Rejoice

A little while ago, something my youth pastor said led me to a passage of scripture. Since then, I have not been able to get it off my mind. I find myself reading it over and over, feeling like there is something more to be uncovered. Therefore, I’m going to do a little digging through blog posts.

 

1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 (NKJV):

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast to what is good. Abstain form every form of evil.

“Rejoice always.” That’s what verse 1

6 says. There are no limitations placed on it. Simply, rejoice always. Often times, this is difficult to do. It means that when your child is sick, rejoice. When your parents are getting a divorce, rejoice. When you’re bound in addictions, rejoice. When you don’t know where your next meal is coming from, rejoice. In all situations, rejoice!

This idea is foreign in today’s world. It is more common to complain when your demands aren’t met. People are encouraged to better themselves before rejoicing. Negative attention spreads faster than any sort of rejoicing. Mourning and complaining outnumber rejoicing. This might be the exact reason that Paul encourages rejoicing. Perhaps, he knows that by expressing joy in every situation, believers will be able to stand apart from the rest of the world.

Expressing joy amidst a circumstance which isn’t joyful goes against human nature. Praise be to God that we aren’t trapped within human nature any longer! Through Jesus, we can find ourselves rejoicing always. Our emotional expression can be rooted in the Holy Ghost instead of in our physical circumstance. Rejoicing always must be worked at, but it partially comes as a fruit of denying the flesh and establishing yourself in the Spirit.