1. Some people have a contagious joy that makes them “joy-carriers.” What characteristics mark the lives of these people?
According to the book, joy-filled people tend to be marked by suffering. One of my favorite children’s books, The Giver by Lois Lowry, has taught me to believe this. One of the themes of this book is that the absence of pain begets the absence of joy. In order to make a Utopian society, all forms of suffering have been eliminated, and in so doing, the populace has lost the ability to see color and feel emotion. Without color, I would shrivel up and die.
Another mark of a joy-carrier is that they tend to put others first. Now, it’s not that I don’t believe this or don’t agree with this, but I have a harder time wrapping my mind around it. However, another story: The Library dismantled the bookmobile and the extension office. For the past couple of months my department has been weeding extension’s children’s collection. It is a kind of suffering for librarians to get rid of books. (OK, happy dance to destroy all things TV driven.) Recently, we received permission to give the extra books that we have no room for, but would long to keep anyway, to the public school system making them available to our patrons through a different outlet. It is so much more fun to give those books away to a worthy cause! It’s more like Christmas than a funeral now!!
What are some practical steps you can take to develop these characteristics in your life?
How can I develop suffering? Really? Hmmmm. I could fast. I could work on silence and solitude. I could choose to forgo a new computer. I could choose to wear only 6 articles of clothing out of my closet for the next 30 days.
Putting others first, well, isn’t that what I hope to achieve by living a life where I put Jesus first by personal surrender to Him?
Aside from these things, the last couple of days have been much nicer than the last several months. I have smiled, even when it was forced and the obvious effort turned into laughter. Who would have thought? I have dared to be me and follow my own intuition rather than putting some strict rules upon myself concerning how to behave. I hadn’t realized how far I had gone in censoring myself. And I have dressed up in a way that put a bounce in my step. So I really believe, cutting myself off from my wardrobe would indeed lead to suffering!
2. What are some of the unchangeable and eternal joy-gifts God has given you that no one can ever take away?
Frightening question anyone? Joy-gifts that can NEVER be taken away? Eternal and unchangeable? Trick question? Jesus Christ. Am I too literal? God’s Love. Our Salvation. The gift of the Holy Spirit.
The gifts that God has given me are mine to have and to use. Unfortunately I take them for granted or I don’t acknowledge them as something unique to myself and therefore make me special. But I wouldn’t call these unchangeable. They can grow or shrink according to how I choose to deal with them.
How can these be a regular source of joy … even when times are tough?
“The New Testament writers were engaged not so much in some form of positive thinking as in what might be called ‘eschatological thinking.’ That is, they viewed all events in light of the Resurrection and the ultimate triumph of the risen Christ.”
I read somewhere about how we can make a bit of Heaven here on Earth when we are a Christ follower and work towards His purposes in the right here and right now. We can choose to deny our happiness until we finally meet our Bridegroom OR we can live each day in preparation of our Wedding Feast.
And really, Anticipation is glorious! Not that it won’t be entirely different when God finally joins us at the Feast, but sometimes the anticipation is more exciting that the actual event we’re waiting for. If we could live in that anticipation. Wow! Pay more attention to the details. How we will be dressed. Who we wish to attend …
Set aside a whole day as your personal Dee Dah Day. What would you do? (Dare to dream a little.)
One day? Just one? I’d like to go somewhere out of town. Eat a couple of meals out. Different. Special. Not a chain. Unique and unusual. Try something I’ve never had before. Go to a concert. And go with people who will be just as excited as myself. And dance indefinitely. And sing out loud. Sing my favorite songs. Be leisurely. No rush. Time to window shop. Not have to pay attention to anything, but what’s of interest.
What would keep you from doing this?
Money, timing, concerts, kids, people with the same love. Finding someone else to throw their cares away with.
Ignite Chicago 2 years ago was as close as I got.
I think I need a sabbatical away with God. I’d LOVE to go to a Storyline Conference in Portland with Don Miller. Not that I belonged there, but I’d love to meet some new people that have found something special as a closet Evangelical …
“Here is a key for spiritual vitality: We must arrange life so that sin no longer looks good to us.” What might you rearrange in the coming week to make one specific area of temptation look less enticing?
I need to schedule time to play and to write and to sing. I’m not sure how. But I need to block off time and hold myself accountable to it. Nothing else gets in the way unless I turn aside for God … But this could very well be the turning aside …
I was at chapel this morning for the K-3rd graders. And I just remember thinking: I would like to try that. Have some fun. It was so sedate. The kids were … bored. Distracted. I wanted to see some life. I think that’s what I’m looking for. Some life in the audience. ‘Cause you know we’re not DEAD. We’re just not MOVED. I wish to be moved. That would give me joy. I want to wake us up. The Great Sleeping Giant!
All these things that I want to do. But it’s not part of my job. Why can’t I do them? If all of us divided tasks according to what we’d like to do and what would drain the life out of us, maybe we could all be happier. There is so much I’d love to do given the opportunity. I’d set other things aside. And have no time for sin.
And David danced before the Lord with all his might.
2 Samuel 6:14a (ESV)
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