On
January 2nd, a local Christian radio station asked listeners to
select one word that would describe 2013.
Some of the choices included patience, endurance, and love. All are good choices, but did not ring true
for me. Then I realized that as I was
writing the majority of my Christmas cards, during the twelve days of
Christmas, I found myself wishing my family and friends a JOYful New Year,
rather than a Happy New Year. So my
choice for 2013 is JOY.
That old
Christian song, “You will know they are Christians by their love”, should be rewritten,
“you will know they are Christians by their JOY”! My goal this year is to find joy everyday in
it activities, knowing that there will be struggles, challenges and even
sadness. Joy in work, joy in family
life, joy in exercise (well maybe not), all grounded in my relationship with
God.
My
resolve was tested on the morning of January 3rd. The back of a religious pin that I was putting
on scampered down the drain of my bathroom sink. I slammed my finger in the vegetable drawer
of the refrigerator. Someone pull out
right in front of me on the way to work and then proceeded to drive very slowly
in front of me for most of my drive.
When I got to work, I realized that I had forgotten something that I
needed. During each of these events, my temper was tested and each time I replied,
“JOY”. And I did have a joyful day!
Today, I
found joy in accomplishing a report for a client, in spending time reading and
writing and in taking my teenage son to the local football field for him to
practice kicking and punting. Twice I
almost caught the ball, having my hands on it, but not quiet able to hang
on. (I didn’t realize how hard it is to
catch a football!) If I hadn’t gone with
him, I wouldn’t have spent more than an hour outside in the sunshine
today. (The high is 37 degrees, so it is
cold, but with the right clothes and being active it was a delight!)
A few days down and more than 350 to go. To keep the joyful theme, I plan to play a version of Joy to the World each morning and I prepare breakfast and pack
lunches. For the source of this JOY is
because the Lord has come.
And on
this 10th Day of Christmas, I wish you a 2013 filled with JOY!
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