“Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10)

 

Over the past few years, I’ve heard this verse so many times. I’ve shared it with people, and people have shared it with me. Often, when the verse has come up, it’s been in those moments where life has been beyond hard. Like many people, I struggle with what Nehemiah is saying. Is it possible to have joy when life hurts you?

Joy is such a delightful word. It makes me think of many blissful moments like the first time I held each of my children. Or the time when I was at a friend’s party and a man smiled at me from the other side of the room, or the moment he asked to walk me home, and the months later that he asked me to become his wife. I think of the time I visited family and friends who I hadn’t seen in over two years … my body tingled with happiness and my eyes brimmed with tears … because of joy.

Interestingly, this verse has never been shared with me in those happy moments. Instead, it’s been shared when kids are sick, employment was lost, a cancer diagnosis was given, depression hit, and every other hard situation you can imagine.

I’m not sure if this verse has actually comforted me or made me feel worse when it’s been brought to mind. Most times, I don’t have joy when I face hard things. Do you? Is it possible then for us to find joy in the hard times?

I remember one day in particular. We were about to start life-saving treatment for my daughter who suffered from deadly food allergies. But along with the benefits of starting such a course of action came a massive list of risks. Medical professionals call it ‘informed consent’ and ethically it’s precisely what it should be. They tell you everything that could go wrong. In expressing consent, I was signing, on behalf of my child, that I was accepting the risks. I felt it was on me if anything went wrong.

The day before we were due to start, a friend sent me that verse. I don’t know why, but it triggered all my worries. Internally, I flipped between rage that we had to go through such a frightening season, to worry the treatment wouldn’t work, and then, quite frankly, to asking God how joy was possible at such a time.

I could feel tears coming, and I didn’t want my young family to see them. So I feigned the need for a shower. I sobbed behind the closed bathroom door, water washing away my tears.

At that moment, I heard God whisper, “look at it the other way!”

“Huh?” I replied.

“Look at the verse the other way,” he repeated.

I dried my tears, got dressed, and opened my bible to Nehemiah.

Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.

I rewrote it:

Your strength comes from the joy of the Lord.

I doodled for a while as I stared at the words, still not quite seeing what God wanted me to. 

Then, like so often happens, when you take a quiet moment to sit at the foot of the Father, something clicked. A realization. Who is the Lord? 

Well, the Lord is love! 

In that moment, joy wasn’t a feeling of happiness. It was theknowing that God was giving me the strength to reach out to him, to ask him into this situation. By doing so, I asked the almighty to be with our family as we started medical treatment. 

 

Joy wasn’t a feeling––I didn’t feel great for my daughter that she had to walk through such a hard thing. But a delight came knowing that the power, the majesty, and all the glory that God is, was willing to walk with our family. That is joy. That is the strength he was asking me to reach for. 

Zephaniah 3:17 states:

The Lord your God is among you,

a warrior who saves.

He will rejoice over you with gladness.

He will be quiet in his love.

He will delight in you with singing.

 

This is why we do not need to grieve when we face life’s hardships. Yes, there is a time for grieving, a time for mourning, and a time for everything under the sun. But here in this bible story and in our stories, this verse speaks of a restoration of God’s people to himself. 

God wants to restore us in every situation. 

God hears our prayers in every situation. 

And he says to us; I AM your strength in every situation.

Where does your joy come from?

A love letter from God …

Dear lovely one,

I have a gift for you. You’ll find it at the foot of the cross when you bring all your worries and concerns to me. I want you to stretch out your hand to me and say, Abba Father! 

I love you so much. I rejoice over you in gladness. You make my heart smile just by being you. Those moments in your life which have been joyFULL, I want you to have that in every season. But when times are tough, remember to reach out and ask for help. I am willing! And I AM a mighty warrior. I  am your protector, your hope, and your strength. And it is my delight to be your source of joy.

I see you, my beloved; I love you.

And I am with you always.

Love, God