Dr. Dale Miller, October 8, 2006

Multiply the Joy

First in a five-part series on taking our church to the next level

Philippians 4:4-7

When I was a teenager I always marveled at the expressions on the faces of people when they received Holy Communion during a Sunday morning worship service. In fact, it wasn't just their faces; it was their whole body language and demeanor. As they would come forward to the communion rail they would move somberly and slowly. Their heads would be bowed and their eyes were focused on the worn-out blue carpet that adorned the center aisle. They shuffled their feet, which was somewhat exciting in the wintertime as static electricity was being built up in their body only to be released when they accidentally touched the person next to them at the communion rail. Their faces were so glum that one could imagine that the Internal Revenue Service had just audited them.

I can remember thinking, "Where is the joy? If communion is about God loving us through Jesus Christ, no matter who we are, then how come people aren't happy to receive that love in their lives? Why do they look like they just buried their best friend?" In other words, is it all right, as followers of Jesus Christ, to be joyful? Or do we put on a sober Puritan facemask of self-righteousness?

In the book of Philippians (4:4) we find these words: "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice." In the Gospel of John (15:11) we read, "Jesus came that our joy may be complete." In the Gospel of Matthew (25:21) we find, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant…Enter into the joy of your master." And in the book of Nehemiah (8:10) we hear, "The joy of the Lord is your strength."

Retired United Methodist Bishop Ernest Fitzgerald used to tell the story about a train that stopped somewhere in southern Georgia to take on water for the engine. A man on the train saw a local old-timer leaning against the depot platform, and he yelled to him: "Anybody around here enjoy religion?

The old-timer shuffled his feet and replied: "Them that has does!" United Methodist pastor James Moore responded to this story by saying: "Now, wouldn't you like to find that fellow and shake his hand? He made a major accomplishment with his answer. He spoke four words and made four grammatical errors! Isn't that something? Four English mistakes in a four-word sentence! That takes talent!"

Then he went on to say: "Though his English was terrible, his theology was terrific. Forget how he said it and remember what he said. The question was, 'Does anybody around here enjoy religion?' His answer was, 'Them that has does!' That translates as 'Those who really have religion are radiantly joyous people!' Real religion does not make us somber, sullen, and sad; rather, real Christian faith makes us happy, confident, and glad."

Too many followers of Jesus Christ have not made this joyous discovery. We do not think of faith as a source of joy. We are pious, but we are not happy. We are conscientious, but not radiant. We are dedicated, but not joyful. Too often our personalities are serious, heavy and burdened. We scowl more than we smile.

If the Nardin Park family of faith is going to build a solid community of believers that is going to be receptive to the grace of God and to the excitement and enthusiasm of serving Jesus the Christ, then we must claim and proclaim the joy of God's love in our lives. Without the joy of our faith we will never completely be the church that God intends us to be. Why do I believe this?

Our world desperately needs followers of Jesus Christ who are happy, joyful and confident. The Gospel offers us joy, not a silly giddiness, but a deep abiding joy that stays with us even in the gloomiest of circumstances. Happiness, gladness, confidence, abundant living - these are certainly a part of Christ's legacy to us.

The word gospel literally means "good news" or "glad tidings." If we do not have this sense of joy, if we do not have this deep spirit of happiness, then we are missing something God wants to give us; we are missing something basic to the Christian faith.

A friend once asked Austrian composer Franz Joseph Haydn why his church music was so full of gladness. Haydn replied, "I cannot make it otherwise. I write according to the thoughts I feel; when I think upon my God, my heart is so full of joy that the notes dance and leap from my pen; and since God has given me a cheerful heart, I can do no other than serve Him with a cheerful spirit."

Haydn knew who he was and how he operated. If we are going to experience the joy of our faith we need to get in touch with our real self. We need to experience our freedom and wholeness of faith by tapping into the sources of joy.

One source of joy is a sense of wonder. We have a sense of wonder that we are alive, that we live and breathe, move and love. We live in awe of the grace of God in our lives. God loves us far beyond anything we might anticipate or expect.

Sometimes, we have difficulty loving ourselves. We look down on ourselves, think more poorly of ourselves than we have a right to, suffering from low self-esteem. Even then, God loves us. This is an amazing wonder.

Another source of joy is learning how to relax and have fun. There is an ancient saying: "Live well. Laugh often. Love much." The second part of this saying suggests that we understand laughter and having fun deeply and profoundly. The capacity to enjoy live is an extraordinary gift we can give to ourselves. Indeed, as we relax and have fun, we give this gift to all of those around us. Laughter is contagious. Relaxing relaxes those around us.

