Joy as Attitude

Christians ought to be affirmative about life in any context. Optimism is a factor in affirmation, but not the controlling one.  The word, optimism, has taken on some negative baggage in implying that the optimist may not be adequately informed about circumstances related to reality: naivete in the optimist or ignorance.  The matter depends upon one’s orientation, attitude toward problem solving, and sense of faith in circumstances, progress and providence.  God will win, and that ought to make God’s children persons of affirmation.  We affirm the gifts of God, his creation, his will and plans.  The Apostle Paul had many experiences that would have done in most persons.  The Apostle James simply states: Count it all joy.

Scripture includes a number of factors representing the context of God’s kingdom. Further, the implication carries forward that the meaning of immortality is already resident in God’s children during mortal years.  His children are identified as those who have accepted God’s redemptive gift in Jesus Christ.  Factors in all this include holiness, love, truth, joy, beauty, and other virtues that relate to the nature of personhood in God’s kingdom.  There is no sorrow (tears), no hatred (negation) – or the like in divine life.

Further to our understanding is that these factors are partially measured quantitatively to us in mortal life.  They proceed in elevation and quantification as we grow in spiritual graces.  For example, this is perceived in biblical contexts in the literary expressions of love and much love.  Jesus gave a vignette in Luke 7:45-50 of the woman who had given much time and attention to the worship of God.  Jesus said that she loved much.  He noted that there were stages of love.  Those who felt most deeply the forgiveness of God were most fully taken by the love of God, so to affect their own capacity for the love of God, and to affect their own capacity to love and be loved.  Jesus made clear that the woman had many sins, and in forgiveness learned how to love – much.  There is something to be learned here related to love tied to forgiveness.  Love is partly perceived in forgiveness.  Those who love are forgiving: those who forgive have higher love quotients than those who do not.  Those who forgive grudgingly have lower love quotients than those who forgive freely.  The consequence of all this is joy, not the only route to joy, but an important one of several.

Joy, like love and truth, can become a factor of our natures, introducing heaven to earth.  There is something divine in affirmations on earth.  Joy, love, truth, beauty, and the like are factors in the Fruit of the Holy Spirit.  Not all of the factors have been named for earth, but what we have is quite enough to make earth life in some way divine.  We may not perceive divine meaning. I have known some persons perceived less than beautiful or handsome, but their characters have been Christ-like so to be found beautiful.  Even some mates have remarked about the beauty of their mates far less physically attractive than themselves.  Martin Luther King accented the concept in his famous dream speech in which he called for persons to look for the beauty of character over the color of skin.  He was right on in this accent, but so many persons miss it, even among those who believe firmly in the basic faith of Scripture.  They may not have ever learned to live out character more than physical or intellectual gifts of God to persons.  I will never forget the plaint of a brother-in-law in talking to me about relationships, achievements, and life in general.  He was greatly disappointed that day when he realized that people gravitated toward him for his personality, but not for any competencies to improving life meaning.  After some years of close relationship with me, he said he had to get away from my shadow to find the factors of life for himself that he felt I taught and practiced – and he admired.  My response was that he ought to fold into his objectives the gift of attractive personality and appearance.  He did, and found his fulfillment.  Each person possesses his or her own gifts to employ.  The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, faith . . . against such there is no law.  (Galatians 5:22-23)