“Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are.”

– Marianne Williamson

Every day we are offered countless opportunities to live joyfully.  Every day we must choose whether we will take advantage of these blessings.

We live in a world where we are constantly bombarded by advertisements for the newest, biggest, and best gadgets available.  We are told that we must have them in order to insure our happiness.  If we numb our minds to the dizzying amount of this seductive input and allow it to penetrate our consciousness to the point where we believe it to be true, we certainly will end up disappointed when we lack the things that promise contentment. It is our choice.  Will we sit back and wait for life to entertain us with the “new and improved” re-inventions, complete with all the bells and whistles, or will we discover that we have the ability to entertain ourselves?

It seems that we spend a great deal of time and money searching for the things outside ourselves that will delight and entertain us; yet today’s entertainment soon loses its excitement, and we find ourselves searching again tomorrow.  When the things we seek are external to us, the delight they bring is distracting but not lasting.  Have you ever driven alone in your car and flipped from one radio station to another in search of music to entertain you as you travel?  I can think of times when I’ve listened to hours of radio and heard only a few songs that truly touched and entertained me.  Often, as I scan from station to station, I will become tired of looking and just turn off the radio.  It is there, in my own quiet space, with the engine humming in the background, that I begin to sing my own music.  It is an uplifting thing to sing the songs of your heart.

Joy is like that.  It is always with us, because it lives inside of us.  The small pleasures of bigger, better, and faster may touch the edges of our joy and stir it for a moment or two; but it is only when we reach inside that the fullness of joy bubbles to the surface.  It is by staying in touch with our joy that we discover how good life really is.  Don’t sit and wait for life to entertain you.  Sing your joy and let it color all the moments of your life.  It will transform you and encourage others.  It is our joy that will change the world.