Circumstances

Christians will say that our joy should not be dependent on our circumstances. This is not true. The reason we can be joyful when our immediate circumstances are painful is that our larger context, our greater circumstance is so wonderful. We are loved by the Creator of the universe. We have been given the Holy Spirit. We have been given the Church. We have been promised everlasting life and deliverance from sin. We have been promised everlasting relationships with a great host of people who have also been delivered from sin. We have been promised intimate relationships with God himself which, to a degree, we already enjoy. We can be joyful through trials because we don’t overvalue immediate difficulties. – E.O.