JOY!

There is joy in God!

As I came slowly and carefully down the stairs this morning it was still dark and cold, I smell the pine branches that makes it feel so much like Christmas.  I am thankful that  can turn on the heat and make my coffee and toast.  I am now sitting by my computer with the a cup of coffee and a Christmas orange.

Happiness is found in the simple things of life, like memories, smells and tastes.

Joy seems so far out of our earthly reach because joy comes with surrender that allows us to feel the sadness in our lives and to know that the joy of the Lord will be our strength.

I look forward to going to church this morning as it always gives meaning to my day.  Music helps me to express the inner joy that is hidden within my spirit; and is so difficult to express in words.  Jesus is the giver of joy that is available to us all. 

Life has an aura of sadness that keeps us, or me, from experiencing the powerful emotion of joy.  For many people Christmas is a very difficult time because they want to feel joyful but they cannot.  I know that I would love to solve the problems within my family and make them all happy, but I cannot.

"to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.  This is to have succeeded."
Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Douglas Todd writes about joy that comes through the music of Beethoven in Ode To Joy that was written by an aging and depressed composer.  He expresses his musical yearning for communion with a loving mystical reality.

This is what I long for because it promises JOY!

May the true joy of Christmas touch and heal us all as we continue to journey towards the Lord.!

They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendour.

Instead of ashes, the oil of gladness
instead of mourning, a garment of praise.

Isaiah 61:3