Category Archives: Spiritua Disciplines

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7 Secrets to a Joy-Filled Life

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I’d like to tell you a story today about a man I know who is deeply joyful. His name is John and he lives in a rural village in Ghana, West Africa.

When I came to his home, he didn’t own a shirt for his own back, but he bought me a Coke with the money he had. My friends and I sat on the dirt floor of his small home (probably the size of one of the bedrooms in our current home) and listened as he enthusiastically shared about the grace and goodness of God in his life.

He worked long days in the fields as a farmer to feed his family and was proud of his hard work. He was thankful for his family, his small home, and the food God provided each day.

He didn’t even have a shirt on his back, but he was joyful.

Meeting John (and others like him in Africa) changed me. They showed me that you don’t need a lot of stuff to be joyful, but you do need God.

Seven Secrets to Joy-Filled Living

Since we often mistake happiness for joy, here are seven secrets from God’s Word that teach us how we, too, can live joy-filled lives:

1. Biblical joy is not the same as a feeling or moment of happiness. We are happy when we go to our favorite restaurant, spend a fun day with our best friend, or have someone surprise us with our favorite dessert. We are happy when circumstances are in our favor, but we can have joy independent of them: “You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound” – Psalm 4:7.

In a culture that elevates personal happiness above loving God and others, this is important to clarify.

2. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit of God in our lives. We cannot muster up joy in our own strength. Joy comes as a fruit of the working of the Holy Spirit of God in our lives.

3. Joy blossoms in the soil of gratitude and thankfulness to God. Psalm 107:22 says, “And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,and tell of his deeds in songs of joy!” A heart that is grateful to God for his friendship and undeserved blessings will overflow with thanksgiving and joy!

4. Joy comes as we encounter God’s presence. “…in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” – Psalm 16:11. Maybe circumstances aren’t going too well for us. Maybe we’ve even been through a very difficult loss or trial. But when we draw near to God and realize that He is with us and will never leave, our joy overflows.

5. Joy comes through enduring trials. While it may seem counter-intuitive, Scripture tells us clearly that we ought to “Count it all joy…when you face trials of various kinds. For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness” – James 1:2-3. We don’t rejoice in the pain of our trials. We rejoice as we focus on the fruits that come from enduring such trials well – spiritual growth and maturity.

6. Joy comes as we encounter the message of the Gospel (again and again). When we press our knees into the soil at the foot of the Cross and see – amazed! what Christ endured on our behalf – when we see that we are loved this much! forgiven this much! When we see that we have been spared the wrath of the Father that we so deserve, our hearts cannot help but to be filled with awe, gratitude, joy unspeakable.

7. Joy is eternal. While happiness is temporal, the joy we have in Christ is eternal. John 16:22 says, “So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” I cannot fully imagine the joy we will have when Christ returns to this earth. We will rejoice at His coming and no one will be able to steal our joy!

As C.S. Lewis says, “Joy is the serious business of Heaven.” My friend, will you choose the constancy of joy today? Or will you settle for moments of temporary happiness? It’s up to you!

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What I’ve Learned From My Grandmother About Aging Well

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She sat with her hands folded quietly in her lap, smiling and laughing at the children, interjecting in conversation with her quick wit and often humorous remarks. I took a long look at this beautiful woman who has lived almost triple my lifetime.

This is my 94 year old grandmother, Anna Mary. I have learned many, many things from her, but these are some of the things I have learned from her about aging well:

She Doesn’t Complain

Now, I am sure that there are moments for her. We all have moments. But I have never heard her complain, really. She is a very thankful woman, full of gratitude for her life and the many gifts that God has given to her. She experiences pain regularly now, but I don’t see it keeping her down.

She Rejoices in the Moment

My grandmother is aware of the brevity of life. She knows she isn’t promised tomorrow (none of us are). She flew from GA to Maryland to be here for my children’s birthday party. She soaked in every moment with every person she came in contact with – especially her great-grandchildren.

She Doesn’t Want a Re-do on Life

She is a content woman. She had “the best husband I could have ever asked for” and she has now “the most wonderful daughter and son-in-law” among all her other blessings. While she definitely has gone through many hardships and life hasn’t always dealt her an “easy hand,” she would never go back and ask for a re-do. She is satisfied with her life – a life well-lived.

