Prompt 4: April 1, 2021
The currency we exchange with the spiritual forces is our inexhaustible confrontation with moral choices: sacrifice or indulgence, generosity or greed, purity or degradation, Love or murder, faith or fear, joy or bitterness. The daily milieu masks the weight of such profound distinctions, yet we ought to be vigilant for even the smallest circumstances. Endurance in this walk of faith is fully guided by the spirit. In our congregations, in the music of praise, in the appreciation of our work, in the conviction to prayer; the spirit is guiding our hearts toward the heavenly communion.
Joy, I believe, is the instinctual recognition that the world around us is in its proper place. That is what it feels like when you have a great day, as if your path were laid before you. Some of you may be able to track the biochemistry of your brain to produce the ‘feel goods’, but Joy is truly more than dopamine or serotonin. Joy is distinct from pleasure in that it is not a fabricated emotion or cycle, but rather the individual will toward appreciation of the natural order. Joy is the unadulterated reaction toward the awesomeness of creation and our cosmic circumstances. More importantly, joy is a powerful agent in changing hearts and minds. It has the power to heal, to revive, to humble, to endure, and to inspire.
Joy is commanded of us in several scriptures. It isn’t an empty consolation to ‘keep it up’, but rather the fulfillment of Jesus’s prayer that his joy be fulfilled in us (John 17:13). It is also one of the absurdities of the faith, that we take joy in our trials (James 1:2). But lastly, it is the infectiousness of joy that proves this gospel as the message of hope and peace (Romans 15:13). If you don’t believe me, just spend a few moments with a baby, and you will contract it.
For this month, respond how you like. You can contemplate the power of joy over transgression, or just share some joy with the group. Describe the things that bring you joy. Be filled with it in your workplace or around your peers. Watch it spread. Joy is a beautiful thing, and this is the most beautiful time of year. Celebrate the Season: He is Risen.
The thread is open. Create boldly, and may the Spirit guide us all.