We are too often tense and tight, nervous and anxious, mostly over things that, in the long haul of life, amount to very little. We allow ourselves to be distracted by petty matters that are of minor consequence. We become preoccupied with these small difficulties, and in the process we become tense and tight, unable to relax.

Church consultant Ken Callahan often tells his audience, "Relax, have fun, enjoy life, live in Christ." It is Ken's assertion that as we learn how to relax and have fun, in the deepest sense possible, we are more able to live lives of joy, deeply and profoundly.

Still another source of joy is living in and trusting God. When the Roman Empire was thriving there was a saying, "The city of Rome is eternal." It was the phrase that the Roman legion thought of as they marched into battle, that shopkeepers knew would sustain their businesses, and that families counted on in their living and dying. Rome is eternal. In 410 A.D. Rome was sacked and the Roman Empire eventually collapsed.

In response to the devastation, Augustine, the Bishop of Hippo, revised the original phrase to become, "The city of God is eternal." All civilizations rise and fall, come and go. For Augustine, the appropriate declaration of that time was, "The city of God is eternal." In our time, the helpful way forward is to confirm that the mission of God is eternal.

In Isaiah 40:89, we read these words: "The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of God will stand for ever." In our time, the words have this meaning: "The grass withers, the flower fades, but the mission of God shall stand forever." With this confidence, we can live in and trust God.

If we are going to experience the joy of our faith we need to touch somebody, someone else. The human hurts and hopes of persons all around us cry out for help, hope, and home. These are urgent, desperate times. These times invite our deepest compassion. We will have experiences of sorrow, despair, depression, and despondency. It comes with the terrain.

Singer Pearl Bailey was being interviewed and was asked how she felt about all the acclaim and adulation she gets as people surge around her after a performance. She replied:

"Why do they run [to me]? What are they seeking? Love. And with outstretched hands, it's given. The young smile and joke; the old look for hope. Whatever has been given must be shared by all; not relished, but shared. Love is so frighteningly beautiful. Why do they cry? Is it for me or for them? I choose to think it's for "deliverance from despair." I see their souls, and I hold them gently in my hands and because I love them they weigh nothing. God has set them there so gently I can enjoy their love…I also feel a great healing power so when they run up to the stage and we touch, I am healed and so are they."

We need one another. We need to give support and affirmation and acceptance to others. Touch somebody, and know the joy of God. We can live in and trust God. Sorrow invites joy. Despair invites mission. Depression invites compassion. The way forward is hope. The joy of the Lord is our strength.

God has given us a new day. This is a time for joy. Just when some of us have thought that life was about half over, and all we had to do was stay out of major trouble until the end, our God gives us a new day. We want our lives to count. We want our lives to be more than a pleasant merry-go-round that goes nowhere, where the music is charming, the company congenial, and the activities busy and sociable.

God invites us to be involved in the joy of discipleship. Our lives count in an extraordinary way. It is not always pleasant. Life is complex, ambiguous, and tenuous. There are occasions when we feel more battle fatigued, bleary eyed, and burned out than ever before. These are times when we draw on the joy of our faith that brings out our best creativity, competencies and compassion.

We live with a sense of wonder about life the discipleship and mission that God gives us. We learn how to relax and have fun amidst the tensions of the times. We develop our ability to express our feelings constructively and helpfully. We live in and trust God. We live in joy.

Father Giovanni, in the 16th century, wrote these beautiful words:

I am your friend, and my love for you goes deep…
No heaven can come to us unless our hearts
Find rest in today…
No peace lies in the future which is not hidden
In this present little instant…
The gloom of the world is but a shadow,
Behind, and, yet within our reach, is joy.
There is radiance and glory in the darkness,
Could we but see, and to see, we have only to look.
Life is so generous a giver, but we,
Judging its gifts by their covering,
Cast them away as ugly, or heavy, or hard.
Remove the covering, and you will find beneath it
A living splendor, woven of love, by wisdom, with power…
Life is so full of meaning and purpose,
So full of beauty - beneath its covering -
That you will find earth but cloaks your heaven.
Courage then to claim it: that is all!
But courage you have; and the knowledge that we
Are pilgrims together,
Wending through unknown country, home

I love that phrase, "Within our reach is joy!" Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!

In the late 1800s a Boston newspaper printed this item about a great New England preacher and author of "O Little Town Bethlehem": "The day was dark and gloomy, but Phillips Brooks walked down Newspaper Row and all was bright." Wouldn't it be wonderful if our lives could bring that kind of joy into the lives of other people?

Claim and proclaim the joy of God in your life. Let everyone see and experience the joy of your faith. Amen!

Do you remember this camp song?

I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart, down in my heart, down in my heart
I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart, down in my heart to stay. 

Let's sing it!