Sorrowful, meet rejoicing

What trial are you in right now and how do you feel about it? 

This was such a refreshing question I came upon this morning as I was listening to a sermon called "trial and Jesus" from Spring of 2009 by Pastor Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church. "Give yourself permission to feel," Pastor Driscoll, said.  This was a good reminder for me. I'm one who will hide behind scripture like fig leaves, as Adam and Eve did. That can easily become denial and lead to a fake face. Rejoicing doesn't mean not feeling. As the below scripture indicates, when you're in trial, it's OK to grieve. I have to remind myself of this.

"In this you REJOICE, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been GRIEVED by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ." -1 Peter 1:6-7.

So, grieving but rejoicing, how does that work?

Shortly after my mom died in 2010, I kept coming across the verse "as sorrowful, yet, always rejoicing" -2 Corinthians 6:10. I remember really wrestling with this, how can be sorrowful AND rejoice? It felt like some days were filled with just sorrow and others, just rejoicing. I couldn't find the balance and relationship between the two. Sorrow and rejoice were separate for me. Yet, scripture describes them in relationship with each other "sorrowful, yet ALWAYS rejoicing". Overtime, as I allowed these two to separate more and more, I found myself either not thinking about my mom or, focusing just on good memories and when I started to feel sorrow, I would try to escape it with the memories or hide behind scripture to avoid feeling the sorrow. I was seeking to rejoice in circumstances, rather than in God.

And, now, we meet again. Good ol sorrow and rejoice. 

Two years later and I'm still wresting with sorrowful and rejoicing. But, the more unpack it, the more I find peace in my circumstances by rejoicing in God.

Life is full of trial and it's OK to be grieved. "Jesus doesn't fix everything but he walks with us through it, said Driscoll." Also, it's important to remember we have a God who knows, understands and has felt our trials.

In walking through this health trial, sometimes I find myself doing the same thing I did with grieving. The danger in separating sorrowful and rejoicing is first, denial, second, not being honest or letting people in on our suffering, third, turning a trial into self pity instead of a time to rejoice or fourth, a temporary rejoicing in circumstances. Let me unpack this. 

Give yourself permission to feel. Any numbing agent will eventually wear off. The mask won't fit forever. Be authentic. Ask yourself, how do I feel about this current trial? Be honest with your community and let people in to walk through it with you. Remember that without rejoicing, sorrow, becomes self pity. Don't seek to just rejoice in the circumstance. For example, It's not bad to rejoice in good days when I don't feel sick, I should rejoice in that. It's not bad to rejoice in good memories with my mom. I should also rejoice in that as well. But, the everlasting kind of rejoicing where it can meet sorrow right in the middle is rejoicing in Jesus, rejoicing in heaven, rejoicing in Hope, rejoicing that it was finished on the cross, rejoicing that though we are tested by fire, our faith is being refined as more precious than gold. 

REJOICE, not in circumstance, REJOICE in Jesus. That is where sorrow and rejoice meet. 

As Paul says in the above verse, "You have been grieved by various trials". So, grieved is how we feel, so what do we DO? "In this you rejoice," But, how? 

With praise, glory, honor, rejoice with joy (not faking, avoiding, escaping or pretending), not in your circumstances but rejoice in God because that which is most important to you has been given to you as a gift.

"For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" Romans 6:23.

But, why do we rejoice, even in trial?

1. because God's mercy. 
2. because we've been born again and given new life.
3. for a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
4. because we have an inheritance that is nonperishable, unfailing and undefiled. If you respond rightly in trial, you are storing up treasures in heaven. 
5. because home is kept in heaven. And, our Salvation is secured and guarded by God. 
6. because our trial is just for "little while".  
7. because trial purifies our faith. Like gold, when heated impurities rise to the top which purifies and refines the gold. Sanctification is what happens after the heat of trial exposes the impurity of our life to make our faith more precious and more pure.

Rejoice in the results of the trial. 

 

Some material from: http://marshill.com/media/trial/trial-and-jesus#scripture