On my 39th birthday I found myself dreading the upcoming year and the milestone birthday that it would bring my way.  As I sat complaining to the Lord during my devotional time, I felt Him challenge me that instead of dreading each of the next 365 days, I could look for joy in each and every day and enjoy the journey.  So I posted it on Facebook to hold myself accountable and I began:

• Joy is homemade cinnamon rolls followed by a Sunday nap
• Joy is waking up to a fresh blanket of white snow
• Joy is a quiet, unscheduled day
• Joy is spending time with friends
• Joy is children who get their work done without being hounded – wait, that’s more than joy, that’s a miracle!

That year turned out to be one of the most challenging that we have faced as a family when my father-in-law was unexpectedly taken from us as the result of a brain aneurysm.  Yet, as I continued to look for glimpses of joy in the midst of grieving and sorrow, I found hope, strength, and unexplainable peace.

Nehemiah 8:10 encourages us that the joy of the Lord is our strength, and that is exactly what I discovered that year.  Joy is not just a fleeting emotion, nor is it the absence of sorrow.  Joy is taking time to look for and recognize the blessings both big and small that God sends our way to remind us that we are loved, and that is what gives us strength for the good days and the bad days. The days when the sun is shining and everything is lining up just right, and the days when it seems the world has turned upside down – the joy of the Lord is my strength. As I continue to count gifts of joy, it impacts the way I look at my marriage, parenting, and relationships! 

“The Lord is my strength and my shield: my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.  My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song” Psalm 28:7

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