Finding joy in adversity
Five years ago I travelled to Romania during the summer. Somehow my friends and I found ourselves in the convent of the Franciscan sisters. The sisters showed us the hospice they ran and they wanted us to sing a song for one of their patients. When we entered the patient's room we saw a thin, frail body lying motionlessly on the bed, living probably the last days of his life. The elderly man was around 80 years old, he was a Christian and spoke only Romanian so he couldn't understand us. One of the sisters suggested that we sing a song containing a ‘hallelujah’ because that was something he would understand. Then we started singing. You should see what happened the very moment he heard the hallelujah! He raised his arms to the air and worshiped God! There was so much joy that it totally surprised us. But it shouldn't.
This was a great lesson for all of us. We saw a man on his deathbed praising God while we in our turn sometimes fail to follow his example when troubles come. We need a joyful life and for some people it can be challenging to nurture it especially while enduring hardships. Joy can become our weapon against the sadness and the lies of the devil and at the same time the source of our courage. So how do we find it?
REMEMBER WHO GOD IS
When Peter was walking on water, the Bible says:
“...he became frightened and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” (Mt 14:30)
When we allow fear to take control over our life, we lose sight of our Lord, we lose joy and we sink. We forget to believe in love.
God is love. We all know that. But we forget it. We forget that He is greater than the waves. Let us enlighten our souls by reminding ourselves of the goodness of God. Listen to worship songs, read the Scriptures (especially the Psalms), write some verses on a sheet of paper and stick it on the wall in your bedroom. Remind yourself every day, every morning that each time you breathe in, God chooses you to walk on the waters of life. And His ways are good. It is essential to keep in mind who He is and believe in it each day anew. Say it aloud. And stick with it.
REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE
It's not as simple as it seems. Everyone knows who they are. We know our names, occupations, we know where we live, what we like, the friends we have. Yet we often tend to forget whom we belong to. Somehow our daily duties, struggles and worries overwhelm us so much that we too sink like Peter. We pay too much attention to the wind that is so strong and we simply forget that Jesus commands us to walk on water as He commanded Peter. Repeat it. Jesus commands ME to walk on water. “You didn't choose me but I chose you...” (Jn 15:16).
Just remember the truth. You are loved. You are chosen to live the life He gave you. You are sent to spread His love as thick as you would Nutella (as some funny prints on Pinterest may say). You are guided by His wisdom and protected by His mighty right hand. G.K. Chesterton wrote a poem called “The Convert”. The last words of this poem blew me away. It reads: “my name is Lazarus and I live.” You are called to LIFE. Live it.
THE FRUIT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Among the twelve fruits of the Holy Spirit, joy is one of the fruits. With this, we should seek to pray to the Holy Spirit each day. When He comes, He changes things. Joy is the fruit of the Holy Spirit’s presence. Mother Teresa said that “Joy is a net of love by which we catch souls.” Isn't it wonderful that God does not only uplift us but also through us he draws other people closer to Him? By being joyful we present the heart of God to the world. By sharing joy we share the light of God which so many people need. Thus if we want to find joy, pray to the Holy Spirit. He knows your heart. He cherishes you. Pray for the Holy Spirit to come. Pray with Him. Live with him. Let each of your little steps be guided by him and you will see the fruit of his presence in your life.
IT’S THE LITTLE THINGS
I believe that the smallest and simplest things bring the purest joy. We as humans may have the tendency to look for all that is big. We don't want to miss a thing … we watch the latest videos by our favourite speakers or celebrities, we want the answers to all our problems, we may read all the philosophy and theology books there are. Yet we forget to stop and smell the flowers, we miss the beautiful sunset, we never have time to sit at a table and share a cup of coffee with friends, we often fail to find God in the faces of our friends, we fail to be present. Try to focus on the simple things, especially when times are hard and the troubles of life overwhelm you. It can be anything. Community, a smiling passer-by, a nice talk with a friend, a funny joke or in my case, a squirrel running towards me because I brought him biscuits. I've never had a squirrel climb on me before! Anyways, you get the point!
As J.R.R. Tolkien said: “It is no bad thing to celebrate a simple life”
And he was right. It is in fact necessary.
I know it's not that easy. Remember once you rejoice you pass that joy to others. You make it a gift like the old man in the hospice. Do not be discouraged when it's hard. Ask Jesus to command you to step out and instead of the water sink in His love. That's what joy is.