We’ve been talking about having joy in the face of difficulty this week. 

But what is joy, precisely?  Are we supposed to have fun in or be excited about our difficulties?  Should we pretend to be happy even when we’re not?  Or is joy something else entirely?

Well, the Bible mentions joy at least 59 times using the Greek word chara, which means inner gladness or delight.  It is etymologically connected to another Greek word, charis, which means grace and is where we get our word charity.

The word happiness, on the other hand, comes from the Latin word hap, which means chance, accident, or fortune.

So, if we think our difficulties are random chance, then we will be capable of happiness, but only when times are good—and that’s not joy.  But if our difficulties are from God, then we have another choice: Either God is being mean by imposing the difficulty on us, or God is being gracious by giving us exactly what He knows we need—and that is charity.

Happiness in the face of difficulty, in a way, makes no sense.  But joy in the face of difficulty is the knowledge that, whatever hardship we face, it is from God and it is for our good. 

Have a wonderful day.