Joy is…

Piper’s devotional for today is about the failure of ‘stuff’ to make us happy. He gives stats showing the poor vs. the rich and how being rich does not do it. This is a common idea: money does not buy happiness.

How about defining the terms? Christians tend to define happiness differently than joy. Joy lasts and is not about circumstances. Happy is about circumstances. While I can be happy with what happens, difficult circumstances cannot rob me of joy.

Piper gets most of his biblical quotes from Proverbs which are general truths or common principles, not false, yet definitive in many cases. For instance, one says: “Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it.” (Proverbs 15:17) This does not mean that all dinners of herbs are better than a feast. Instead, this describes the contrast between love and hate using two kinds of meals.

That said, my experiences show a few different ‘proverbs’ about having stuff and being happy can also be true. For example, I know some very wealthy people who are miserable, but others with scads of money who know Jesus Christ and are joyful all the time. Their joy isn’t in money.

I also know poor people who struggle to make ends meet. Some of them are worried all the time and complain often about their lot in life, but others are happy with a contagious joy, no matter how little they have. These are the people who also know Jesus. Their joy is not about stuff.

My conclusion: joy is a fruit of being filled with the Holy Spirit and trusting God, no matter what my bank balance says. Joy is the delight of knowing the Lord and knowing He is in charge. He “owns the cattle on a thousand hills” and gives me all that I need, including contentment. Being happy with what I have is a by-product of joy. But if I let happiness depend on what I have rather than on the source of it, the Holy Spirit, then I will be anxious, wanting more, etc.

These verses contrast having stuff with not having stuff, and use that to illustrate the contrast between living my life as God directs (through His Spirit) and living my life according to my selfish desires. It isn’t about stuff, but about what I want vs. what God wants. It is not sinful to be rich unless I make riches my resource, my god. Here is the list from Proverbs:

Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues with injustice. (Proverbs 16:8)
It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor than to divide the spoil with the proud. (Proverbs 16:19)
Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife. (Proverbs 17:1)
Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity than a rich man who is crooked in his ways. (Proverbs 28:6)
Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner, but blessed is he who is generous to the poor. (Proverbs 14:21)
Whoever gives thought to the word will discover good, and blessed is he who trusts in the Lord. (Proverbs 16:20)

These verse are illustrations. They could be written another way that is also true.

Great riches can be a blessing to many in the hands of someone who is righteous.
Those who have much are blessed to share it with those who are needy rather than with others who also have much.
A banquet filled with joyful noise is better than a silent meal where those present will not talk to each other.
A rich person who is known for honest integrity is better than a poor person who lies and steals to supply his meager needs.
Sadness comes from neglecting or hating the needy to wallow in all that I have.
All negative emotions and misery are mine when I am totally selfish instead of reading and heeding the will of God and trusting Him. 

 I could add what others say, like George MacDonald: “Happily for our blessedness, the joy of possession soon palls.” The sad part is thinking that having bigger, better, more, or the latest stuff will renew or restore that joy, but even if it does, that happiness  does not last. To suppose it will just keeps me in a self-centered cycle.  I have also noticed that some people have all they need and more, but still whine and complain as if they are terribly hard done by.

PRAY: Lord, You brought me into Your kingdom when I was very poor and let me see how You not only supplied all my needs but gave me that joyful contentment that outlasts and out-weighs any other source of delight. I’ve been poor and I’m also rich, not in mere money (who can take it with them to eternity), but in knowing that no matter what You give or withhold, joy never depends on the gifts but the Giver. Thank You.