Surprised By Joy
Ever read "Surprised By Joy" by CS Lewis? Great book. If you haven't read it, I recommend that you pick it up. Here's the thing...Paul says, "I have learned to be content no matter what the circumstances." Now, I can't echo those words-- I struggle with a lack of contentment every day. ("I need a Range Rover", "I want a six pack (Abs, not beer)", "That guy is a better worship leader than me"). In other words, I am still learning complete contentment. But, I would say that my life for about the past 2 years has been marked by joy. Now, circumstances have been good for the most part, but there have been struggles as well. But, when all is said and done, I would say that I experience joy-- deep, lasting joy-- daily. Joy marks who I am. I don't know how I arrived there (not that I've completed anything-- I hope you know what I mean), I just feel like joy is a staple in my life. I struggle with discontentment, sure, but I experience all kinds of joy.
So, question of the day: How does one experience joy? What does one do (or not do) in order to experience joy?
So, question of the day: How does one experience joy? What does one do (or not do) in order to experience joy?
posted by Parrot1540 at 10:41 AM
1 Comments:
I believe you experience true joy when you are obediently using your God given spiritual gifts to do what God had designed you to do. You are living out His purpose for your life and you are giving Him the glory for all of the fruit your ministry produces. When your daily life is an act of worship to Him the Holy Spirit fills you with such peace and contentment that joy is the natural result.
I think it’s awesome that you have such joy in your life. I know I speak for many when I say that your worship team is amazing and it’s evident that your focus every week is on Him. For those of us who know the difference between churches that have a concert led by a rock star and SOMA where we have a worship experience led by a worship leader we truly do appreciate your ministry. On a side note, I love it when your wife Amy sings – she has such an amazing voice.
Your second question is a bit tougher because there are multiple reasons we don’t always experience joy. I think “lack of joy” is one way God nudges us to move on to other places, positions, or ministry opportunities. We may serve joyfully in one place for a season or many seasons, but sooner or later He wants to grow us closer to Him by forcing us to expand into new territory. Another reason for “lack of joy” is an ongoing struggle with disobedience or sin that disturbs the peace and contentment from which joy comes. Which brings me to the most common reason I think people experience “lack of joy”: lack of focus. The everyday mundane, petty annoyances add up and if we are not focused on Him we actually give them undue notice and weight in our life. We somehow forget the purpose of our life is to serve and worship Him in everything we do. In this case the “lack of joy” is like the sore throat that tells you that you are coming down with something – if you take care of it immediately you’ll be healthy again soon, but if not you might get pretty sick. The medicine is to immediately refocus on Him, recognize where our walk got off track and make the necessary adjustments. Thankfully our God is a loving father who never tires of pouring grace into our lives to restore our relationship with Him and help guide us back into that state of joy.
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