Rejoice Always
/😬
I used this emoticon with my daughter
She asked me if I was cold.
I was not.
I called myself smiling and gritting at the same time. I was making the decision to rejoice at a challenging time.
I am a work in progress. I am used to doing things that I don’t want to do. I had a long list. To name a few…
I did not like running.
I did not like cleaning.
I did not like getting up early.
Previously, the way I got past what I did not like was to correlate it to what I liked and/or muscle through it. Some things just have to be done. I didn’t like running, but I liked the results. I didn’t like cleaning, but I liked immaculate places. I didn’t like getting up early, but I liked being productive and accomplished with minimal interruptions before most are up.
A word that I have received is that the same discipline I used to get to where I am is not going to be sufficient to move me forward into this new season. God is working on my heart.
Let’s take running, for example.
I did not look forward to running. It was such a chore. I used to have to listen to music to coach me through runs. I needed to be motivated to keep going. I needed a good word and a beat. I could not wait for it to be over. I’ve had a measure of success muscling through things like this, it is no longer good enough.
Praise, gratitude, and rejoicing changes things. We are called to rejoice always, pray continually and give thanks in all circumstances (I Thessalonians 5:16.)
We a called to find gratitude in every moment. Whatever is praiseworthy, think of these things (Philippians 4:8.) During my runs, I am finding joy in the bird’s chirping God’s praises. I am excited to see nature along the way. Bunnies, frogs, turtles, deer, and birds along the way, bring me joy, and I often stop to take a picture. I have run remarkably close to deer (which initially startled me) and I’ve come to expect it.
In fact, I get lost in thought sometimes. Previously, when runners used to say it was therapeutic and good for their mental health, I could not relate. I was not planning, strategizing, preparing, or processing. I was singularly focused. Every ounce of my concentration was used on making it through the run. That was it. Complete the run. Now, I am learning to enjoy the journey. When peace rests on me, the running experience is different. Nature can even sense it.
Peace. The Holy Spirit is peace and lives inside of me. It was a deposit of a gift given to me through my confession of faith in Jesus Christ. More than just a historical man, I believe in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He paid the price for my freedom in this world and eternity.
The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in my body is a radical concept and something that I am seeking to understand. What exactly does that mean? I pray for wisdom and understanding.
I understand multiplying efforts. I know that the Holy Spirit has been interceding for me with wordless groans when I haven’t known what to pray for (Romans 8:26-7.). How wonderful and powerful is that!
“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.”
There are levels to everything. I can live a religious life that is sterile and devoid of divine power and muscle through life exhausted and overwhelmed and give lip service to my faith or I can recognize the fullness of what Christ Jesus died to give me. I am developing a personal relationship with my creator and stepping into the divine life that he has called me to, chosen me for, predestined specifically for me. That resonates with me deeply. I pray that my life is a reflection of my belief in what God can do through me.
“but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”
“Not by might, nor by power, but by his spirit says the Lord.”
I am learning to thrive in increasingly complex situations.