09/19/2021 – Are we surprised by joy or by sorrow? (from “Here and Now” by Henri Nouwen) // 1 of 2 – See 09/24 post for Henri’s answer//
God is unfathomably amazing! I was going to post an excerpt from “Dark Agenda – The War to Destroy Christian America” by David Horowitz. But waking up from a dead sleep at 4:00 am, the Holy Spirit is telling me to post this instead. And it happens to coincide with profound sorrow in my life right now.
This is from chapter two – “Joy”, section four: “Surprised by Joy”. At the end I will share some key excerpts from the first three sections that brought us to section four. Next weekend, I will continue on with the concluding sections through section eight. I have not decided whether or not that will be a multiple weekly post. But suffice to say, I encourage y’all to buy the book, ISBN reference 0-8245-1409-2. The entire book is less than 150 pages, but speaking personally, I expect to be continuing the harvest of a huge return from the mustard seed of chapter two. As I have noted before, it is not about the messenger, but Henry Nouwen lived with this daily struggle (*A) , and he chose to be surprised by joy, not sorrow. And so can we, by the grace of God as well. (See below – “Joy is a choice!”) Bear in mind, Henri Nouwen wrote this book in 1994, so it may seem on an evil scale rather “tame” and “understated.” But in no way, is the message less relevant from a Christian worldview.
*A: (Jimmy note: And I might add, you probably won’t read about this struggle in a published bio either.)
But let’s get on with Section Four: “Surprised by Joy”:
“Are we surprised by joy or by sorrow? The world in which we live wants to surprise us by sorrow. Newspapers keep telling us about traffic accidents, murders, conflicts between individuals, groups, and nations, and the television fills our minds with images of hatred, violence , and destruction. And we say to one another: “Did you hear that, did you see that … isn’t it terrible… who can believe it?” Indeed it seems that the powers of darkness want to continue to surprise us with human sorrow. But these surprises paralyze us and seduce us to an existence in which our main concern becomes survival in the midst of the sea of sorrows. By making us think about ourselves as survivors of a shipwreck, anxiously clinging to a piece of driftwood, we gradually accept the role of victims doomed by the cruel circumstances of our lives.
The great challenge of faith is to be surprised by joy. I remember sitting at a dinner table with friends discussing the economic depression of the country. We kept throwing out statistics that made us increasingly convinced that things could only get worse. Then, suddenly, the four-year-old son of one of my friends opened the door, ran to his father, and said, “Look, Daddy! Look! I found a little kitten in the yard… Look! Isn’t she cute” While showing the kitten to his father, the little boy stroked the kitten with his hands and held it against his face. All at once everything changed. The little boy and his kitten became the center of attention. There were smiles, strokes, and many tender words. We were surprised by joy!
God made a little child in the midst of a violent world. Are we surprised by joy or do we keep saying: “How nice and sweet, but the reality is different.” What if the child reveals to us what is really real?”
And here are short excerpts from the first three sections:
“-One – Joy and Sorrow:
Joy is essential to spiritual life. Whatever we may think or say about God, when we are not joyful, our thoughts and words cannot bear fruit. Jesus reveals to us God’s love so that his joy may become our joy and that our joy may become complete. Joy is the experience of knowing that you are unconditionally loved and that nothing — sickness, failure, emotional distress, oppression, war, or even death — can take that love away.
Joy is not the same as happiness. We can be unhappy about many things, but joy can still be there because it comes from the knowledge of God’s love for us… sorrow and joy can exist together……
-Two – The Choice:
… There are always sorrowful and joyful sides to the reality we live. And so we always have a choice to live the moment as a cause for resentment or as a cause for joy. It is the choice that our true freedom lies, and that freedom is, in the final analysis, the freedom to love.
-Three – Speaking About the Sun:
Joy is contagious, just as sorrow is… Those who keep speaking about the sun, while walking under a cloudy sky are messengers of hope, the true saints of our day.”
—————– end of excerpts —
Jimmy comment: So the next time the Devil tries to surprise us with sorrow, we can tell him to “stick it where the sun doesn’t shine!” haha
Soli Deo Gloria!
Love,
Your brother in Christ,
Jimmy