Joy as resistance is not about avoiding pain. It is about being resilient in the face of grief. We choose joy as an act of faith, a quiet resistance to despair, a testimony to God’s ongoing work.
May 10, 2026
Hope in Bloom: Practicing Spiritual Gardening
Part 2: “Joy as Resistance”
Psalm 126
Philippians 4:4-8
Rev. Dr. Heather W. McColl
Psalm 126
When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter and our tongue with shouts of joy; then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” The Lord has done great things for us, and we rejoiced. Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like the watercourses in the Negeb. May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy. Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves.
Philippians 4:4-8
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Joy as Resistance Psalm 126; Philippians 4:4-8
It was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” Yes, the Lord has done great things for us, and because of this, knowing this, we could do nothing else but rejoice.
There is something about rejoicing which stirs the soul. It is a sensation which involves our whole body, our whole being. It raises our spirits. It shifts our viewpoints, inviting us to lift our heads and see what is possible rather than bowing down, and limiting our vision to what is only right in front of us. Regardless of faith tradition, regardless of creed, color, gender or race, rejoicing is not a one size fits all dynamic meaning there is no one way, no right way to rejoice. Instead, rejoicing, instead finding joy, instead keeping our hearts open to possibilities is an invitation to all. It is an experience for all. Rejoicing helps us from being harsh and hard. Rejoicing gives us the energy for change, transforming us from tired and apathetic to life-filled and compassionate to the people and world around us. Rejoicing invites us to know that there is more than the hurt and hate which fills our world. Rejoicing helps us to find hope in all things, through all things.
This sentiment, this invitation, this rejoicing in all things, through all things is what the psalmist proclaims when he writes the words of Psalm 126. Every word the psalmist shares and states radiates joy for the people. Their neighbors have seen what God has done for God’s people. And more importantly, the people know that it is God’s hand which brought them home. It is God’s hand which filled them with healing and wholeness. It is God’s hand which redeemed and restored them to life. And they can do nothing else at that moment but rejoice.
Paul echoes this sentiment, this invitation to rejoice as he sits in jail writing these words to the community of Philippi. He tells them to rejoice because God is here. He tells them to rejoice because he knows that the powers that be of this world cannot and will not contain the might and power of God. Paul tells the people to rejoice because they know God is God. They know that the story will not end in death and destruction. They know God’s Spirit is moving in and among them, bringing forth new life. They know it was God who redeemed and restored them to life. And they can do nothing else at that moment but rejoice.
For generations, this has been our story as people of faith, a call and invitation to rejoice because we know what God has done for God’s people, a call and invitation to rejoice because we know what God will continue to do for God’s people. For generations, we as people of faith have lifted our voices in praise because of who our God is, our God who has moved mountains and parted seas, our God who has brought the people out of the land of oppression, our God who overcame the grave when the world tried to silence the good news of justice and mercy, our God who can, our God who is, our God who will do so again. Let me say that again, because it bears repeating…We know that our God can, is and will redeem and restore God’s people now and forever more. We know that God’s Beloved Community will come to fruition here on Earth for all of God’s people. We know that God will not be silenced. We know that God is here, bringing healing and wholeness to and for all of God’s people.
These are not just words that we say on Sunday morning. This is what we know to be TRUTH. Because this is what we have experienced in our lives.
For generations, this has been our story. For generations, this has been our song. For generations, this has been our strength. And knowing all this, we can do nothing else at this moment, in every moment but rejoice.
Not as a denial of the realities of the world. Not as a dismissing of the hurt and hate which threatens to overtake us every single day. Not as a way to pretend we do not see, we do not feel the brokenness which tears at our hearts every time we experience grief and sorrow.
No, we rejoice because as people of faith, we have a joy remembered and a joy anticipated…meaning we know our God has acted in the past to bring forth light and love and we know our God is and will do so again. For generations, those in the past and those to come, as people of faith, we have lifted our voices in praise, we continue to lift our voices in praise and rejoice because of who our God is, our God who changes the narrative, our God who invites us to step back and seeing the larger picture, our God who transforms the ordinary into sacred reminders that God is here, that God is moving in and among us, bringing forth healing and wholeness.
For us as people of faith, our joy is grounded in the knowledge that we know how the story ends. We know this world will not have the last word. We know that love and light will always overcome. We know we have a promise given to us by our God who loves us so much that God gave God’s only son so that we might live, a promise which reminds us day in and day out that it is never an if God will act. It is always, always, always…a when God will act.
Or let me say it this way…I am not going to stand up here and pretend that I have all the answers. I fully admit that more often than not, I am a Debbie Downer rather than a Peggy Positive. I also don’t buy into the fake it until you make it mentality. And I am certainly not in this call and invitation to rejoice, advocating that we paste fake smiles on and try to achieve Instagram worthy lives. That’s exhausting. And it is not the joy which comes from authentically living in the Spirit.
Because for me, joy of the Spirit is knowing that I can have tears streaming down my face because I am angry at the injustices which fill our community, our state, our nation, our world and I can still lift my face towards the light, and know that Jesus taught me to watch and pray, and know that Jesus taught me how to look for the Beloved Community being realized in my midst, and know that Jesus taught me that love and light will always overcome. I may not know when. I may not know how, but I know… I know, one day, tears will be no more, death will be no more, hate will be no more, sickness will be no more, injustice will be no more, oppressive systems which denigrate and discriminate just because they can will be no more. Knowing all that, knowing what God has done, knowing what God is doing, knowing what God will do to redeem and restore God’s people to love and light once more, in that moment, in every moment, I can do nothing else but rejoice. Thanks be to God. Amen.
See also: Theology Tuesday for Sunday, May 10, 2026 – Joy as Resistance Psalm 126; Philippians 4:4-8.
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*(from sanctifiedart.org)
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