Counting Down the New Year with Joy



James 1:2

Count it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you meet trials of various kinds. 

My wife is a big fan of the USA television series Burn Notice. The lead character Michael Westen (above) is a former spy who was burned (booted from his position in espionage for unknown reasons). So, now he is a sub-contractor of sorts doing jobs that cross legal  lines in order to punish the bad dudes. He is also trying to find out who "burned" him so that they can chat...

Mr. Westen has a disturbing pattern of smiling when facing unpleasant events. Like when someone has a gun up in his face. I told Lina it looks like that smile that Napoleon Dynamite had...a disconnect from reality. In  the spy game, I suppose it is wise to not let the enemy know that he is getting to you with the repeated kicks to the groin, so perhaps smiling is occupational necessity like being tall is for basketball.

James seems to be advocating the same approach to trials.Smile in the face of suffering. Yet, joy is a deeper quality than just putting on a happy face in a world that very often should cause us to frown. This joy is based on the reality that God can even use negative antecedents to bring about positive consequences.





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