"Discipleship Means Joy"

"And if we answer the call to discipleship, where will it lead us? What decisions and partings will it demand? To answer this question we shall have to go to Him, for only He knows the answer. Only Jesus Christ, who bids us follow Him, knows the journey's end. But we do know that it will be a road of boundless mercy. Discipleship means joy."

~Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship

I confess I have not felt incredibly joyful through many of the events of this year. Although I know that true joy is not based on circumstances, I find it difficult to "rejoice always" (Philippians 4:4). How do I rejoice when a child dies or a marriage is broken apart? As I read the above quote last night, I was reminded that Christ's mercy is my reason for rejoicing. He alone knows every twist and turn along this journey of discipleship. Who better to understand than God Himself what it means to lose a child? Who better to understand the wounded heart of a broken marriage than Christ the Bridegroom who has, time after time, watched His Bride play the harlot and forsake her true Love? He knows our weaknesses. He knows how easily we want to give up when the road becomes too rocky or the hills too steep. Still, He is "gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love" (Psalm 145:8).