Joy in the Midst, Not Allowing Troubles to be the Main Thing

(In the Moments) Better Than Life

May 1, 2025 robuck4@aol.com Leave a comment

Our family beach trip is a tradition we all look forward to every summer. Over the last few years, we’ve been to Wilmington, NC, Saint Simon Island and Tybee Island, Georgia, Saint Augustine, Florida and North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, not in that order.

A couple of years ago landed us at Fripp Island, a place of natural beauty, near Port Royal Sound in southeastern South Carolina. This land of abundant wildlife features long stretches of beach and picturesque marsh land.

Speaking of wildlife, the deer aren’t afraid of humans. Every morning they’d come up to our house looking for their breakfast of cereal, handed out by our grandkids.

We took walks along the surf, rode bikes, explored the island on a golf cart, and attended a beach worship service. We celebrated our four August birthdays, played games, enjoyed the surf, played disc golf, and went out to eat.

And we rested; my favorite part.

From the comments I’ve gotten, we all feel as if our time at Fripp was one of our best yet.

But, our time was not without its share of significant troubles. We had a jelly fish bite, a tic bite, a dog bite, and my son-in-law’s golf cart broke down. And, to top it all off, I had a near life altering eye injury, spending the last few hours of our vacation in emergency rooms and on an operating table in Charleston.

The trip was a true microcosm of life. Troubles happen. Despite our best efforts, some difficulties are unavoidable. It may sound strange, but the problems we faced, and the way we loved each other through them, added to the depth and quality of our time together.

Troubles weren’t the focus. The fellowship was. The difficulties didn’t destroy what we experienced. In fact, they gave opportunities for expressions of love, which would not have been possible without the hard times.

I want to take the richness of our beach experience and see what I can apply to all of life and the troubles we face.

After all, Jesus said, “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world (John 16:33 NASB). “

I am With You

On the night before His crucifixion, Jesus addressed his disciples, urging them to be courageous. Even though he was leaving them physically, His Holy Spirit would be their constant companion. Following are a couple of examples of what He said.

16 I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; 17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. (John 14:18-20 NASB)

26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. (John 14:26-27 NASB)

Jesus is with us. He commanded us to be courageous, not to let our hearts be troubled, to embrace His peace, and not to be afraid.

Our trials are not a surprise to God. He is at work in them for His greater purposes. God is conforming us into the image of Christ. [1] He is freeing us from the need to rely on the world for our joy, [2] showing us He Himself is our Great Reward [3] and our Highest Joy [4].

God reigns over every difficulty in our lives. Though God is not the author of evil, He uses our trials to produce endurance and to loosen our grip on the illusion of worldly satisfaction. [5]

The Lord desires for us to turn to Him for comfort, strength, courage, and peace during every trial.

Challenge

What troubles are you facing this moment? They don’t have to be our focus.

Sure, we have problems, some extremely difficult. But God is always with us. He places people around us to love and care for us. And when we call Him near, He infuses us with everlasting peace, joy, and love in our troubles.

King David wrote Psalm 63 while in the wilderness of Judah. Some scholars believe David wrote it while fleeing from his son Absalom’s rebellion.

Inspired by the Holy Spirit, in a very low spot in his life, he penned the following verses. Read them slowly and ask the Holy Spirit to soothe your heart with the realities of God’s truth, written for us today in our wildernesses.

O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly;
My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You,
In a dry and weary land where there is no water.
2 Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.
3 Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,
My lips will praise You. (Psalm 63:1-3 NASB)

God’s love and care for us is eternal. Him being with us is literally better than life itself.

Prayer

Dear Father God, my King and my Lord,

Thank You that Your presence and Your great love sustains me in all of life.

Please protect me from ever trying to forge out a way of life based on the circumstances and happenings around me. I trust and believe that You, and Your merciful love toward me, are better than life itself.

As I truly grasp the significance of this, I’m filled with the courage which comes from Your nearness.

I love You Lord.

Amen.

