Joy in the Midst of Trials!

In the book of James in the Bible, the author writes in the first chapter - "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you face trials of many kinds..." (Joseph Paraphrase). This statement, while I understand the intent, has always seemed a little backwards to me. Sometimes I think it should say, "Just try not to be raging angry when you face trials of many kinds. As long as your anger doesn't hurt anyone, you are OK." At least that way it would actually be doable.

These last couple weeks, my family has faced MANY trials. I will list just a few for you:

-Hailey (surprise if you don't already know!) is pregnant and has horrible morning sickness. With Micah, she was sick a couple hours a day for a few weeks and only threw up a few times. This time around, she is throwing up almost daily and has been extremely fatigued. For some reason :) the rice and beans here don't look appetizing to her and she is having a hard time keeping other food down. The result is that she has to spend a lot of time relaxing, which makes my schedule that much more busier. I am not complaining because we are thrilled to be having our second child, but it makes for quite the trial.

-Micah, thank God, has stayed extremely healthy through many sicknesses that have passed through our campus. However, he got something this last week and woke up two different nights and vomited all over his crib. He was up crying both nights for a while as we changed his sheets, clothes, and blankets. This was not fun!

-I was very sick for a couple days. I will spare you all the details - use your imagination!

I will be honest; there were several days that I thought, "What in the world am I doing in Honduras and how quickly can I get back to the U.S.?" I wanted a carpeted floor, butternut squash soup with a spinach salad, a cold smoothie, a bed with no mosquito nets, and much more. Hailey and I were not doing well. We were discouraged, annoyed, frustrated, tired, and sick of being sick.

However, just the other day we were sitting out on our back porch enjoying the lovely weather while Micah was taking a nap. I think Hailey had just thrown up minutes earlier and I was afaid (once again) that I was about to poop my pants. And in that moment, Hailey looked up at me and said, "I really do like it here! I love the weather - the landscape is beautiful - and Micah absolutely loves having a playground all around our house."

I can't remember my exact response, but I think I just sat there and stared at her thinking, "You must be crazy! Yesterday, we were talking about going back to the U.S. and dreaming of brownies and ice cream; what has changed?!?"

Then I realized, nothing changed. Hailey truly had joy in the midst of trials. We didn't know if Micah was well or not. There were no signs that Hailey would be feeling better soon. And I was still rushing off to the bathroom at the drop of a dime. But someway, somehow, Hailey had joy in the midst of trials. And it was contagious!

So today, we are pretty much the same. I feel quite a bit better, but still emptied liquid from my hind-side this morning. Micah is doing better and hasn't thrown up in several days. But Hailey is still sick and lacks energy. The organization's truck had a flat tire this morning. It wouldn't fill with air so I had to put the spare on. Then I got it stuck in mud on a hill and almost ran over a huge rock and into a tree. This made me late to class, and I am currently sitting here writing this blog with sweat dripping down my face while my students take an exam.

And for some reason, I am joyful. It is amazing how we can change our perspective and how joy is contagious from person to person. If we allow God to act in our hearts the way that he wants to, we truly can have joy in the midst of trials. It is possible!