Joy

I told Brooke yesterday that I am trying to find my way back to joy.  I am currently battling significant back pain; my knee arthritis is flaring; Trexo has some difficult issues we are navigating that causes me fear; Collin, my oldest kid, is about to go to college for the first time which makes me very happy and very sad; and we just finished clean-up from Hurricane Beryl which was exhausting. 

The chaos and unpredictability of life can sap joy.  

And then there is the political climate of our country.  

I wonder how much being a person full of joy would stand out today? People seem angry. On edge. Worn out. From your conversations with family, friends, and co-workers, how would you describe people’s temperature? 

I expect the next five months leading up to the presidential election to get continually crazier. As you watch or read the news, pay attention to the apocalyptic nature of political pundits’ predictions. Listen/read for their tone.  

Be mindful of how that can affect your spirit. 

The current climate in our country is an incredible opportunity to show how different Kingdom life is from that of the world.  

And being full of joy is powerful.  

Jesus says in John 15:11, “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” In John 15:1-10, Jesus tells us that He is the Vine and we are branches. Our role is to abide in Him. And when we abide, we will bear much fruit. That’s an incredible offer! Jesus offers to supply us with everything we need to have a full, rich, and meaningful life.  

And then, in verse 11, He says the reason He is speaking these things, the reason He is using the Vine/branch metaphor, is so that we will have His joy! He expects His teaching to produce His joy in His people.  

Question, do you see Jesus as a joy-filled person? When you imagine His face, what emotion does He have? Maybe you see Him emotionless. Angry. Calm. What would He look like if He was radiating joy? The first step in experiencing joy is to want Jesus’s joy. But if you do not see Him as joyful or if you don’t want His joy then you are going to get what you get.  

The Vine/branch metaphor should evoke joy in you because branch-life removes pressure and ensures richness. There is no fear in branch life because the Vine has all the pressure to provide, sustain, and grow the branch. What is the branch’s role? Abide. Rest. Relax back into. Breathe. Allow the Vine to supply in all things. 

For your career, parenting, marriage, singleness, health, success, love, friends, confrontations, difficulties, battles, struggles, temptations, failures, hopes, dreams, losses…the Vine supplies all things in all things for LIFE.  

Embracing being a branch will produce joy.  

Joy is a fantastic reminder for me and a great litmus test of my abiding. I know the answer to my current condition is to abide in the Vine. And I am deep breathing my way back to that sweet spot!  

Maybe the chaos of life has been actively drifting you, or jerking you, away from abiding. Maybe the political noise has you filled with angst or anger or depression. Maybe the busyness of life has squeezed out meditation, sitting in silence in the presence of your Father.  

Being joy-filled can be hard because the chaos of life wars against abiding.  

When our passion is to run God’s race, to let Him go first in the Overflow, joy is never far away. In the Overflow we do not strive for joy, we do not exert energy to be a more joy-filled person, we relax back into intimacy with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and joy happens.  

Jesus promises that the one who abides in Him will produce “much fruit.” That is life in the Overflow. And that is a life that will stand out today.