Choose Joy!

Are you finding it difficult to choose joy this Advent season? It would be easy to let ourselves get a little down in the dumps. We can feel depressed because we haven’t seen family members for a long time, or we can choose to be joyful that they are healthy and wanting to keep us healthy, too. We can bemoan the loss of our regular Advent activities, or be thankful for all of the online opportunities we have to connect with others and see concerts and places never available to us before. We can rant about the upcoming snow or sit in wonder and appreciation of God’s creation. We get to choose!

In The Uncluttered Heart, Beth A Richardson writes, “The key to immeasurable joy is living in intimate contact with Christ, the source of all joy. When we do, we will experience God’s special care and protection and see the victory God brings even when defeat feels certain.”

Can you find “joy, joy, joy, down in your heart” as the Sunday School song goes? Read some joyful Bible passages, listen to/sing your favorite Christmas carols and pray to be filled with the joy of the Lord. Dig deep, unclutter and choose joy! When you’re overflowing, spread some of that joy to others – make a call, send a card, shovel someone’s snow. Choose joy and share it with the world!

Philippians 4:4 says, “Always be full of joy in the Lord, I say it again – rejoice.”

During this Advent season, we await the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. What more do you need to know to choose joy?