It's okay, I'm searching too. It's a process.
It's finally hit you. After weeks, months or maybe even years of believing you have it all, you are left searching. Those perfect grades and GPA, they aren't enough for you anymore. Maybe for your parents, but not for you. That job you were so excited to get, it now leaves you drained. All the sports you became the star player in, they don't fill you up like when you first started. You still keep the grades, go to work, and play the sports. Why? Because they bring happiness and happiness is a good thing to have.
Happiness is its own thing. It only has one job, to make you happy. Sadly the happiness you experience is temporary. So here you are, searching for joy in friends, family, activities and maybe even material possessions. Now don't get me wrong, all of those things can bring happiness, but we are talking about joy.
Joy and happiness, they are often seen together, but they aren't the same. Joy might even be a synonym for happiness and vice versa, but understand what I am saying. I promise you, they are not the same. If you have experienced true joy, you will know in an instant that there is a difference. You won't be able to get enough of the joy. It will fill you up and keep your heart full even when you think it's empty. If you experience true joy, you will never be empty. So you are finding happiness, but you are still searching for Joy.
Joy is something you have, even when life is getting in the way. Joy is the rock you can stand on. Searching for joy can only be found in one person, and yes, I did say person. Joy is not a thing, it's a person, and His name is Jesus.
Jesus is the key to true, unshakable, never ending joy. All you have to do is say yes to Him. His love for us is enough. It's His love that is your anchor. It keeps you strong during the storms. When you seem to think everything around you is falling apart, it's His love that reminds you where your hope comes from, and most importantly, where your joy comes from.
His love is your joy.
Jesus loves you where you came from, where you are now, and where you will be in the future. Your past, it doesn't matter. What you did today, it doesn't matter. All that matters is that you tie yourself to the fact the Jesus loves you and if you want to have true joy, you have to hold on to Him with everything you have. You also have to believe that He is enough. He is the joy you have been looking for. You can't give up and you can't give in.
If you are always tying yourself to your circumstances, or your past, you will miss out on the future that God has planned for you. Things will be rough, and you will hit bumps on your journey. But that only means you cling to Him even more! Jesus is strong. He is the one you hold on to when everything around you is falling apart. You can be struggling or hurting and still have Joy. During your trials, your joy, Jesus, is not going anywhere.
You will have setbacks, maybe even days where you think there is no hope. Some days, you might even think Jesus isn't there. But He is. It's all a part of the process. I'll let you in on a little secret, joy is not the final destination of the journey. The final destination is being able to look back and say, "I lived a full life, because I found Jesus and therefore, I found my joy."
When life throws all the crap and unwanted things at you, you might get discouraged and want to give up. You may think that nothing is working out for you, or everyone is against you, but that's not true. The one who matters most, who loves you unconditionally, and who is your only source of joy is not against you. Jesus is for you, always. He is working in your favor. It might not always look that way or feel that way, but you just have to trust Him.
If you say yes, things will not always go as planned. You might be shaken, your life might be shaken. But your joy will never be shaken because Jesus can never be shaken. Let Him fill you with His love and let Him be your joy.
Jesus is... love, enough, joy. But most importantly, Jesus is everything.
In the midst of your day, choose joy. When there are tears streaming down your face and you feel like you can't go on, choose joy. When everything is going great, thank Him and still choose joy. Don't ever stop choosing joy, because when you stop choosing joy, you stop choosing Jesus.
You deserve to choose joy.
Jesus wants to be your everything, don't let fear get in the way. All you have to do is say yes. It will be worth it, I promise. So, choose Joy.
