Do you lament that moments of beauty, joy, and laughter in your life are so fleeting? It’s like one of those Instagram videos of a toddler eagerly smiling and accepting a slice of lime (“Ooh, a new food!”), which gives way to a puckered and confused expression (“Wait, what?!”). Moments of joy are too easily swallowed up by intrusions small and large. These joy interrupters could be the next hard thing on our rapidly expanding to-do list on a given day, or the shocking news of a loved one’s cancer diagnosis. Whether minute or monumental, the challenges and griefs of life in this fallen world can quickly overshadow our perception of the good that God brings into our lives.
What can we do about this? I’ve been considering lately how to amplify singular moments of joy or beauty that God gives me. I want them to be longer-lasting, more durable experiences of thanksgiving that coexist with ongoing hardship, sorrow, or struggle with sin. The answer is not to cover our eyes and put our heads in the sand regarding the difficult aspects of life. Sometimes these intrusions of suffering or sin are just too massive and tragic to ignore. What I want is to s-t-r-e-t-c-h joy out a bit. I want it to linger longer in my life. How might we expand these moments so that they make a deeper, more lasting impression on our hearts?
One starting point is to accept that grief and joy coexist in this life. Like it or not, they are both guests in our house at the same time. They are not sequential but simultaneous experiences. Too often when life is difficult, I think, “If I can just get around the corner of this difficulty, this sadness, this struggle with sin, then I can experience joy.” But the apostle Paul described his experience as “sorrowful, yet always rejoicing” (2 Cor 6:10). God’s design is that I notice and appreciate his goodness and care amid inevitable trials. Paul puts it this way: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thess 5:16–18).
Like me, you probably find this is easier said than done! I’m heartened by the fact that Jesus walked this road ahead of me. His entire life was hardship and joy intertwined. Perhaps this is seen most clearly on the eve of his crucifixion when Jesus spoke at length with his disciples and said these remarkable words: “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11). Our deepest joys and our greatest thanksgivings are tied to his redemptive work on our behalf. We abide in him (John 15:4–5). But his mercies are not only related to salvation. He takes care of his children now by granting a multiplicity of tangible kindnesses each day. So how can we grow in gratitude and notice these things? Let me suggest ten ways we can stretch a momentary joy into a more durable posture of gratitude.
Ultimately, these practices must be blessed by God and suffused by his Spirit. Stretching joy and embracing gratitude are not self-help projects. We are dependent on the Spirit’s work, softening our hearts and giving us eyes to behold the splendor of his providential work in our lives. Stretching moments of joy is an act of faith, in which we see Jesus in our mind’s eye seated on his throne, accomplishing his good purposes in our lives—amid beauty and brokenness alike (Heb 2:9).
Before us stands the promise of Jesus’s words—“You have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you” (John 16:22). At that point, when we see him face-to-face, our joy and gratitude will stretch on to eternity.
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