. (The Magi came much later.) Because he came to ease our pain. He came to bring life in the midst of death.

Christmas is no cherry on top on of an already happy life. It is the basis for any true joy that we might have in the midst of our pain. Jesus came because we are a hurting people.

That's life. Not a counterfeit brought by Santa and his elves. But real life, from the one who made us. He will bring light to our darkness. If we'll just let him.

I've seen some dark Christmases. Thank God for the light of the Messiah. And that is why we celebrate.

Merry Christmas.

Day 3: Joy

Here on our first full day in Ethiopia, we made the trek over to Korah for the first time. I was anxious for my team members to get their first glance because it is a place I love - a place where God is moving amidst incredible poverty and pain. And, through the power of Christ, a place of incredible joy.

As is always the case, I find it impossible to put into words my feelings for this place and the experience of being there. Every attempt feels like I’m trying to describe nuclear physics using the vocabulary of a first grader. Do a search on this blog word Ethiopia and you’ll see what I mean. Inadequate.

But a couple of things really stood out to me today:

• The amazing way our team bonded with the children right away. We discussed tonight the question of whether these children thought we came to love them or to see – a question of the heart really. Two things were obvious to me: this group of Christ-followers came to love.  And the children knew it. You can’t fool children, they’ll see right through you. And these kids could tell; we came to share the love of Jesus.

• The fact that Jesus brings joy that does not depend on circumstances. This afternoon, we spent time with a group of women from Mission Ethiopia. They are employed making beads – a very tedious process – and the sale of the resulting necklaces and such help make possible their much needed jobs. Are they down about it? Quite the contrary. While we were there, we asked if they ever sing while they work. They didn’t just tell us; they showed us. A celebration of song and dance erupted that made time seem to stand still. We had so much fun because they had so much fun. Their zeal for life did not depend on things. They sang (in Arhamic) about how God will fight for them, about the fact that Jesus is coming back, and about the fact that he is their story.  

So, quite a day! I am blown away by Grant, Jenny, Macy, Mark, Melinda, and Melissa. The way they jumped right in, and their insight about what it means for the Kingdom challenges me. I can’t wait for tomorrow, and the rest of the week. It’s going to go too fast.