Counting Joy

Man does it ever feel good to be joyful!  I love being happy and filled with joy. Sometimes I feel like I want to jump for joy.    Have you stopped and let the good things in life excite you lately?   Today has been one joy filled moment after another.

Here’s my list of things that got me feeling like I want to jump and made me smile today.

1.  I woke up.  We should always be thankful for that!
2.  I woke up to a handsome husband.
3.  I woke up in a warm comfortable bed.
4.  I woke up to the sound of a quiet house.
5.  I have a house!
6.  I had a lovely text from a friend waiting for me when I woke up.
7.  I got tickets to go see an awesome band (Rend Collective).
8.  I had a delicious breakfast of eggs on gluten free toast.
9.  I got to shower.
10.  I got to wake up my kiddos and they all woke up happy.
11.  I had the freedom to go to any church I wanted without persecution.
12.  I got to pick up our grand-daughter and bring her to Sunday School.
13.  I got to listen to a great message and worship with great music.
14.  I got to hug a friend who needed one.
15.  I got to meet some wonderful new friends whom we had over for lunch and had a great time.
16.  I was given a prophetic word from someone.   That gave me goosebumps and made me smile all day.
17.  Our pastor went out of his way to bring us some sunshine and help.
18.  I got a short nap in!
19.  I got to snuggle with each of my littles and get love from two of my big kids.
20.  I got to eat steak and gluten free pasta and beans for dinner.
21.  I got to pack for my trip this week.
22.  I got to write.

That is so much to be thankful for!  It’s not Thanksgiving yet but when we take time to really think about how awesome our days are, we can be filled with joy.    What I left off the list was the stressful and difficult parts of my day.  There are days when the doom and gloom over whatever crisis or situation we are in takes over our brain.   In the foster/adoption world, we can be consumed with the struggles of our days.   It’s even more important during or right after a crisis to really take stock of our life.   It’s not all bad.   It’s not all hard.  There are so many things we can or should be thankful for.

I’m sure you have heard the quote, “What if you woke up with only the things you were thankful for yesterday?”.   This quote runs through my mind often.   Whomever wrote it must have been pretty smart.   He knew that our human nature is not to be very thankful.   We tend to focus on all that went wrong or the things that we want.   When we focus on that all we feel is misery, depressed, disappointed and heart sick.

I hate feeling those things.   My favourite is being happy.   My favourite is being filled with joy.   Joy is more than happy.   Joy is from God.   Only He can fill you with that excitement for the things He has done and the things He gives to us.

Lately all I can see is people who are sad.   They can’t find their joy.   They are consumed by anxiety, stress, worry, and sadness.   I know God wants me to be an ambassador of hope.   He wants others to want the joy that I have found; that only He can give.

If you’re having a hard week and finding it difficult to find joy, try asking someone to pray for you.    I will be praying that anyone who reads this will be able to find joy this week.   You can PM me or comment below with a name (yours or a friend) who needs joy this week and I’ll commit to praying for that person.  God doesn’t want us to be miserable in this life.   Not always.  He blesses us with so much and wants us to know how much He loves us.  He wants you to feel joy.

SDG