Just One Word - Part II: Midyear Checkpoint By Cortney Donelson

Romans 14:17 (ESV)

“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

“Joy is the serious business of Heaven.” ~ C. S. Lewis

It is the halfway point – the intermission. It’s time to do a quick assessment.

In January, I posted a blog called, “Just One Word,” (http://www.asaclayjar.blogspot.com/2013/01/just-one-word-by-cortney-donelson.html) about finding one word by which to live out the new year. Many of you chose a word with me – words such as rest, restore, and service. It was a beautiful thing. My word for the year is joy.

Now the calendar has flipped to June, and I am almost afraid to ask myself, “Am I living out joy?” There have been some rough patches. Life is always full of them. Yet, despite those bumps, have I been able to find joy on a daily basis? Has it become my habit to seek God’s goodness, light, and faithfulness even as the rain pours and darkness seems imminent?

In January, I envisioned joy would come from intentional decisions and actions. They key word has definitely been intentional. I have discovered something crucial to successfully living out a joyful life - joy is an option. It is absolutely a choice! I bet living by some of your words would take choices too. Joy is also an experience. Not just a passing emotion, joy can bubble up and shine out as if it is a living entity all its own - despite where you are, what you are doing, or the circumstances surrounding your life. 

I cringe at Merriam-Webster’s definition of joy: “The emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires.” If that were true, joy would remain elusive for every single one of us. Not one person would ever find it – let alone hold onto it. After all, it seems the more we get, the more we crave when it comes to our selfish wants and material possessions. Joy does not come from well-being, success, or good fortune. Those things are nice … and fleeting. Joy is not receiving what you desire; rather, joy is finding that perfect source of all your delight. That source is not one that is tangible or one that can be lost or stolen – it is not temporary. The perfect source of all our delight is God. He is, was, and will forever be … joy. “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” He is all we need.

If you don’t believe me, consider Christine. Christine was a 15-year-old girl with terminal brain cancer. Her circumstances stunk to say the least. She was a teenager who would never learn to drive a car, never go on a first date, and never graduate from high school. Her days were filled with chemicals, tests, and pain. Merriam-Webster would consider Christine a lost cause for finding any joy. Yet, Christine was one of the most joyful people I have ever met. She was positive, bright, always smiling, and completely at peace. Her sense of humor was truly remarkable. Those around her found it difficult to remember she was sick, despite her obvious limp, swelling face, and curling hands. She chose to make God her source of all things desirable. No circumstance – no illness – was going to come between Christine and her Creator’s purpose for her short life, and no diagnosis was going to squash her joy.

Fourteen years later, I still think of Christine at times. Mostly, I think of her when my circumstances take a turn toward the opposite end of up. I remember her joy. She was the first person who taught me (seven years her elder at the time) that joy was a choice. She left a lasting impression on me and many others. Joy is an experience that God offers to us all through His promises. It is an offer, though. He will make ALL things good. We just have to believe and say yes. And, that my friends, is the precise moment we can experience full joy – no matter what is happening in our lives.

So, how am I doing? I give myself a B for this semester. I could work on experiencing joy on a daily basis. I pray that once I can grasp joy every day, I will never let go of it. Then, it will become the cornerstone for how I face the world and its challenges. How are you doing with your “word of the year?” Do you make decisions in order to prioritize your life around that word? Or, maybe you have forgotten the word you picked? I encourage you to do your own midyear checkpoint. Ask God to open your eyes, and then allow yourself to open your hands to the gift that your word could offer you for the next six months.

Prayer – Heavenly Father, thank You for joy. Thank You for people who exude Your joy – no matter what is going on around them. I want that! Help me find it by reminding me to choose it every single day. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

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