Saturday
December 18 Joy Luke
1:39-45
In
those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill
country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When
Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth
was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you
among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened
to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound
of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who
believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”
****
Remember those single frame cartoons
that began with the phrase “love is” and the picture would change each day –
from a warm puppy, a friend’s embrace and the like. Joy, like love is difficult to describe.
Joy is something more than being happy. Never fully defined, but you know it when you
experience it. It is like the leaping of
the child in Elizabeth’s womb.
Unexpected and spontaneous.
Joy
is….
a baby’s face as their parent comes into view.
A dog enthusiastically greeting you as if you
had been gone for days.
Reuniting with a loved one
God’s beautiful creation that takes
you by surprise
What have been your experiences of
joy?
Joy is a gift from God – a serendipity
(an unexpected surprise). Joy cannot be
manufactured but comes in those moments when we least expect it.
A colleague shares on social media
when & how he experienced joy that day.
It has been it his own intentional practice and invites others to share
their own joys (thank you, Pastor Justin Johnson). It’s more than just what was good during the
day, but rather what made your heart skip a bit, caught your breath, brought a
smile to your face.
Joy is one of the fruits of the Spirit
that Paul lifts up in Galatians (5:22-23).
Joy is God’s breaking into our everyday lives and reminding us of the
beauty of life, of the love that surrounds us and the vital connection we have
to God through Jesus Christ.
And so, along with Pastor Justin, I
invite you to watch for the joy that God is offering you this day – expect the
unexpected and in that, joy will abound.
Prayer: Rejoice in the Lord, again, I
say rejoice. Dear Lord, in those moments when we are busy, uncertain or
overwhelmed by the day, we pray for that gift of joy to touch our lives and
open our hearts. Just as a child’s
infectious laugh brings a smile to our face, may your joy well up inside of us
and flow forth into a world that is blinded to your presence. May the joy of the love of Jesus Christ fill
our lives and our world this day and forever.
Amen.
Pastor
Jen Boyd
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