Rediscovering JoySample

For most of us, 2020 was a hard year. There was a pandemic that caused untold damage physically, financially, socially, and emotionally. But add to that what we might have been going through in “regular” life—the stresses of parenting, dealing with chronic mental or physical illness, trying to figure out our “purpose” in life—and none of us walked away unscathed. In fact, many of us are still in the throes of this!

We have been changed, haven’t we? The question is: Have we been changed for the better? Stop for a minute and consider that question. Have you been changed for the better? 

If your answer is either “No” or “I don’t know,” there is good news! And this news is found in Isaiah 43:19: “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”

A year of regular life plus a pandemic is hard. But with a new year, God is offering us a great gift that we all need: the gift of joy. And many of us, it seems, either know we need it, or need it but don’t know it yet.

And as we take a macro look at how we are doing spiritually, we see the possibilities that can happen when all of us open that gift! 

The popular YouVersion Bible App saw searches increase by 80 percent in 2020, totaling nearly 600 million worldwide. Early searches of “new year” and “bible in a year” were soon replaced with “fear” when Covid-19 came onto the scene. Soon, however, “healing,” “peace,” and “love” were the most sought-after concepts for those searching on the popular app. 

We are all looking for hope and healing, but aren’t we looking for something more as well?

It’s time to open the gift of joy! The Bible says that “…the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). Isaiah 43:19 and many other parts of the Bible tell us that God’s Spirit is on the move—He is making a pathway and working behind the scenes. And one of the best ways to understand this is through the lens of joy! 

When you think of joy, what comes to mind? Is it a regular part of your life? Tomorrow, we will dig deeper into joy as a call to delight in who God is and what He is doing in our world today.