Sometimes it’s helpful to remind myself about the hardships others have endured. In this week’s reading, Paul mentions his imprisonment. He was also shipwrecked, beaten, and eventually killed. Those are very discouraging circumstances.

And yet, he had joy and hope.

Sometimes I forget that we can have joy in the hard circumstances. (Of course, some of our “hard” would seem very lovely to Paul – not enough lanes open at the store… too many extracurricular activities… not enough money for vacation……)

But some of our hard times are genuinely very difficult:  the loss of loved ones, the care of a child who doesn’t fit the “norms,” financial hardship, relational strife… even religious persecution.

We do not have to think very deeply to remember that this world is broken.  We all struggle with our circumstances, and we all get discouraged.

This week’s passage reminds us that we need to remind each other of the joy and hope we actually have.  Christ has come. Christ has conquered. Christ has brought us all into his family.   We can enjoy him from our earthly “prisons,” not because of our circumstances are perfect, but because He is.

The trick for us may be figuring out how to encourage each other without feeling like we’re just offering Christian platitudes. Maybe we can work that out together.

Praying that God’s grace and peace will feel bigger than our circumstances today and that we would be able to genuinely encourage each other.