In the tenth grade, Meela fell in love for the first time, and fell hard. She was obsessed with Charles. The problem was that he didn’t feel the same way. Her obsession was so intense that she was failing almost all her classes, and her mother had to try and rein her in. With his band practices and class schedule memorized, Meela was a fixture on the wall outside all his comings and goings. Charles sang in church and had a voice like an angel. Musically gifted and self-taught on several instruments, he was one of the greatest musical talents his school had ever seen, and he was no stranger to the swooning of teenage girls. A grade above her, Charles was kindhearted and flattered by Meela’s attention. He was fine with it at first, but she didn’t stop. He thought purposely being attentive to his new girlfriend in front of Meela would end it, but she continued to follow him everywhere. Even the teasing and mean comments from her classmates didn’t deter her obsession. The school became concerned about Meela’s mental state, and when her mother transferred her to another school as a last resort, she spiraled into deep sadness.
What Is Sadness?
Is sadness a choice, or is it an automatic response? Is it lying deep within, waiting for the right set of circumstances to make an appearance and stop the show, or is it the easiest go-to emotion when things in our lives go wrong? To answer those questions and obtain a greater understanding of sadness, we must examine how it got its start. In the Old Testament, in the first few chapters of the Book of Genesis, God provides us with a record of His incomparable and magnificent creative power. He first created a marvelous place for humans to inhabit, and then He created the first human being, Adam. He gave Adam specific instructions that would keep him in fellowship with our Heavenly Father and thereby optimize his existence on earth. He also commanded Adam regarding what not to do. God told him not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Genesis 2:16-17(NLT) tells us, “16 But the LORD God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden– 17 except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”
It is important for us to understand that before Adam and his wife, Eve, ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, they only had knowledge of good. They had fellowship and communion with God who is only good and is good all the time. The first couple made a colossal mistake when they bowed to the devil. They believed his lies over God’s instruction and warning and this caused them to lose everything. Romans 5:12(NLT) says, “When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.” Our Heavenly Father gave Adam and Eve everything, and again, they only had knowledge of all things good. Because of their disobedience, they entered satan’s realm of all things bad. They entered the realm of sin and darkness and took everyone born after them along for this tragic ride. So, sadness came in the door when sin did, and it is a product of not trusting and believing God’s Word.
A way to joy is made
Because of their sin, Adam and Eve lost their connection to God; they lost the holiness He had given them. When sin entered the picture, so did shame, sadness, sickness, and all the other conditions that can undermine our faith. If we allow them, these can weigh us down and keep us separated from the blessings of God. This isn’t what He wants for anyone. Our Heavenly Father sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to the earth to take care of our sin issue. 1Timothy 2:6(NLT) says, “He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone. This is the message God gave to the world at just the right time.” Jesus gave his life on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins, and his perfect blood cleansed our sin for all eternity. This was God’s plan to redeem us! It was His way to purchase us back from the slavery of sin, darkness, and death.
Because of His infinite mercy and grace, our Heavenly Father made a way through Jesus Christ to restore our relationship with Him. Because of this, we can have joy continually! Romans 5:6(NLT) tells us, “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.” Through Christ, our Heavenly Father has saved us! He has made salvation available! It is impossible to state all the evils that were undone and all the blessings that were given to us as a result of what God accomplished through Christ. Our Redeemer and Savior opened the door and invited us to the Father’s everlasting feast, and it will take us an eternity to enjoy all of it.
Jesus Christ said in John 10:10(NKJV), “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” Our Heavenly Father doesn’t want us waiting on eternity to live the more than abundant life, He wants us to live it right now! It’s not something that has to wait until the great by and by. We can enjoy the fullness of all that Christ accomplished this very moment! The question we have to ask ourselves is why don’t we?
Jesus Christ said in John 10:10(NKJV), “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” Our Heavenly Father doesn’t want us waiting on eternity to live the more than abundant life, He wants us to live it right now! It’s not something that has to wait until the great by and by. We can enjoy the fullness of all that Christ accomplished this very moment! The question we have to ask ourselves is why don’t we?
Sadness is commonly described as unhappiness due to the loss of a valued person, failure to achieve a goal, or a loss of control or sense of empowerment. Some of us are not currently experiencing any of those situations. Nothing is threatening us, yet we still feel quite sad. We’re continually in the aftermath of something that is no longer a part of our current reality. This means that our minds are running a program of sadness as a way of responding to life, and we need to do all we can to stop that program and run the one that God gave us through Christ.
We should also know that there are varying degrees of sadness, ranging from simply having a bad day to feeling like there’s a dark cloud continually looming over our heads, following us everywhere we go. There are also other off-shoot feelings and emotions that might come along with sadness as well. So, staying in a sad place for too long can invite some cousins we don’t want to see. We need to know and be confident that we can refuse to let them in. We are not powerless when it comes to changing the program of sadness to one of joy. Philippians 4:13 tells us that we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength, and this applies to every aspect of our existences, including taking authority over our emotions and thought lives.
A multitude of theories and psychological studies on sadness are out there, and there are also millions of opinions on the subject, but the reality is that whether it’s involuntary, evoked, chosen, or hidden deep within, sadness has become habitual for many of us. We must ask ourselves if our actions, conversations, feelings, and attitudes make it worse.
Because her first love experience with Charles ended in rejection and devastating heartbreak, Meela attached sadness to love. This led to all kinds of misses and issues in her relationship with men as an adult. Most of her relationships have ended in sadness, and she feels she’s in a vicious negative cycle that she can’t get out of. God’s Word tells us the truth about this negative cycle. It tells us that we can rejoice because it was broken by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, when he gave his life on the cross to save us! We must trust this with all that we are. He said in John 14:1(NLT), “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.” This is a dose of joy directly into our sadness. If we will take it, lean on God, and be willing to change a few things, He promises to turn our sadness into joy!■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Turning Sadness into Joy!”, written for Springfield Fellowship © 2023. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.