That your Joy may be full.

“Joy to the world” “Christmas Joy” ‘tis the season where this word is is seen and used constantly, but what is Joy?

Webster defines it as, “the expression of extreme emotion and delight.”

okay, but what does that mean?

Joy is the deepest and strongest form of happiness that wells within you from seemingly nowhere, and you can’t even explain why. It is that spark that keeps the genuine smile on your face through the day when you’d otherwise be breaking into tears or screaming. Joy keeps you going in the most desperate of situations. Joy is the lighthouse that still shines in the fiercest of storms.

How long has it been since I felt that way? Full of joy? For a season that seems to revolve so much around joy, there seems to be very little of it going around.

For someone with such an iconic name, it’s been a while. You know, I’ve been so busy, I mean, between work, my health, schooling and just general life, I haven’t really had the time to do many of the things that make me happy- and with the death of some of my friends, I just- there really hasn’t been much to be joyful about… you know? The year’s been rough.

You ever feel like that? Just drained, exhausted or plain ol’ wore out? Too tired to even talk? Where is joy supposed to fit in?? this is what I found:

So every Monday, I watch these videos put out by Motivational speaker Nate Dickson, and last week, he said something that resonated with me. He was going over John chapter 15, where Jesus is talking about abiding in the vine; and this is what I heard:

“If you abide in me, I will abide in you, and you may ask what your heart desires and it will be given to you, for as the Father has loved me, have I loved you, so abide now in my love… I have spoken these things to you, that your joy may be full.” (John 15:7-11)

Wait, what?

Jesus says to abide in his love, that by this, we are filled with joy.

This is what I concluded: Joy is not found in the things we have or do, but rather, the ones we are with.

Jesus very clearly shows us how to obtain joy, He desires us to abide- there’s that word again- in his love.

Hang on. Stop. Pause. Halt. Rewind for a sec, let’s look at the word “abide.”

This is a very distinct word, it means, very literally, to “dwell patiently with expectance, in a temporary residence before journeying forward”

And that’s it; Jesus wants us to rest in his love, fully expecting to be filled with joy from our time in him. To abide takes time. It takes patience, and it takes the surrender of control. That is how we are filled with joy.

Joy comes from abiding in love.

More specifically, joy comes from abiding in the love of the Father. When we abide in him, He pours into us the oil of gladness, the new wine, and joy more abundantly. He refills us and renews us. He restores and makes whole- and let me tell you, there isn’t a time when I couldn’t use that.

Like I said, it’s been a rough year, but I can be made whole and restored even amidst this season. (christmas season too.) because as I abide in my Father, he abides in me and I am filled with Joy. I am filled with the endless emotion and I can only express it in the strongest way I know how.

Joy, much like the word “abide” is a powerful thing.

-Joy Downer

If you would like to learn more about Motivational Speaker Nate Dickson, you can click on the link in the page above or right here

If you would like to learn more about me, you can contact me on my social media pages and on my contact page