Father, help us to seek the values that will bring us lasting joy in this changing world. In our desire for what you promise make us one in mind and heart. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. AMEN
My brothers and sisters ,whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you. But ask in faith, never doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind; for the doubter, being double-minded and unstable in every way, must not expect to receive anything from the Lord. James 1:2-8
“Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” Joy is something that I strive for but do not always reach. So often I find myself angry or annoyed by something or someone. For years I have struggled with joy because I fall short of being a joyful person.
It was not until I changed my mindset and my relationship with Christ that I was able to find constant joy in my life. Don’t get me wrong, there are still days where I wake up and am crabby for no apparent reason or I get stuck in traffic at the worst possible time.What has changed for me, though, is that I have chosen to see the blessings that the Lord has poured into my life with each new day.
This has changed everything for me! With each new day we can look to how the Lord is working in our lives; even something as small as the sun shining is a gift from God and if we realize that we will learn to live lives of joy.
After finding joy in our everyday lives we then need to find that same joy amidst our trails. Through our trials we can come closer to the Lord, but this is not easy to do. I often find myself wanting to do great things for the Lord, but despair at the smallest inconvenience or trail. It is through looking back at the trials and seeing how they brought me closer to God that I am able to find joy in those trials.
My hope is that I will learn to find that same joy in the middle of those trails and that is my hope for you as well!
Persevere in your faith, Daughters of Christ!
To Jesus through Mary-Marykatherine
