Almost everyone is familiar with the scripture “joy comes in the morning”. In fact, it’s actually become a cliché to me. Whenever I have a bad day I can always expect my mom to say “you’ll be okay joy comes in the morning” and it got to the point where I’d roll my eyes and cringe at the statement because it was never true for me. Most people know that I’ve been struggling with depression, and when you have depression no matter how hard you try or what circumstances you’re in you can still be sad. I could repeat to myself "joy comes in the morning" a million times and still wake up the next day too depressed to even get out of bed, but recently it hit me that maybe I’ve been looking at the scripture wrong. Maybe joy comes in your mourning.
"Joy comes in your suffering. It comes at the darkest hours when you need it most"
Joy doesn’t come based on the rise and setting of the sun. Joy comes in your suffering. It comes at the darkest hours when you need it most. I know it doesn’t make sense, but that’s because we look at joy the wrong way. There’s a difference between joy and happiness. Happiness is a fleeting feeling based on you’re circumstances. In Kay Warren’s book, Choose Joy, she defines joy as “the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of your life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be all right, and the determined choice to praise God in all things”. Joy is a heavenly gift that God gives us in order to provide strength during our struggles. Psalms 16:11 states, “In Your presence is the fullness of joy”. Meaning, that when we have the Holy Spirit in us He also gives us a spirit of joy. Wherever God is joy is there also.
"No pain, trial, or suffering is too big for the joy of the Lord to overcome."
That gift of joy is the reason why I could wake up every morning with a smile even though I had a chemical imbalance that caused me to be depressed. Joy comes in your mourning. God allows us to go through hard times in order to help us grow…you can call it growing pains. Here's the thing, He doesn’t bring us to trials without giving us the tools to bring us through it. That’s why He gives us joy in the midst of our mourning. It doesn’t mean that if you have the spirit of God in you you’ll never be sad and have a bad day. Even Jesus experienced deep sorrow and pain. Knowing that you have the Spirit in you and that in His presence is joy it gives you hope to know that the pain you’re feeling is only temporary. No pain, trial, or suffering is too big for the joy of the Lord to overcome. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” James 1:2-3
