Finding JOY in my Journey
Have you all seen those shirts that say, "Not today Satan!"???? I have and I love it. I need a shirt like that on the daily!! Don't ya'll feel like there is so much to pull us down and steal our joy these days? It's nice to call Satan out like that! Sometimes though, if we are REAL HONEST, we can just hand out a bit of joy a little at a time.
Getting the kids to school..on time...
here ya go...
Going back home because someone forgot something..then back to school...
here is a whole lot more...
the old lady doing 20 mph in the fast lane
keep it together....
the guy or gal at work that dances on your last nerve EVERYTIME you talk.
Lord bless that sinner..
the dog poos on the floor and the rumba runs through it and it is everywhere...(this has happened to me)
That's it!!!
Here's the great thing, NOTHING can steal the joy away from you that Christ has given. NOTHING!! All these circumstances above are NOT joy. This is your happiness. Let me back it up a bit. Happiness and Joy are two different things. Joy comes from the Lord. It is not based on superficial life circumstances, but is consistent, enduring forever. Happiness is what you make of it. You can give it away or choose to keep it. You see, Joy is much deeper. It is the well which happiness derives from.
Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy. 1 Peter 1:8
Here is how I have learned to find a joy filled life....less of me and more of God.
Be intentional about seeking joy!
Each day we wake up and get to decide what we are going to do with it. Look towards the word of God to direct your path. Seek it out. God tells us that if we seek for truth then we will find it.
ASK FOR IT!
Man, I have started asking for Joy from God about a year ago. Life was so exciting moving from California to Tennessee. Lots of adventure and unknown chapters of life straight ahead. Adventure is probably my favorite thing. So all this was a peak for me. After the journey ended and we arrived to our new home, well life happened. School started for the kids and Jason was back at work. No matter if we were in California or Tennessee, our normal daily routine would go on. Normalcy creeped back in like the fog over a field. I found myself feeling alone in a new state. As we got more and more settled, I found friends myself and kept busy getting settled. Coming down off a crazy life high, it was evident that I would crash. Life couldn't go on in such an exciting pace. After meeting so many people who have moved, I noticed a pattern of highs and lows as I had experienced. I found myself in a low place after moving here and finding out life changing news back in California. I had no choice. I could feel without a doubt at one of the lowest points in my life OR I somehow could take moment by moment and ask for Joy. Cry out. Demand it at times because I worked hard for it. I would focus on the positive and stop getting upset over the simplest of things. I would stop letting other people discern what my day would look like. I started calling out to God in my day. Being honest with my true feelings about life and how it is nothing like I dreamed it would be( not a bad thing). Understanding the love of a family and pushing through hard times together. Having true Joy is knowing that in all of life's moments, that God is and was by my side.
TAKE BACK YOUR THOUGHTS!
Listen, no one is really what Facebook says they are. Looking towards social media for acceptance will only leave you lonely. How many time's have we gotten on social media and then gotten off in a different mood? UMMMM.... MEE! I have allowed social media, friends, family, strangers(they are so easy to get mad at!) and others direct my path for the day. WAIT WHAT!? Yes, I am a Christian and yes I am sinner. I have judged others, envied the party I wasn't invited to, let a disagreement online follow me into my day. Isn't it exhausting? Your thoughts have power. It is what drives you.
Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy-meditate on these things.
Philippians 4:8
Whoa! That was a life changing moment for me. Something so simple to understand took me a freaking lifetime to actually apply it. I will say that anxiety is a real thing for me. I struggle with it. I have always been a people pleaser. Others happiness meant more to me than my own feelings. I would stress about what they thought or if I was doing things right. I don't know if it was God or not giving a bleep anymore of what others thought of me. Probably both. I came to a point that the takers in my life took enough. I had nothing left. I turned to God for joy. I had to focus and be intentional on what I thought. How it would effect me. WHO would effect me. I focused on this verse and fought hard to get myself back together.
After to put your broken self back together, you will have holes. Parts of you that don't line up. Sometimes, you'll go through life events that never make you the same again. Those will be your holes or scares, but they will also be reminders of your strength and courage to fight for your Joy. Remember that the enemy comes to steal your joy. Protect it. Don't hold it back just for yourself though. Turn it around and shine it out. You don't keep Joy tucked away. You spread it. Laughter is one of the things that brings me Joy. Laughing at life is so good for your soul. I love to make others laugh. I also feel joy while singing. Especially worshiping. So I turned those two things into one. My lucky kids get to hear me making up funny songs....all the time. It brings me so much happiness. I am saying this because I pass it on. My kids now have a fun day heading into school. My little songs are just a rock in a canyon of events and emotions that make their day. Making it intentional is everything.
My Joy comes from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Period. This life has left me empty. God's plan always left me in awe of how much I truly am loved. How could I not want to have Joy?! I am always taken care of. Even in my darkest moments. ESPECIALLY then!! Here is a verse that I am passing on to you. Go and know true joy.
Though you have not seen Him, you love Him;and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy.
1 Peter 1:8