[1] Romans 8:28-29

[2] John 8:36

[3] Genesis 15:1

[4] Psalm 16:11b

[5] James 1:2-4

Other posts in our series In the Moments:

Sorrowful, Yet Always Rejoicing

Exploring Grace and Joy together

Stay Present My Friends

Quiddity. It Could Change Your Life

The Cake Maker’s Blunder

God at Work (No Trespassing)

Hidden with Christ in God

Finding Joy in Love and Relationships

Escaping the Rat Race

When I don’t Feel God’s Loving Kindness

Experiencing Completeness in Christ

Overcoming Pain Through Faith

Recalibrating Our Hearts

The Joy of Waiting

On the Fifth Day God Created Dog

When Things get Really Hard

A No Lose Situation, Even with Cancer

Hey Pop

Mustering Our Faith

Lord, You’ve Got to this. I Can’t

Joy in the Journey is about the gladness of God’s nearness in the midst of life’s adventures.

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Robby Buck

Nonfiction books by the Author:

Because joy is rooted in God and is eternal, it doesn’t ebb and flow with the waves of circumstances. In fact, as we grow in our understanding of joy, we can even experience it more acutely when life is hard. Why? Because God uses trials to conform us into the image of Christ. With this awareness, which gives us glimpses of God’s greater purposes, we rejoice because of His masterful work to free us from needing anything but Him.

For these reasons, and many others, joy in the Lord is commanded in scripture. It’s not just a good idea, it’s vital to our journey as human beings. Rhythms of Joy

Novels by the Author:

What happens when a professor figures out how to send messages to his younger self to try and avoid the suicide of his best friend? Did he change more than he bargained for? Beyond Time

By finding two undelivered letters in an old shack deep in the woods, Cassie and Daniel unknowing set off a series of events which uncover a plot to wipe out a whole family Hope Remains

Please Check out the Cola City Podcast . Discussions that impact the vision of reaching every man, woman, and child in a city.

Empowered by the Holy Spirit, Our Union with Christ

(In the Moments) Lord, You’ve Got To Do This. I Can’t.

April 24, 2025 robuck4@aol.com Leave a comment

My father was at a low point in his life. He’d lost his marriage, his home, and his ability to live a normal life. Alcoholism imprisoned him. I tried to comfort him, but my words didn’t help.

One day, I read Jesus’ words to him, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30 NASB).

I explained to Dad that Jesus wanted to give him rest from his life shattering burden and to shoulder what he’d been carrying for so long. He wept.

As a child, my grandparents had taken my dad to church, but the philosophies of the military college he attended led him to doubt God’s existence. When I was growing up, my mom was the one who took us to church. Dad rarely joined us.

But Jesus’ words that day opened up the eyes of his heart.

Come to Me

I love these verses as well. They speak deeply to my often-burdened heart. Sometimes, because I’ve moved ahead of God to do my own things, or, because of the ferociousness of life, I feel weary and heavy-ladened, just like Dad.

“Weary and heavy-laden” – fatigued and over-burdened.

“Come” – “come hither” or “come this way”.

Jesus invites us to come to Him and remain with Him, to journey with Him. He promises to give us true rest, to take our burdens upon Himself, to teach us His gentle, humble heart as we travel together.

Dad’s Conversion and Continued Struggles

Eventually, Dad entrusted his life to Christ. We went to Bible studies together, and he was a part of our small group. He’d have seasons of sobriety, but he still struggled.

There was a gap between his reality and the deliverance he longed for. He went to alcoholics anonymous meetings and was in and out of rehab centers.

All along, he’d been asking God to help him quit, but it wasn’t working.

Lord, You do it, I Can’t

One day he came to the end of himself and cried, “God. I’ve tried everything I know. This isn’t working. I can’t do this. You’re going to have to do it.”

At that moment, Dad stopped asking God to help him. He started asking God, who Indwelled Him, to be his self-control.

A bit later, after cutting the grass, he opened a beer and took a sip. It tasted horrible. He poured it out and never had another drop to drink the last fifteen years of his life.

Our Union with Christ

Dad modeled for me a powerful truth. Christ Himself is our life.

Jesus said. “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5 NASB).

Paul said it this way, “for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13 NASB)

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me (Galatians 2:20 NASB).

God never designed us to live life apart from Him. God pierced Christ for our transgressions [1] so that He might share His life with us. By God’s doing, we’ve been placed in Christ [2] and seated with Him in heavenly places. [3] We’re indwelt by the Holy Spirit of Jesus. [4]

As children of God, we’re new creations. [5] We’re united with Christ. God’s purpose is to transform us into the image of His Son. [6] But His way is not for us to try harder to improve ourselves. We died and our lives are now hidden in Christ. Christ now is our life. [7] We’re to yield to Him.