The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me…to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. (Isaiah 61:1-3 NIV)
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4 NIV)
I’m a huge fan of puns, or words with double meaning. Just recently, I found myself thinking about the concept of re-joycing, finding joy again or getting our joy back. So using the dictionary definition of “rejoice” with the prefix “re” in mind, this is what it has come to mean to me, “to feel or show great joy or delight…again.” “Is that even possible?” you might ask. Allow me to explain.
At first, the idea of finding joy again or getting our joy back might seem like a foreign concept for those of us who have had to navigate through depression, grief, loss, disappointment, setbacks and the list goes on and on. But from firsthand experience, I can testify that when we try to remain close to God, the source of all true joy, during the difficult times, we can truly re-joyce. This is what Paul experienced when he penned down these famous words while in prison, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” And Isaiah prophesied that one of the roles of the Messiah or Christ would be to bestow “the oil of joy instead of mourning.” Because of Jesus, we can re-joyce. No matter what we go through in life, we can get our joy back.
Rising with the Son 