To "BE"

I have always possessed the uncanny ability to awake in the morning without the aid of an annoying alarm clock.  I can probably count on one hand the times I have actually set an alarm, only to wake up and shut it off about fifteen minutes before the set time.  This morning I turned my head over on my pillow and looked at my bedside clock and noticed that it read 8:15.  I was pleasantly surprised as I haven’t been able to sleep that late into the morning for probably a year and a half!

I arose from the bed with a smile on my face and joyful scriptures running through my mind.  As I went into the kitchen to brew some sizzling hot java, I stopped at the large sliding glass door off our dining area, drew open the blinds and looked out on the glorious… cold, wet with dew from the thick fog, grey morning. Even the normally fluorescent yellow flowers on the two zucchini plants seem to dull in the face of the dreary looking day.

Instantly I was faced with a decision.  To let the joy that I had been feeling escape in the overwhelming evidence that met my eyes, or to continue to rejoice and let the inner bright and shining Son-light fill and warm my day.  What would you do?  I chose to stay with the inner input that had been reviving my spirit as well as my emotions and let the joy of the Lord be the foundation for what I was believing to be a great and glorious day!

Philippians 4:4 in the God’s Word translation reads, “Always be joyful in the Lord!  I’ll say it again: Be Joyful!”  I think that the little verb “Be” is the central element in Paul’s command to the Philippian Church, as well as to us today.  According to the American Heritage College Dictionary, to “Be” means, “To exist in actuality; to have life or reality; to occupy a specified position or to remain in a certain state or situation undisturbed, untouched or unmolested.”

So according to Paul, who was shipwrecked, whipped, stoned and left for dead on numerous occasions, we should live in an undisturbed, untouched or unmolested state of JOY no matter what is happening to us or around us!  Joy is to “Be” the specified position that we occupy in our daily lives!

When I returned to California following our three year stay in Oklahoma, I was able to transfer with The Home Depot as a supervisor within the newly formed Merchandising Execution Team.  Our group traveled between stores setting up displays, merchandising the isles, training store employees on new products and worked closely with the individual store management teams to assure that their stores looked sharp and shoppable.

For the first six months I worked in the southern part of our local district covering the stores around the city of San Francisco.  Like myself, many of the team members lived in Santa Rosa and had to travel anywhere from forty-five minutes to an hour and a half to get to work.  And since we started at 5:00 AM, it meant that we had to get up way before the rooster crowed!  Our daily routine started with a team meeting to update the crew on new events, as well as the day’s schedule.  I can clearly remember the sleepy and/or blank looks on the faces of the crew as they dragged themselves into the conference room each morning.

As I grew more comfortable with the crew and the other supervisors, I developed a routine, working off the other supervisors, to kick start the morning where I would get the team laughing and “rejoicing” before we got to the serious part of the meeting.  This always seemed to help the morale and it definitely changed the appearance of the team members as they filed out of the room to their perspective work areas.  I always strived to “Be” joyful no matter what the pressure was around us.  That was a great team of workers that I really enjoyed being a part of.

What kind of atmosphere do you present and/or carry around with you each day?  Do you let the Joy of the Lord “Be” who you are?  Do you stay in that condition no matter what the actuality of life around you is presenting?  Is “Being Joyful” the position that you occupy 24/7?  Is that even possible?  Well, the Apostle Paul seemed to think so!  And if anyone had opportunity to not “Be Joyful” it certainly was him!

So I encourage you today to let the foundation of your trust and faith in the Lord and His Word “Be” the unmovable ground on which you support your unmolested joy.  As the opening statement in William Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” asks:  “To be or not to be, that is the question,” I ask of you.  What is your choice?  Where or who will you determine to “Be” today as well as everyday?  Have a great day.  Stay in tune to His Word and keep asking yourself… “What am I expecting to ‘Be’ today?”

PS:  I'll be taking a few days off at the end of this week and next as my kids are flying in from Oklahoma.  Please feel free to take this opportunity to go back and read some of our past 400 posts!  - God Bless -  Pastor Jim