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Finding Unshakable Joy, Even in the Toughest Times
Published 20 days ago • 8 min read
Hello [FIRST NAME GOES HERE],
What if you could experience a joy that doesn't depend on your circumstances? A joy that can coexist with sorrow, anxiety, or confusion? It sounds impossible, but Jesus offers this joy to each of us. This week, we dive into John 15:11, exploring how to unlock this unshakable joy, especially when living with or supporting someone through brain health challenges.
In this article, "Overflowing Joy: Abiding in Christ Through Brain Health Challenges," we explore how Jesus' joy can become our own, offering a deep-seated peace rooted in our relationship with God. Discover how to actively abide in Him, even amidst the toughest symptoms, and find practical ways to connect with God through prayer, scripture, worship, community, and journaling. Learn how to experience a joy that overflows, impacting every aspect of your life and relationships.
Overflowing Joy: Abiding in Christ Through Brain Health Challenges
What if the key to unlocking unshakable joy lies in your connection with Jesus? John 15:11 holds this secret, a truth that can transform your experience of living with or supporting someone through brain health challenges. I don’t know about you, but I need all the help I can get when I’m facing a rough season. John 15:11 invites us to experience a joy that is both deep and resilient.
Imagine a joy that doesn’t depend on your circumstances, a joy that can coexist with sorrow, anxiety, or confusion. It sounds impossible, but Jesus offers this joy to you. In John 15:11, He reveals the source of this lasting joy and how, even amid brain health challenges, you can experience its fullness.
Before we get into the article, here's a word about book club...
In a previous article, Overflowing Hope: Finding Joy and Peace in Brain Health Challenges, we explored the God of hope in Romans 15:13 and how He fills us with hope. As we continue our journey, the natural outflow of hope is joy. John 15:11 gives us insight into this joy: “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” (NIV). This verse reveals that the joy Jesus spoke of is available to us, and our joy can also be made complete.
Better yet, this joy we speak of is not dependent on us. Jesus’ joy is the source of our joy, and it speaks to the completeness of that joy. In this article, we will explore how to abide in Christ, even in the face of brain health struggles, to experience an overflowing joy.
Understanding Jesus’ Joy
To understand how Jesus’ joy becomes our joy, we must first understand the nature of Jesus’ joy. In John 15, Jesus speaks to His disciples shortly before His crucifixion. Let’s take a step back a moment and gain a little context. Jesus is not in a situation that most people would describe as joyful. He is facing betrayal, suffering, and death, yet He speaks of His joy.
When I think of this story, I imagine being there with Jesus and the disciples as they await Jesus being taken by soldiers, awaiting his crucifixion, and death. I know, I left a lot out. I left out being falsely accused, tortured, and dying on a cross. I left out being buried and, more importantly, the resurrection.
While there is so much more to this story, if I imagine myself waiting with Jesus and the disciples, I cannot think much past the idea that Jesus is about to be tortured and die a criminal’s death. It’s hard to think of much beyond this because if I were there, I would fixate on the torture and death that Jesus is about to endure.
When I read John 15, Jesus says His joy was not found in His circumstances, but in His relationship with His Father. John 15:10 says, “If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love” (NIV). Jesus’ joy came from obeying His Father and remaining in His love. It was a joy rooted in His connection to God and His submission to God’s will. It was a joy that went beyond His present circumstances.
This is the joy that Jesus wants us to experience. It is not happiness that fluctuates with our mood or circumstances but a deep-seated joy rooted in our relationship with God. It can coexist with sorrow, pain, and even the challenges associated with mental illness. Theologian Albert Barnes notes that Jesus’ joy is a “joy which he himself had in the consciousness of his relation to the Father, and in the completion of his work.”
Abiding in the Vine: The Key to Experiencing Jesus’ Joy
In John 15:1-10, Jesus uses the analogy of the vine and the branches to illustrate how we can experience His joy. He says, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5, NIV).
To abide in Christ means to remain in a state of connection and dependence on Him. It is not a passive act, but an active and ongoing choice to:
Live in Union with Him: This involves a constant awareness of His presence and a reliance on Him.
Trust in Him: Even when our thoughts and feelings are chaotic due to brain health challenges, we choose to believe in His faithfulness and love.
Obey His Word: We seek to know and follow His commands, allowing His teachings to guide our decisions and actions.
Communicate with Him: We pray, not just out of duty, but as a heartfelt conversation with our Heavenly Father.
Receive His Strength: We acknowledge our weakness and depend on His power to sustain us.
For people experiencing brain health challenges, abiding in Christ can feel particularly difficult. Symptoms like depression, anxiety, and other cognitive difficulties can create significant barriers to experiencing this connection with God. Feelings of distance from God, difficulty concentrating on Scripture, and struggles with prayer are common.
However, in these very moments, abiding in Christ becomes even more critical.
5 Practical Ways to Abide in Christ Even When Facing Challenges
Intentional Prayer: Establish specific times for prayer, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Utilize helpful tools like guided prayers, prayer journals, or prayer apps to sharpen your focus.
Meditative Scripture Reading: Select short passages of Scripture and read them slowly, concentrating on a specific verse or phrase. If reading proves challenging, consider using an audio Bible.
Worshipful Listening: Listen to worship music that draws your heart closer to Jesus. Focus on the lyrics and let the music foster a connection with God.
Community Support: Connect with fellow believers who understand your struggles and can offer encouragement and prayer. Consider joining a support group such as Overflow or contacting a trusted friend.
Journaling: Jot down your thoughts and feelings, both positive and negative. Use this to process your emotions and express your heart to God.
The Completeness of Joy
John 15:11 speaks of Jesus’ desire that “your joy may be complete.” This “complete” joy is not a superficial happiness easily disrupted by difficult circumstances. Instead, it is a deep, abiding joy that is full and lacking nothing. As theologian J.C. Ryle writes, “Christ’s joy is a deep, abiding, and satisfying joy… It is a joy that can live in the midst of sorrow, pain, and even the challenges of brain health issues.”
This joy is not the absence of sorrow but the presence of Christ amid sorrow. It transcends our circumstances and rests in God’s unchanging character. It is rooted in our identity as children of God and our hope of eternal life.
Joy to Overflow
When we abide in Christ and experience His joy, we are filled to the point of overflowing. This joy should not be confined within ourselves; it is meant to overflow into every aspect of our lives. It affects our relationships, attitudes, and ability to persevere through trials.
This abundance of joy is a testament to God’s faithfulness and a source of strength for others. As we embrace this joy, even amidst our struggles, we showcase the power of Christ to sustain us and grant us a joy that the world cannot comprehend.
Conclusion
Jesus said in John 15:11 that He wants His joy to be in us so that our joy may be complete. This is an invitation to a joy that depends not on our circumstances but on our connection with Him. By abiding in Christ, we can experience His joy, even when facing brain health challenges. This joy is complete, full, and overflowing. May we, therefore, choose to abide in Him daily, trusting that He will fill us with His joy and empower us to live lives overflowing with His love and grace.
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Overflowing Hope: Finding Joy and Peace in Brain Health Challenges
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” – Romans 15:13 (NIV)
This powerful verse from Romans 15:13 is more than just a greeting; it’s a lifeline for followers of Christ at every stage in life. It speaks to the heart of what it means to live as a Christian when facing the daunting realities of brain health challenges. Whether you’re dealing with mental illness, supporting a loved one, or simply trying to understand how your faith intersects with these struggles, this verse presents a profound truth: God, the source of all hope, wishes to fill you with joy and peace.
While Overflow cares deeply about the community, we cannot respond to emergencies. If you need help with mental health challenges, please find a qualified mental health professional.
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