Category: joy

Don’t forget to play!

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Play is not an escape; it is the way to release the life-smothering grip of busyness, stress, and anxiety….(It is) a modern expression of hope, a celebration of the flickering light of the gospel that plays with the dark by pouncing on the surrounding darkness like a cat toying with a mouse.—————Michael Yaconelli in Dangerous Wonder

play

I love the image of the light of the gospel pouncing on the darkness like a cat. Play is important to our health as human beings and an expression of the joy that God has given us. Play is NOT wasted time. Be sure to find ways to be playful like that cat and enjoy it.

Unexpected God, you have gifted us with the ability to play and seek out joy. Remind us how important it is. AMEN

Live joy

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Nehemiah 8:10
Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions of them to those for whom nothing is prepared, for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
joy-of-the-lord
Have you met Christians who think that God expects us to be somber in all that we do. Oh no! God created a beautiful world and he expects us to see the joy in it. He does want us to share of our abundance so that others may also have good things. Don’t go around with a sad face and a gloomy disposition. This will make others think that is our way. Let them see joyful Christians who thank God always for his love and abundance.
Gracious Lord, you have given us so much. Let us show the joy that living in you brings us. AMEN
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To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle. Every cubic inch of space is a miracle. ———-Walt Whitman

We fail to see the wondrous things around us. We race through each day and don’t see the beauty. We talk on the phone and spend time texting. We don’t stop.

It is time to see the beauty in the world. It is time to enjoy it.

beauty2

Gracious God, help us to enjoy and experience the world around us. AMEN 

Life is limited

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Death gives life its fullest reality. ——————Anthony Dalla Villa, Eulogy for Andy Warhol, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, April 1,1987

jumping kid on the field

Death reminds us that our time in this life is limited. Knowing that there is an end pulls us to live each day to the fullest. God created life and a universe around us. Don’t forget to stop, look, and appreciate each moment.

Amazing God, you created everything. Help us to see that every day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Music is well said to be the speech of angels. Thomas Carlyle

angels singingI love music. Hymns and songs of praise can take me away from the world. Music can move me to tears and bare my soul. St Francis says that those who sing pray twice. Pay attention to the words of hymns. They tell a story of God. Sing praises to him!

Giving Lord, thank you for the gift of music. Remind us let the words of the hymns enter our hearts. AMEN

This moment will be gone

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Why is life sped up so? Why are thing so terribly, unbearably precious that you can’t enjoy them but con only wait breathless in dread of their going? Anne Morrow Lindbergh, “Hour of Gold, Hour of Lead”

dance

Each day and each moment is precious. Do we recognize that? Do we stop long enough to enjoy the day, the hour, the minute? We are so busy planning for what comes next that we miss the most joyful moments. Stop and see! Look around you! This moment will never come again.

Understanding God, you see us letting precious moments pass us by. Help us to stop and see the life that is right in front of us. Show us how to appreciate when and where we are. Remind us to thank you. AMEN

What do others see?

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happinessGod did not choose for us to be unhappy. It is not a good advertisement for life lived as a Christian. Who want to join with people who go around with grump or gloomy faces. God wants us to be joyful Christians. People will want to be with you and find out what makes you able to live in this way. Be a happy Christian.

Amazing God, you want our lives to be happy and fruitful. You want the face we turn to the world to draw others to you. Help us to live this out. AMEN

Live With Joy

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Joy is prayer; joy is strength: joy is love; joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls. Mother Teresa

God calls us to be joyful Christians. We are not to go around looking grim or sad. That certainly is not the kind of message that we need to give. We draw others to God by becoming someone that others want to be like. Loving is contagious. If we love we give it away constantly and others receive the blessing of it. Learn to be a joyful and loving Christian.

Joyful God, show us how to live in the joyful life that you have given us. Help us to show others love and joy. AMEN

be-joyful