Joy is found in.....

How would you finish this sentence? "Joy is found in...."
How would you define joy? 
Somewhere in the midst of the past fall, I found the sparkle in my being and heart had become quite dingy in the turmoil and trials of life.  My faith had not weakened.  It was still there.  But there was a heaviness on me.  A lot was and is still going on.  Holidays, homeschool, children, housework, meals, ailing family members and the list goes on.  Just the normal day to day stuff can be hard to get done.  Grocery shopping and laundry and chauffering the children to activities. 
I was still finding things to laugh about. 
But it was at a superficial level and not lifting my spirits any. 
As I started to read, One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are  by Ann Voskamp I was challenged to start counting.  I printed out the monthly guides.  The guides were almost like a scavenger hunt...find three yellow things, 3 ugly-beautiful things, 3 things before noon.
Sometimes I didn't read the day's challenge until the evening and I had to spend some time remembering the events of the day.  Some days would pass and I hadn't written anything done.  But I would have to sit and reflect on the past few days.  That was okay.  Cause the more I had to reflect and think, the more I focused on the blessings in my life.  I am blessed.  I am even blessed in the ugly, hence the ugly beautiful things of life.  I have always prayed God would use whatever it was I was going through good or bad.  But especially the bad.  Cause if I have to walk the hard, I want there to be a reason..  I want God to be able to use it for His Glory. But hard stuff is hard and if I focus just on how hard it is, I lose sight of all the good around.  I lose my sparkle.  So as I sit and reflect on my blessings and/or my gifts I change my focus.  As I go back over my journal, to post on my blog, I am reminded by these mental snapshots of the good in my life.  I remember the moments I felt a little hug from God.  You know those little unexpected things/moments, where only a Heavenly Father, who knows all, could have orchestrated something so beautifully and well-timed that blesses you so and makes life just so much sweeter. 
I know my Joy comes from the Lord.  But I have learned I must seek Joy.  I need to chase Joy.  I must look for it in everything.  But not only must I find it, acknowledge it, I need to receive it.  In receiving it, I must acknowledge the Giver of all good things.  When you receive joy and acknowledge the gift that it is, it is impossible to not say Thank You to the source of your Joy. 
With the sparkle back in my eye, I can say
My Joy comes from the Lord.
and
The Joy of the Lord is my strength. 

I would love it if you would join me in counting.  Counting the gifts of the Lord.  Moments He brings just for You.  To Bless You and to Love You.  If you are counting, let me know and leave a comment. 


There are affiliate links in this article.