PASTOR’S CORNER, Jeremy Harris, First Southern Baptist Church, Liberal

“For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” ~ Philippians 1:21

Continuing my series on Paul’s words to the Philippians and how they can help us overcome the joy stealers in our lives.

Joystealer #2 - People…the good, the bad, and the ugly…

Much like the things in our lives, people can be a great source of joy. However we all know that sometimes, people can steal the joy right out of our lives. There are people we expect cruelty or ugliness from and even when they prove us right it hurts and hinders our joy. There are people we trust who don’t always treat us the way they should and those hurts can be even worse. Heroes fall, leaders become corrupt, and friends don’t always have our backs. I’ve heard more than one pastor say that church work is pretty enjoyable if it weren’t for the people.

So how do Paul’s words help us protect our joy from the people around us? Again, they point us to our identity and purpose. When our identity is found in Jesus, and our purpose is sharing Him with others we gain a new perspective with people. When we try to look at the people around us through the lens of Jesus (how would He see them) it gives us an angle from which to consider what people say and do. People’s words and actions do not have to have the final say in our joy!

Viewing the world through a Jesus lens does not mean that people will suddenly stop failing or hurting us. Since Adam and Eve chose to rebel against God’s plan in the Garden of Eden, humans have struggled with selfishness which leads to conflict. As long as people act in a way that does not conflict with what you think or want, you get along just fine. As soon as someone decides they want something different than you…wham! So, how does a Christ like perspective help us in these situations?

• We can remember how we used to be (still are when we don’t listen to the Holy Spirit). Remembering that we aren’t always perfect can help us be patient with others while guarding our joy.

• We can be humble enough to recognize that sometimes the conflict is our fault and we can apologize and work to make it right.

• We can see them like Jesus would…with compassion…it is harder to lose your joy over people's actions when you are actively praying for them and pointing them toward Jesus.

Over and over in the gospels we read about Jesus having compassion for people. Even to the point of praying “Father, forgive them…” when He was hanging on the cross.

When we view people with Jesus’ eyes we see fellow unique creations of God whom Jesus loves and died for. This doesn’t make them better people, but it should start molding us into better people whose joy is found in loving God and loving others. (Even when they aren’t always lovable.)

Until next week