Joy in our weakness

As regular readers may have noticed. Our family is having kind of a "blue Christmas." That makes it tough to write about this week's Advent topic, joy.

It's finally occurred to me 1) that true joy is not necessarily the same thing as a temporary sense of being chipper and bubbly and 2) there are no doubt plenty of people who, like me, are having a hard time figuring out how to find joy, genuine, saccharine or otherwise. So I'd like to share a powerful resource with you. Joy in our Weakness, by Marva Dawn, is an amazing book that can help us discover genuine joy in the most painful and confusing times.

"Neither a commentary on the book of Revelation nor a devotional work -- though it offers aspects of both -- Joy in Our Weakness is instead a theological and practical guide that ushers readers into the very presence of Christ and His Lordship over the powers of evil. Marva Dawn writes compassionately for those who suffer, for this book was born out of her own struggles with physical limitations and chronic illness, and it is intended to help the whole Church learn how to find Joy in every circumstance of life, especially in trials and sufferings... The Revelation's original purpose -- to comfort afflicted, suffering believers..." From the Synopsis on Barnes & Noble.com

Bad things happen to good people, but God wants to wipe away every tear. What is more, He wants to turn our ugly hurt into something beautiful and useful. No matter what we've been through, He can use it, and use us to help others face what they have to go through. That gives hope and peace through sharing His love.

Promise I'll write more about joy tomorrow, but I'm pressed for time today.

Me ka pule,
Ted