For the Joy Set Before Us

“Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2, NIV

For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross. Jesus knew joy was coming. It just had not been brought to full completion yet. Today, my meditation journal prompted this consideration, “How does hope in Christ lead us to rejoice in every circumstance…?” I found myself responding with a resonant, “It doesn’t. It hasn’t.” If that is true? Why? Aren’t I supposed to rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, constant in prayer (Romans 12:2)? Why do I struggle so redundantly to see the joy set before me? Instead, I choose only to see what is directly in front of me and neglect the command to be hope-filled, patient, and prayerful, leaving me hopeless, impatient, and striving.

A Beautiful Countenance

While meditating on God’s word, I was reminded of a friend whose countenance seems to always bloom, while my expressions seem to wilt, fade, and return to the fallowed ground, sinking low. Her mentored face blooms upward. She is seasoned in life. It’s not that she has not faced hardship, it’s just that she has faced hardship well. I truly believe the difference in our countenance is due to the fact that I am looking down while she is looking up. She looks up because her redemption draws near (Luke 21:28). She does not look up because of her seasoned years. She looks up because of her confident faith (which may in truth come by her seasoned years). She has full assurance that God will be true to His promises, to His Word, as He has been in the past. For me, much like Thomas, my doubting heart wanders a bit. I’m full throttle, on fire, till I am not. I believe, until I don’t. Like Jacob, I wrestle and I come out maimed and injured, but less like a redeemed Israel (Geneses 32:22-32) and more like a wounded Judas (Matthew 27:3-5). Deep down, I know this is not who I am. I know my faith is not this small and my contemplative life this lacking, but I struggle to see clearly in the day to day. I struggle to remember my eternal hope and glory. I have not reconciled the hope set before me in my day-to-day living, to my future hope.

First World Problems

The sad reality is that I know that I am blessed. I know that people are facing much more challenging circumstances in much harder parts of the world. I believe the American struggle is most vehemently at war in the battle for our minds. The old Irish Proverb, “Better the Devil you know…” really reverberates here. We all know the Devil and by our evidenced behavior, we seem to know him well. But do we truly know God? We claim to. But it sure doesn’t look like we do. Our laugh lines are down. Our countenance low. We aren’t blooming. We are wilting and dying and the enemy is having a heyday in what should be our full-harvested fields of gold, ripe for the picking. We are not ready for the harvest. Sadly, we are still growing and stunted. We have been given so much and our return is so little. Like the wicked and lazy servant, we have squandered what we have been given by our gracious Master’s hand. The fields should be ready for the picking and instead the field is scattered, down-trodden, and wilting. We need to wake up to this reality before we are cut off. Like the rich man who walked away sad (Matthew 19:21-23), we walk away from the eternal hope that is God, toward our temporal vices. We use worldliness to cope with our lack of Godliness. Our hope is not set before us, our fear is. Hope is not even in sight. Joy, what joy? We are prone to wander, to complain.

He who knew no sin endured for the joy set before Him. I barely endure at all.

Enduring Hope

God offers us permanent anticipation, redeemed relationship, eternal peace for our restless souls, a future and ever-present hope (Psalm 46:1) in times of trouble. He offers the highest form of reconciliation that there is to offer and we collectively pass, say no thank you, and focus on our temporal woes, woes that do not hold a candle to the tribulation of our brothers and sisters and what they have endured for Christ around the world.

But today. Today I pray. Today I fix my eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of my faith. I prayerfully ask Him,

 “God, help me shift my eyes. Lord, give me eternal vision far beyond my temporal sight. Help me see that the joy set before me, is worth this desperate need of endurance. Lord, please make me a servant who stewards suffering well, for the joy set before her. Amen.”