A concept that has always been so hard for me to comprehend entirely is having pure joy. I know we fight for happiness and look for success but what is pure joy? As defined joy is "emotion evoked by well-being, success or good fortune; gladness or delight." (Bible dictionary) In life we strive to buy more things, get married, see the world, get a good education and so much more for what? Are all of these things bringing us joy or are we reaching for them because we think they will bring us joy? In the United States we have much more than most countries but yet we have the highest rate of depression. So what is it then? More gives you less and less gives you more in terms of joy. I thought coming on the World Race I would find joy in seeing chocolate when I hadn't had it in days or finding my favorites from back home but actually my most joyful moments have been what started out as the most uncomfortable. This is a concept I have been pondering this month. I feel like pure joy was always something I prayed for, strived for and thought if I reached a certain level I would have it but that is actually not it at all.
Vietnam is teaching me so much but something that has been most evident is the joy in these peoples lives. When someone is still loving the Lord when there is so much at stake, why would they chose joy over fear? It has been more than amazing to experience. They give up everything they have and work for the Lord, some days from 6am to 10pm, and get up the next day and do it again while never mentioning being tired. When you see a man with no fingers clapping his hands, laughing and giggling like a child you begin to realize joy is much more than a feeling. When you hold the hand of a teenage girl with Leprosy, look into her eyes not understanding each others language and tell her she is beautiful and she smiles that's pure joy. So what is the key? What is it that I am missing?
Well the Lord has been showing me that you can't have joy if you are inwardly focused. If I think about my circumstances, my situation, my life, my desires, my hurts and it's all about me there won't be joy that comes along with that. When you begin to look outwardly at the beauty of creation, the uniqueness of his people, the heart of others and how God sees them you might get a perspective shift. As I have been praying into what real joy looks like, God is breaking me of being inwardly focused. No circumstance and no situation could ever make you loose joy unless you allow it. In John 15:11 "I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete". All we need is him and to focus on him first. Joy is something to strive for but something freely given. I will continue to walk in this joy as it is given to me.
