Marginal Christianity

What is J3-Joy? Joy of the J3 variety is a disposition or affection that grounds and sustains us amid difficult times. Affections are “the deep-seated dispositions, the settled and abiding postures of the heart, that qualify or color everything that we know or do” (Kendra G. Holtz and Matthew T. Matthews, Shaping the Christian Life: Worship and Religious Affections [ Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006], 14). Sam Storms adds “Affections are more than ideas or thoughts or intellectual notions in our heads. They are lively and vigorous passions, for example, of either delight, love, joy, and hope, on the one hand, or displeasure, hatred, grief, or despair, on the other. When we evaluate our response to someone or something in life, we use such terms as sorrow, happiness, revulsion, attraction, bitterness, anger, peace, fear, and delight” ( https://www.samstorms.org/enjoying-god-blog/post/peter-and-jonathan-edwards-on-religious-affections ). ...

05.03.12 (http://ericgeiger.com/2012/05/mcdonalds-jonathan-edwards-and-holy-affections.php) When I was in elementary school, I craved McDonald’s. When my parents let me pick the meal for the night, McDonald’s was the choice. If you had told me that I could eat McDonald’s every day of my life, I would have thought you were describing heaven. I enjoyed Big Mac’s and number 3 combo meals until college, when I had a series of life-altering experiences. First, I was in another country and was overjoyed to discover McDonald’s was there. I devoured lunch one day but became very sick. Evidently I ate lettuce washed in water that was not purified. I threw up for 24 consecutive hours. And with each vomiting episode, I lost more and more of my appetite for super-sized meal deals. I was surprised that when I returned home and would drive past a McDonald’s, I had no desire at all for a burger or fries. In fact, I was actually repulsed by what I formerly craved. The second life-altering ex...