Finding My Joy

A dear friend of mine told me recently that she had lost her joy.

That hit me hard.
    I felt immediate need for prayer and concern.
          I wanted to find some way of returning her joy to her.

This morning it was still weighing heavily on my heart.  So, I prayed and asked the Lord to speak to me words that might help her.  What He did was speak words to help me!

Because, I realized, I have been experiencing similar feelings lately.

    That's probably why it hit me so hard.

The Lord spoke to my heart and suggested I take a look at where I have felt my joy come from previously.  Here are some of the areas that I thought of:

• My children - For so many years I lived for my young men.  They were the center of my world. But, they grew up and I had to let them go.  I really don't know how I could have done that without the Lord.  
• My singing - First it was choir and then it was praise band.  My joy was found in the ability to harmonize and sing full-voice with other talented singers and musicians.  I have felt bereft these last few months because life has gotten in the way of that joy.
• My bond with my friends - I have a couple of friends who just "get" me. When we three are together it's no holds barred.  I don't have to call on the Lord to keep my sharp tongue in line. I don't have to worry about their sensibilities or whether they will be offended by me.  They are a safe harbor of acceptance and a riot-and-a-half of laughter and joy.  Unfortunately, one of our three has just recently moved away.  A part of my joy drove away while I was busy running around working and going crazy. And she's just one of many that I don't get enough time with anymore. My friendships are so very precious to me and I miss them somethin' awful!
• My Jazzercise - I know it's crazy, but for the longest time I was sure my life would be over if I wasn't able to get in at least three days a week of Jazzercise.  Dancing, singing, and laughing...all in one...it just can't be beat!  But, my new job is keeping me from my Joyzercise...and I'm having to replace it with boring ol' walking by myself.
• My Devotion Writing - I can't even begin to tell you how much I love being able to sit down to this keyboard and have the Holy Spirit flood through me. Talk about joy! It is a bitter pill to swallow when I knock on that door and He doesn't answer. It's even sadder still when my time is so tapped out by my new job that I don't have 15 minutes to even try to write something.
• My Church Family - Connecting and helping these people that I love so dearly is one of the greatest joys ever in my life!  Why must I be pulled away from them? 

There are many more areas of joy that I feel have been curtailed or taken away from me recently.  But, for the sake of your attention span I won't print them all out here.  I think you get the picture.

But, really, is that where I'm supposed to be getting my joy?  No, those are supposed to be areas of my life where I broadcast the joy I already have inside!

The words in my "go to" song for peace came instantly to mind this morning (Amy Grant - Be Still My Soul/Fields of Plenty).  They are a variation of Philippians 4:4-7.  I usually concentrate on the later verses (don't worry, pray, and His peace will come to you), but today I heard those first words that Amy Grant says:

Delight yourself in the Lord. Yes, and find your joy in Him.

I thought I was finding my joy in Him through these other areas of my life, but maybe those moments became my focus instead of my relationship with Him. 

This morning I found joy in the little things:

• The contrast of the hills against the clear morning sky.
• The family of bunnies slowly hopping out of my path.
• The naturally sun-dried flowers decorating the hillside. 
• The birds sky dancing to and fro.
• The realization that He was in every one of those things and breathing His love into me with every gasp of air I sucked in as I hiked the hillside.

I haven't lost my joy. He's right where He's always been...just waiting for me come home.

Dear Lord -  I have great expectations from life and from the people I care about. I have a tendency to saddle my hopes for joy and fulfillment on my friends and family and in external situations that never have a hope of fulfilling those expectations.  I see that the times that I have experienced that pure joy have been because you were there with me...and I was aware of your presence.  It is so hard these days to have the space in my thoughts to concentrate on your love and wisdom.  But, I understand now that if I don't purposefully carve out that time with you the rest of my joy-filled areas will be lost.  You are the key element in all those moments that are so precious to me. I pray that I will find my joy in you and that my friend will, too...that we all will find our joy in you! I love you so very much. Amen.

Blessings, peace...and joy!

Leah

Psalm 33 (New Living Translation)

Psalm 33

 ¹ Let the godly sing for joy to the Lord;
      it is fitting for the pure to praise him.
 ² Praise the Lord with melodies on the lyre;
      make music for him on the ten-stringed harp.
 ³ Sing a new song of praise to him;
      play skillfully on the harp, and sing with joy.
 ⁴ For the word of the Lord holds true,
      and we can trust everything he does.
 ⁵ He loves whatever is just and good;
      the unfailing love of the Lord fills the earth.
 ⁶ The Lord merely spoke,
      and the heavens were created.
   He breathed the word,
      and all the stars were born.
 ⁷ He assigned the sea its boundaries
      and locked the oceans in vast reservoirs.
 ⁸ Let the whole world fear the Lord,
      and let everyone stand in awe of him.
 ⁹ For when he spoke, the world began!
      It appeared at his command.
 ¹⁰ The Lord frustrates the plans of the nations
      and thwarts all their schemes.
 ¹¹ But the Lord’s plans stand firm forever;
      his intentions can never be shaken.
 ¹² What joy for the nation whose God is the Lord,
      whose people he has chosen as his inheritance.
 ¹³ The Lord looks down from heaven
      and sees the whole human race.
 ¹⁴ From his throne he observes
      all who live on the earth.
 ¹⁵ He made their hearts,
      so he understands everything they do.
 ¹⁶ The best-equipped army cannot save a king,
      nor is great strength enough to save a warrior.
 ¹⁷ Don’t count on your warhorse to give you victory—
      for all its strength, it cannot save you.
 ¹⁸ But the Lord watches over those who fear him,
      those who rely on his unfailing love.
 ¹⁹ He rescues them from death
      and keeps them alive in times of famine.
 ²⁰ We put our hope in the Lord.
      He is our help and our shield.
 ²¹ In him our hearts rejoice,
      for we trust in his holy name.
 ²² Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord,
      for our hope is in you alone.