Joy is not far off

On this Thanksgiving week, there will likely be many messages meant to cheer you, saying “Yes, this year has been hard, but think of all you have to be thankful for!”  Some of us will be able to receive that, but if those words just feel like a kick in the ribs in the middle of a hard season, take heart. In the midst of your sorrow, joy is not far from you.

In this “already, but not yet” world, joy and sorrow seem to hold hands, and I think we know this instinctively.  Even our most joyful moments have a small tinge of sadness because try as we might, we just can’t seem to keep those moments within our grasp.

As the poet Richard Wilbur writes:

“Joy’s trick is to supply
Dry lips with what can cool and slake,
Leaving them dumbstruck also with an ache
Nothing can satisfy.”

We look to Jesus and see that joy and sorrow and gratitude can all be contained in the same heart.  On the night before he was betrayed and crucified, he gave thanks to God as he broke the bread—his body given for us—and shared the wine—his blood shed for us (Luke 22).  In the depth of his sorrow over all he was about to endure, he paved the way for joy. In Christ, even our most sorrowful moments are somehow not without hope.

If this week is marked by sorrow more than joy, longing more than thanksgiving, know this—Christ is near. You do not have to force or muster or reach for your boot straps or convince yourself that your blessings outweigh your sorrows.  Jesus holds your joy, sorrow, and gratitude with scarred hands—and each one is at home in the heart of your King.  Joy and sorrow, longing and gratitude, all have a role in welcoming his Kingdom here on earth.

In this season, where the tension of the “already and not yet” is so palpable,  lean into longing as you look to our King who says, “Come to me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”  Even in the midst of your sorrow, a hopeful flicker of joy is possible, because the Source of Joy is transforming the broken things into something beautiful that will last, and making all things new. Jesus will fulfill every longing, wipe away every tear, bring resurrection from every loss. 

So today, even as we continue to wait to see this in full,  joy is not far off.