I recently met with a close friend and my pastor. A good man that one. A man I certainly admire and respect. He reminded me that no matter the circumstances, we must find our joy. I had, for the most part, forgotten that. We must find the joy. A moment of joy is like a breath of air after a long dive. It can be difficult to find, because we are often immersed in our many worlds. Our minds tend to exist on many, often too many, plains. We struggle for air and begin to see the sludge instead of the beautiful ocean bed. An ocean bed is often calm, and still as photo; it exists in its own time. Joy. Air. Air. Joy. We must have it. We can't survive long without it.
So, where do you find your joy? A cup of coffee and the day's newspaper? A cup of coffee and your thoughts? This one is my personal favorite. One of my joys is sipping on coffee and simply watching my thoughts float by. If I happen to see one that I like, I may grab it and look at it bit further. I may turn it around like a 3D image and exam its intricacies and dimensions. Then, when I'm finished, I put the thought back in the river like you would a leaf, and allow it to float away and meet up with the others. Someday, the thought will return and I'll see something different.
Again, where do you find your joy? We often think that joy must be a long string of beauteous moments that fill us with some profound glee. We think of it as an event or a marathon. We forget that joy can be disconnected moments that we encounter in the day. You see a humming bird feeding and feel a tinge of happiness. There's your joy. Linger there if you can. Watch the bird and feel time slow just a bit. This joy may only last a few seconds, but those few seconds can alter the course of the entire day.
As you walk across the street, you look towards the sky and see an oddly shaped cloud. Ha, you've just found another moment of joy. Whatever makes you smile or gives you a feeling of contentment is your joy. It's also God's joy that He has provided you with His infinite grace. It's not always easy. I know. It at times can be quite the struggle to find joy. But those moments, as you can now see, do exist. We have to make a very concerted effort to allow joy to find us. And, we have to be willing to look for it as well.
One of my joys is knowing that someone, someday, will read this and draw inspiration from it. That these words will uplift someone's spirit and give them hope. You are never alone. You are loved. There is hope. Find the joy. Open the mailbox, look at a cloud, sip some coffee, sit out on the patio. Find that moment of joy that's just waiting to be plucked and Enjoyed. Cheers!
So, where do you find your joy? A cup of coffee and the day's newspaper? A cup of coffee and your thoughts? This one is my personal favorite. One of my joys is sipping on coffee and simply watching my thoughts float by. If I happen to see one that I like, I may grab it and look at it bit further. I may turn it around like a 3D image and exam its intricacies and dimensions. Then, when I'm finished, I put the thought back in the river like you would a leaf, and allow it to float away and meet up with the others. Someday, the thought will return and I'll see something different.
Again, where do you find your joy? We often think that joy must be a long string of beauteous moments that fill us with some profound glee. We think of it as an event or a marathon. We forget that joy can be disconnected moments that we encounter in the day. You see a humming bird feeding and feel a tinge of happiness. There's your joy. Linger there if you can. Watch the bird and feel time slow just a bit. This joy may only last a few seconds, but those few seconds can alter the course of the entire day.
As you walk across the street, you look towards the sky and see an oddly shaped cloud. Ha, you've just found another moment of joy. Whatever makes you smile or gives you a feeling of contentment is your joy. It's also God's joy that He has provided you with His infinite grace. It's not always easy. I know. It at times can be quite the struggle to find joy. But those moments, as you can now see, do exist. We have to make a very concerted effort to allow joy to find us. And, we have to be willing to look for it as well.
One of my joys is knowing that someone, someday, will read this and draw inspiration from it. That these words will uplift someone's spirit and give them hope. You are never alone. You are loved. There is hope. Find the joy. Open the mailbox, look at a cloud, sip some coffee, sit out on the patio. Find that moment of joy that's just waiting to be plucked and Enjoyed. Cheers!