Joy, the bright yellow character from the movie “Inside Out,” is always cheerful and smiles throughout the movie, no matter the circumstances. She tries to keep it all together when the other characters, Disgust, Sadness, Anger, and Fear, seem to not understand that joy is above all emotions and should be preserved. My family and I love this movie, and we laugh and feel every bit of emotion, because we can relate to it. I kept thinking about this movie when I saw the topic for this blog post.
I then took a minute to think about ways I choose joy during the day, and to be honest, I did not resemble Joy, from the movie, at all. There were a few days I only broke a smile once or twice. I definitely did not leap with happiness to go clean the 10th poopy diaper of the day. I felt disappointed to realize my past few days did not look like joy-filled days. I am a tired mama of 3, who stays home, homeschools 2 kids, and changes at least 10 diapers per day. I probably wear my pjs all day, until it is time to get ready for nighttime church or evening wrestling practice. I rush out the door after making dinner and taking five or ten minutes to get myself ready. My heart felt sad that I might not be the right person to write about choosing joy every day.
I kept thinking about ways we choose joy every day. I knew there had to be more than just what we have been told about what joy is. We have a saying in our house, “TV is to entertain us, not to teach us how to act,” because I know how easily I let movies or TV shows shape my perception of life.
So, I went to the Bible to remind myself what joy really is. There are countless examples of joy in the Bible, but they don’t all portray characters like the bright yellow “Joy” from Inside Out.
The first example I remembered was Christ on his way to the cross. What a powerful image of a selfless man almost beaten to death, slowly walking to his own crucifixion for the sake of mankind. I want to come back to this example at the end, because I think it wraps everything up beautifully.
Let’s read Nehemiah 8:10: Then he said to them, “Go and eat what is rich, drink what is sweet, and send portions to those who have nothing prepared, since today is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, because the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Nehemiah tells God’s people to have joy and celebrate. This is after the Babylonian exile, when God’s people hear the Law and realize their shortcomings before the Holy God of Israel. Nehemiah didn’t want them to dwell on their past choices or sinful human nature. Instead, he wanted them to feel God’s redemption and see what God had for them after the exile. The people still had a wall to rebuild, and, though they were grieved, they could celebrate and rejoice in God, because He was the only one that could sustain them through this period of rebuilding physically and spiritually.
Let’s read Romans 15:13: “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Paul encourages the readers to have hope and trust God’s plans and purposes. He tells them to have joy, which comes from a spiritual connection with God, because it is not circumstantial. He reminds them to have peace in a time when persecution was likely to happen. Here, Paul is talking to the church in Rome that was made up of Jews and Gentiles. The people there wanted to follow Christ, but it was going to take unity and change. The church had to trust God and have hope in His promises, even if their circumstances were uncomfortable. In all this, Paul asked them to have hope, joy, and peace.
Lastly, let’s read Matthew 27:30-31, “Then they spat on him, took the staff, and kept hitting him on the head. After they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe, put his own clothes on him, and led him away to crucify him.” Think about Jesus on the day of his crucifixion. His physical body had been beaten and tortured beyond our imagination. He was bloody and unrecognizable. He slowly walked to God’s purpose, fully knowing what that was. The physical pain was not over, but the agony did not stop Him. This is the kind of joy that does not come with a smile. This is the most beautiful example of joy found in scripture. Jesus, our Christ, had joy in His heart every step of the way. He didn’t smile or leap to that cross, but He was full of hope, joy, and peace. He was in full obedience to His father. He rested in God’s plan and promise so much that he was able to rejoice through such a horrific situation.
After I referenced the Bible to figure out what joy really looks like, I felt a heavy load come off my shoulders. I don’t have to feel cheerful or leap as I am on my way to change what feels like the 100th diaper of the day. I don’t have to wear a smile all day in order to experience God’s true joy in my life. I know God called me to be home and homeschool my children. We have some long days, and some really fun ones, but regardless of the circumstances, I am in peace and joy because I know I am in obedience. But what about the deeper things in life that make a spill of apple sauce or a dirty diaper seem so minuscule? When you get the lab results for cancer screening and the news makes your heart sink? Or when you get a call at three in the morning with horrific news? Maybe you are still praying for your adult children to come back to Christ, or maybe for your parent who is living a life away from Christ, and their pain hurts you deeply.
Those are the days we have to choose to trust God, because only He knows why. Those are the days we experience joy and peace, even though our faces do not wear a smile.
The peace we have in Christ is what showers us through the hard days, and what helps us choose joy everyday even if we do not know what is ahead.
When you feel life’s burdens on your shoulders, remember to hand them to God and trust that he knows why. Exchange your troubles for the joy and peace that only God can give you. Like Psalm 118:24 says, “This is the day the Lord has made; let’s rejoice and be glad in it.” Choose joy everyday by trusting in Him and living in obedience to Him. Seek Him every day in the little things, and trust that He has a purpose for your circumstances. Open His word and ask the Holy Spirit to keep you on His path. Remember, even if your circumstances don’t bring a smile to your face, you can still overflow with peace and rejoice.
We want to thank Mayra Ramirez for sharing this post.
Women's Ministry 