choosing to rejoice

Rejoice. 

For the last several days, I have held this word in my heart. I have pondered and repeated it over in my head. I asked myself, “What does it mean to truly rejoice in the Lord?” In taking it a step further, I thought, “How would I describe to someone why I rejoice in the Lord, and why they also can rejoice in Him?” I thought about how easy it would be to talk with my friend, also a believer, about rejoicing in God. I thought about how there wouldn’t need to be much description or explanation in the conversation because there is such a knowing. It was easy to think about that conversation. Simple…

And then I thought about conversing with a mother who had just lost her child. How then would I describe why I rejoice in the Lord? I thought about if I was sitting with a small child who has only known heartache. What reason would I give this child to rejoice in the Lord? I imagined sitting with a criminal in a jail cell. Would I, even then, be able to tell why I rejoice in Him? 

Rejoice means “to feel or show delight.” How easy it is to delight in the Lord when we are reflecting on the good things in life. How wonderful it feels to delight in Him when we are cozied up on Christmas Eve and all feels right. 

But what about when everything is wrong?

What about when our hearts are broken?

rejoice always

The Bible doesn’t say to rejoice in God only when we feel like it. It doesn’t say to rejoice in Him only during the Christmas season. Philippians 4:4 tells us to rejoice in the Lord always.

When thinking about this process of describing the reason I rejoice in the Lord, my simple answer is this—because He is good. HE IS ALWAYS GOOD. This I know.

It is easy to look inward and not feel like we can rejoice. It’s easy to look around us and not see any tangible reasons to rejoice. Especially in today’s world. There is much sadness all around. There is much anger and much pain. But when we look at Jesus, who HE is … When we know who He is, how different He is from any person we have ever encountered, when we truly fix our eyes on Him—we can’t help but rejoice. 

I would tell the hurting mother, the small child, and the criminal, that when I am looking at Jesus, when I choose Him and only Him—I have hope. I have a hope that is beyond my grieving heart, a hope that is beyond any pain that I have ever known. I have hope that goes so much further than the prison walls that are around me. I would tell them that, even with tears in my eyes, I can rejoice! Because it’s not about who I am or how I feel or what’s around me, but who HE is. And I would share with them that they too have access to that kind of hope. There is no reason to rejoice in me, there is little to rejoice in the world, but there is EVERY reason to rejoice in Christ alone.

Rejoicing may not always come naturally, but I believe that’s because of what we are looking at. Pain blinds us. Anger blinds us. Sadness blinds us. Selfishness, confusion, grief, it all binds and blinds us. But all of us have the power to choose, in every circumstance, no matter how hard it is, to lift our heads and look at HIM.

“Those who look to Him are radiant, their faces are never covered with shame.”

Psalm 34:5 

I pray that in the coming year you and I can get so lost in who He is, that we spend our time REJOICING.

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”

Philippians 4:4