What is the "pleasure" we can *take* in everything???

"Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Corinthians 12:10)

What is this "pleasure" which we also can enjoy, no matter what we are going through?

And can we have this while being concerned only about our own selves??

Joseph G said:

You would think it all centers on our dedication to trust Him. Who da thunk?

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Joseph G said:

It's a challenge, I know! But oh so doable if we submit to His will each morning in prayer and Bible study.

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What I "thunk" in reading your post, here, is in morning prayer we can submit to God so He has us the right way for the day. Then stay this way, in His love. And while we go through things in God's love . . . we have the Heavenly pleasantness and rest of this love. And we even enjoy discovering how the creativity of God has us relating with people and problems.

Unqualified said:

I don’t know why you are asking the second question.

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I said >

com7fy8 said:

What is this "pleasure" which we also can enjoy, no matter what we are going through?

And can we have this while being concerned only about our own selves??

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So, my second question is whether or not we can have "pleasure" in troubles while we are concerned only about our own selves?

One thing I think of is how Jesus wants us to love any and all people >

"if you love those who love you, what reward have you?" (in Matthew 5:46)

So, if I am mainly concerned about my own self, this can keep me from being with God in His all-loving love. And I find that the "pleasure" Paul could have was in living in God's all-loving love. So, ones mainly about their own selves would be missing out, by not living in God's all-loving way.

However I do agree with what you say here >

Unqualified said:

Christians don’t have to be totally selfless.

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We do not have to be perfect; however, as much as we mature in Jesus and loving and prayer, we more and more experience and enjoy how God's love all-loving is also Heaven's own love with Heaven's own pleasantness and goodness.

Lost4words said:

Marrow bones. The ultimate pleasure..

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Oh yeah . . . I like to chew up a chicken bone and get that marrow.

And though that marrow is so soft and vulnerable and secret, it is well-protected inside bones, and so important for the body to have healthy blood and other things.

Like this, our character can be deep and unseen, but have so much to do with how we are and what we can do and how we relate. And with God's love in us affecting our character . . . we have pleasure of God's goodness in us for whatever we do through.

Gregory Thompson said:

Today, we tend to lack the degree of spiritual transformation that they did. Missionaries might experience it though.

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I think we in better-off places can have more transformation. It can come with how we learn to relate in our more close sharing in marriage and other settings with close involvement with other people.

"Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation" (in Philippians 2:13-16).

As we make the sacrifice to not give in to arguing and complaining, now we can get stronger and deeper in love which "bears all things" (in 1 Corinthians 13:7) and stays pleasant. In this love we have joy, even while going through things. We might not turn the other cheek like a missionary martyr somewhere, but we can turn the other cheek so we can't get dragged into co-dependent arguing and fussing and fretting.

And by keeping our forgiving up-to-date . . . this can strengthen us in God's love where we have His pleasure.

We can get busy with all our nice things and our busy stuff for keeping it all going. And this can get our mind away from God, and we can be depending on how we ourselves can get and keep nicer things of this life.

But we can get weak so then we can be easier to trouble and to drag into different things we suppose we have to do on our own. Ones even think they have to handle certain things on their own, and not trust God to take care of certain things.

This could be what more or less was happening to Mary's sister Martha > Luke 10:38-42 > here we read how Martha welcomed Jesus as her guest. "But" then she was so busy with serving. So, she had enough goods of this life so she could have Jesus as a guest, but then she got tied up with the serving, instead of first sharing with Jesus.

Yet, Mary her own sister was right there in the same situation, and Mary was wise enough to just sit at the feet of Jesus and hear Him. And Jesus stood up for Mary who was not helping with the serving!!

Martha got into all the serving, but Mary took the pleasure of being with Jesus.

So, from this I see how with God we can have a lot of prosperity or a lot of trouble, but whatever is God's will is where we can share with Him.

And, "of course" . . . now that we are the body of Jesus > our Father has us with one another as His family, and here is where our enjoyment will be, since He does want us to learn how to relate with one another. So, it helps me to first pray so I prepare for being with my brothers and sisters, so I am ready to say no to any nasty and negative and unforgiving reacting which might try to violate me while I am involved with other Jesus people. And so, when anyone starts some riff-raff stuff, stay pleasant and kind and humble, and be prayerful and encouraging for the person to recover oneself.

Mary did not take on Martha, but she let Jesus take care of it.