When I announced to my support group, or my family as they like to be known, that I’d volunteered to contribute a piece on the topic of joy, and that in the run-up to Christmas too, there was some profound scepticism evident.
As I composed myself to begin typing, having listened to the rather depressing news on the Today Programme, my dog selected that opportunity to be sick and my cleaning skills had to be engaged instead.
Then I logged on to my new computer, which has taken quite a bit of setting up. The first task today was to resist a sophisticated attempt to scam my bank details.
I decided to persist. I am much better at dogged [sic] persistence than at overt joy.
However, the reason that I had wanted to say something about joy is that joy is what underlies my faith. In contrast to the plasticised bonhomie that despoils the celebration of God’s incarnation, and which is often what passes for joy, I refer to that authentic sense of God’s presence that pokes you in the ribs and makes you – well joyful. Often unbidden and more often in shadowy times.
For me, joy is one of those concepts that needs to be defined from experience rather than the other way round. You feel it and then wonder why. I go on to believe that it’s dangerous doing it back to front. If you begin by deciding what joy must be about and then impose that on the world, you could easily hurt those who don’t agree. For example, the last minute competitive present buying, just in case someone feels that they should expect another gift.
Here I become a bit strident. Read the Bible! Jesus Himself explains what joy really is.
‘I have told you these things so that you can have the same joy that I have and that your joy will be the fullest possible joy’. [John 15:11. NCV].
What things are they then? I want the fullest possible joy. Are the things that Jesus mentions about wealth and power? Are they about conforming? No, they are not. Jesus’ joy is about remaining within His love. That’s why joy underpins my faith.
To remain in Jesus’ joy, we have only one simple instruction ‘love one another as I have loved you’ [John 15:12 NCV].
In summary, the reasons that my family are wary of my attitude towards Christmas are the same as the reasons why I smiled when cleaning up dog sick and resisting the scammers. I want The Incarnation to be about Christ Jesus’ command to love one another and I resent anything that detracts from that. However, I can see ‘blingy Xmas’ in the same light as vomit and greed because the absolute, undying beautiful truth of God’s love provides my context. I have felt proper joyfulness and that is my incentive to work a lot harder at the means that Jesus prescribes.
That I still have quite a way to go is plain to see, but no one can take my sparks of joy from me now.
John Cartwright
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