“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice.”

Philippians 4:4 ( NIV )

Every time I read this verse I fondly remember my Aunt Marion. She was my mother's sister and lived only 10 miles from my family. We spent a lot of time with Aunt Marion and Uncle Ote. They treated us kids as if we were their own—probably compensating for the fact that they had no children. We loved them dearly. Aunt Marion was a Christian lady and as long as she was able, she was intricately involved in the life of her church and its ministries. In her younger years she was also quite socially active and enjoyed being driven by Uncle Ote (Aunt Marion never learned to drive) to visit her abundance of friends. When Uncle Ote, her companion for over 50 years, died, Marion felt quite lonely. When she was in her eighties, her health gradually declined. She was crippled with arthritis and was eventually confined to her home. Although numerous friends would drop by regularly to visit with her, they never seemed to fill the void that she felt.

On one of my birthdays, Aunt Marion sent me a card with the Philippians Bible verse. “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, Rejoice” printed across the top. At the bottom of the card, in her handwriting, she wrote a personal note: “Still miserable and blue.” When I read this to my husband Bob and the kids, we all got a good laugh out of the contradiction. The more I reflected on the inconsistency, the more I thought of how sad it is that as Christians we believe and profess one thing, yet may portray to the world the exact opposite. Every time I read or hear this verse, I remember Aunt Marion's card and pray that I am truly living my Christian convictions and not sending contradictory messages.

JANET WATTS