So . . . how did your week go? Did you have a good week, or was it a bad week? Did you have any unexpected blessings or crises? Any good news or bad news? How did last week go for you?
Good or bad, you just don’t know what life is going to throw at you that will impact you emotionally, physically, or spiritually. Things have been topsy-turvy since Dana and I made a quick trip to Kentucky for her sister’s husband’s funeral. It was filled with both the good and bad . . . filled with anxiety of traveling in the midst of a pandemic. We returned with news that our oldest had been exposed to not one, but two individuals in his office that came down with the virus—thus far he is virus-free. And then, on Wednesday, Dana was sent home from her job as a hospice chaplain because she was in direct contact and exposed to a co-worker who came down with the virus. It has been a roller coaster ride of a week since we returned . . . filled with good and bad . . . filled with frustration in the midst of blessings.
Now imagine how things had been going for the Apostle Paul. He is sitting in a prison cell when he writes his letter to the congregation in Philippi. He has been imprisoned by powerful people who are threatening him. He is concerned about the possibility that he might be executed. He is concerned for those who make up the congregation in Philippi . . . a new congregation experiencing all the joys, blessings, and hardships that come from any group of people working to be a family of faith. I would venture to say that Paul was on that emotional roller coaster that impacted him emotionally, physically, and spiritually. And, despite it all, he writes to the congregation telling them to “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”
Kind makes you wonder what Paul has been drinking. How can Paul ask the people to “rejoice” in such adverse situations . . . his and theirs? How can God expect those who are struggling with adversity and problems in life to rejoice?
Considering your life . . . are you able to rejoice? Looking around the world we are presently living in with all of its adversity . . . are you able to rejoice? There is no denying that we are living in adverse time . . . frustrating times . . . anxious times . . . scary times. So where does anyone, including the Apostle Paul, get off telling us to rejoice?
In the case of the apostle it is because he is speaking from experience. Those others . . . well, because they are just trying to be nice and really don’t know what else to say. But, for Paul, he speaks from experience. The “joy” that the apostle speaks of and calls for is the sort of joy that isn’t based on circumstances. The joy Paul calls for comes from the knowledge of God’s presence . . . that God is with us. God is with us no matter what . . . the good and bad . . . the happy and sad . . . the blessing and the curse. God is with us no matter what the circumstance and because God is with us we should rejoice. Theologian Karl Barth once called joy a “continual defiant ‘Nevertheless’.”
As quickly as Paul tells the people to rejoice he reminds them that, “The Lord is near.” One biblical scholar studied for years to fine a satisfactory synonym for the word “rejoice”. In his studies he actually discovered two. First there was “happy” . . . when we experience God’s blessings we can rejoice in the sense that we are “happy”. That makes sense. Who among us cannot rejoice when things are going well?
The second is a little different and the word is “take heart” or “have courage”. This is for those on the flip side of the coin . . . those whose lives are far from being blessings . . . those who are struggling. They too can rejoice in a way that means to “take heart” or “have courage”. Take heart . . . have courage . . . God is with you. Thus this biblical scholar remarked that the sort of rejoicing Paul calls for means to “be happy when circumstances allow it, but always to have courage.”
What the apostle is attempting to convey to those reading his letter—today or yesterday—is that because the Lord is always with us . . . always near, we should rejoice. Rejoice because we are not alone. God is with us . . . always with us. Because of this we have the capability to find joy and courage in any situation . . . the ability to rejoice in that which is good and in that which is bad, difficult, or adverse. And, Paul should know this as he is writing this letter from his prison cell where he waits to learn his fate.
This is something that we need to reminds ourselves about, especially now. Especially when we are going through these difficult times. We need to remind ourselves that God is with us . . . God never abandons us. It is easy to remember God’s presence when things are going well, but it is much more difficult when things have headed south and life is frustrating and difficult. That is what Paul’s letter to the congregation is about . . . reminding the faithful that God is always with us no matter what the circumstances, and because God is with us we should rejoice.
We live in a technological age. Computers and cell phones are pretty much the norm for many of us. Technology is great when it works . . . no problems, no complaints. It is only when technology begins to malfunction and no longer work that technology is a pain and huge frustration. What are we told to do when our technology malfunctions . . . when it quits working the way we expect it to work? We are told to “reboot” it . . . to crash it and restart it. Why? Because when you crash and reboot the computer or cell phone goes back to its original settings . . . goes back to its foundation . . . goes back to what makes it a computer or cell phone.
That is what the Apostle Paul is urging the people to remember—especially in the bad and difficult times. Paul wants them to reboot . . . wants them to go back to that knowledge that sustains them . . . that God is with them, always with them. Sometimes we need to reboot our faith . . . to remember that which sustains us . . . in order to get through the day. We need to remember that God is with us . . . always with us.
So, are you rejoicing?
No matter what our situation . . . what our circumstances . . . whether they are good or bad, we should rejoice. God is with us to dance when we have blessings to celebrate . . . and, God is with us shedding tears when we are suffering and in pain. God is with us when the sun is shining, when the rain is pouring. When we are gathered or we are separated from things like pandemics. God is with us in the birth and when there is death. God is always with us. We need to remember this . . . to rejoice.
If we cannot remember then we need to reboot. Reboot to get down to that fundamental truth that God is with us, always with us. In this we are blessed. Because of this we should rejoice just as the apostle asks us to do: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Rejoice . . . if you have forgotten that you are blessed, then reboot. God is with us . . . always with us. Amen.
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