Joy, No Matter What

Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

It's easy to be joyful when all is as it should be in our lives, isn't it? And being thankful comes naturally when we're getting exactly what we want.

Call me cynical, but I'm seldom impressed anymore when an athlete thanks God in a post-game interview following a big win. What impresses me is someone who joyfully gives thanks to God when they lost, when they're not on top, when they are suffering.

A little more than a month ago, I met someone who exemplifies this kind of character. I did a concert near St. Louis and a woman named O'Dean came up and introduced herself to us and asked if she could take us out to dinner.

Over dinner, it was a joy to get to know O'Dean – she has the kind of positive, giving personality that just energizes those around her. She smiles a lot; she is just a joyful person through and through and God's love and peace is alive in her. In this world, she is a rarity.

I could tell she really related to the songs I shared about Adessa and about the pain of losing her. I sensed there was an understanding in her that many do not have because they've never endured something similar.

As we asked her questions about her family, she shared something with us that surprised us, given her joy and warmth: she told us that her husband of thirty-five years, her “soulmate” as she called him, had died only a month ago. “We were inseparable,” she explained. “He worked from home, so we were always around each other.” They raised children together, traveled together, did everything together. O'Dean had cared for him through a long illness to which he finally succumbed earlier this summer.

It was obvious how much she missed him; a part of her own heart and soul was taken away and the pain was palpable. Yet O'Dean didn't express this through tears, anger, or isolating herself. She honored her husband by telling stories of how much he meant to her. She honored God by rejoicing even in the pain of losing him so recently, giving thanks for the many years they had together even as she mourned his loss. And she ministered to us that night in ways that went far beyond buying us a meal.

Now that is profound. O'Dean is a remarkable woman and I was blessed to meet her – I've thought of her often since that night. We stayed in touch with her and even sent pictures in the mail to her from stops further along in the tour. One of the things I've always loved about traveling and touring is meeting people like O'Dean – it is amazing how quickly you bond over a meal after a concert and you make a friend for life.

When I'm feeling discouraged, missing Adessa, and tempted to succumb to feeling sorry for myself, I think of O'Dean and remember the joy she had even in her sadness. That's the kind of character I want to exemplify in my own life. Isn't that what we all want in our lives?