She Delights in Her Legacy

My grandmother is not a poor woman, but she definitely doesn’t have millions to her name. What she has is a solid, unwavering faith in Jesus Christ, a loving daughter and son-in-law, friends and neighbors, two grandchildren, and – perhaps her biggest legacy of all – her six great-grandchildren. She loves telling me about little moments that she has with each one of them, ways they make her laugh or impress her with their sharp wit (I mean, who did they get it from, right?) She relishes in every kiss and every card they make her.

She Has Never Lost Her Sass

My grandma is one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. She is the only one who, in a room full of 10 adults who are all thinking the same thing, will actually say what is on her mind without holding back. She doesn’t just say anything, though.

She knows when to hold her tongue but she speaks the truth when no one else feels they can or when she has a strong opinion on a matter and because of her age and her confidence, people shut up and listen. And I love her for it.

She is a Prayerful Woman

Grandma prays for each of us every day. She looks to the Lord daily for strength, help, and wisdom. She truly loves God and seeks Him faithfully.

She is Ready for Heaven

A week ago, when she was here at my house, she said to me, “I keep asking the Lord why He doesn’t take me home yet. I don’t know. I haven’t figured it out. I’m ready to go!” I quipped back, “Well, Grandma, I know I’m glad that you’re here with us right now – to be with your great-grandchildren and make memories with them.”

She is not afraid of death and eternity. She knows to whom she belongs and where she is going when she dies. And she’s ready whenever He wants to take her.

Whether you are 16, 37, or 60, we each have been given a gift of life and a choice of how we will invest today – the only day we know we’ve been given. When you are 94, what do you want your legacy to be? What do you want others to see when they look back on your life?

One thing I know is that I’m taking some tips on that from my Grandmother.

 

 

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Why You Should Plan a Spiritual Retreat

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“In order to understand the world, one has to turn away from it on occasion.” – Albert Camus

I sat in the quiet of a simple room in the Madonna House in Washington, D.C. looking out the window with Bible and journal in hand, pen poised and ready.

I was alone. As a mother of three children 5 and under, it is hard to get alone time. At all. Even when you go to the bathroom. So the fact that I was here – that I actually made it – was a small miracle.

My original intention for this time was to plan – to put together a daily homeschooling schedule and read through all the curricula that I had so dutifully researched and purchased for the school year.

But God had other plans.

Pray Before You Plan

A few days before my “planning retreat” a friend told me she would like to come with me. “We could go to the Madonna House,” she said. I had never heard of it, but the more she shared the more I felt my soul sigh with relief.

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A spiritual oasis on Capitol Hill, this humble row house is run by two nuns who have come here with no other agenda than to pray for the people in our city and open up the home to those who desire spiritual retreat.

The night before going, as I packed up curriculum and notebooks, The Lord arrested me with these words, “Put those away – just go there and pray.”

Whenever God shifts my plans like this, I get excited. I know He is going to speak or move in my life in a way that I hadn’t expected. I lay in bed that night smiling like a child on Christmas Eve.

The next day, my husband dropped me off at the Madonna House. Even as I stood on the steps, I felt the weight of the burdens I had carried there fall off my shoulders. I was going to meet with God.

My friend and I exchanged greetings and were directed to small separate rooms – rooms that held nothing but a bed, a desk with a Bible on it, and a dresser in the corner.

The simplicity of the place alone made me breathe easier. No scattered toys or piles of laundry. My soul began to breathe, too.

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A Three Hour Retreat

I didn’t have 24 hours. I had a morning – three hours to be precise. But in those three little hours God met me in a deeply personal way, enlarging my perspective and graciously granting me the spiritual framework for our entire year of school.

I prayed over all three of my daughters and lingered long over each one, asking Christ for wisdom in how to teach and guide them.

He responded. Not with flames of fire but with soft, gentle whispers from His Word and Spirit that I would not have heard if I had not allowed my soul to get quiet enough to hear them.

I walked away entirely confident that God was with me and that He had given me His plan for our school year. I opened the curricula later with new perspective and purpose.

We often think we should plan and then pray about our plans, but we have it mixed up. Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit your work to The Lord, and your plans will be established.

Why Should You Go on A Spiritual Retreat?

You should go because every soul needs moments of quiet and spaces to breathe, rest, recover from the scrapes and dents of daily life.

You should go when you have a big task, trip, move, step, leap, or transition ahead and you need to gain God’s wisdom.

You should go to simply refresh your soul with vision for the task and the call He has currently given to you.

You don’t need long – even a few hours will suffice. But just go – to a retreat center, a park, a beach, a lake, anywhere you know you can truly relax and focus. Your body, soul, and family will be glad that you did.

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