A LESSON IN TRUE JOY AND CONTENTMENT
It was difficult to choose which picture to use
for this lesson because we have so many pictures of the people in the remote
villages of Cambodia smiling and laughing. Don't misunderstand----the needs in
those villages are immense and overwhelming. There is much pain in the
people---both physical and emotional---because of the debilitating consequences
of poverty. The average Cambodian worker in these villages makes about two
dollars per day of work. While we were there, many of the families were
suffering from a shortage of rain and thus a failed rice harvest. I noticed
that when we fed each village a feast by their standards of chicken, beef, and
rice, silence enveloped the tables. Few people spoke because everyone was busy
eating. Someone whispered to me, "We are not used to eating this
good." So these humble people have great needs. And yet, there was a
consistent theme of joyfulness among them. Even in the midst of great pain and
lack, they were genuinely happy people. Their smiles were sincere and their
laughter was contagious. How is that possible? How is it possible to be in need
but be joyful at the same time? How is it possible to be in tribulation and
still dance? Yes, I know the answers to these questions are found in the
Scriptures. I've read them many times and preached them to others. I
intellectually have assented to the biblical fact that a Christian doesn't
always need to be jocular and jovial in order to have true joy. And yet, I had
to travel to the jungles of Cambodia to find this kind of deep seated joy
expressed in such a dramatic way. Their joy convicted and challenged both my
propensity to allow circumstances to dictate my level of joy and my bent to act as if everything is alright even when it is not. There is something
lovely and pure about an authentic joy that is independent of both worldly attachments
and pretension. This is the joy we found in the villages of Cambodia.
Amazing! So much to be learned from other cultures. -Bethany
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