Authentic Joy

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J.M.J.

When I was a little girl, I used to look forward to going to the fair. For months I would count down the days until it started. It was a state fair, with carnival rides, booths at which I could gaze at special merchandise, and tons of tantalizing food. The rides were what I looked forward to the most. Nothing filled my heart quite like going on all the rides that I liked. Back then, that's all it took to fill my heart with joy. Now that I'm older, it seems that life is a little more complicated, and with that transition, it seems to be more difficult to truly experience authentic joy.

The example from my childhood is simple, but I think that authentic joy is simple. God wants us to be happy. If we experience great happiness from simple pleasures, that is from God. So why is it so hard to experience this now, in adulthood? Good question. I'm not sure I have the complete answer (I'm still trying to figure it out, and probably will be for the rest of my life), but I'll try to explain my reflection on this subject.

Living in the present moment sounds terribly cliche, but that's okay! (My last sentence rhymed. I digress.) I struggle with second-guessing decisions that I made in the past, which just weighs me down, for one, and is pointless, for two. Worrying is another thing I'm expert at. Worst-case scenarios are all carefully thought out. In truth, this is a huge waste of my energy, for the things that I worry about really don't turn out to be bad or as scary as I had imagined. In fact, I usually enjoy them. I think that I could enjoy them more, however, if I hadn't drained so much energy by imagining how "scary" each event was going to be.

I think that Matthew Kelly is brilliant, so I'm going to bring in an idea of his. He is a big proponent of "carefree timelessness." What is this? Well, it's spending time with somebody you love without giving thought to what time it is or even overly planning what you're going to do together. This works great with family, friends, and would be excellent if you're dating someone, engaged, or married to rediscover what it is about that person that makes you become the "best version of yourself" when you are with him or her! Once you become this "best version" of you, you can then experience true joy.

I seem to have my work cut out for me (see paragraph above about my tendency to second-guess my decisions and worry about the future). How convenient, right? Right. Only then will I be able to experience a true, authentic, life-giving, sheer-happiness kind of joy that will fill my heart with happiness, my soul with gladness, and my whole being with God's love and joy. After all, this is what He wants for my life. It is what He wants for you, too.

Let's be joyful in the journey. I want to thank one of my Facebook followers for suggesting this topic of authentic joy. If you want to follow my blog on Facebook, simply click this link and join the group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/inthequiet/.

God bless you all. May you be joyful in Christ today and always! Please share your experience of authentic joy in the comments. Maybe I'm the only one who finds it hard to experience this everyday. Maybe I'm not. I won't know unless you tell me!

Stephanie

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