Joy Comes in the Morning

For forty days I'm deliberately choosing to find joy. To start from the begging, start here. 

Day 11

Although I don't always live like it, I am a morning person. I love mornings when I wake up and get up before my alarm in the morning - 

when the house is still and quite because everyone else is still in bed

when I have plenty of time to open the Word and study it (sometimes with the wonderful help of my Greek dictionary)

when I don't feel stressed about getting time to get a shower, apply my minimal make-up, grab something for breakfast, and make my lunch

when there is simply less pressure and plenty of time.

This morning I joyfully accepted God's invitation to enjoy the morning personality that He created in me. I woke up 20 minutes before my alarm went off. Part of that time I admit I thought about falling back asleep, but then I decided to talk to the Spirit who gently pulled me from refreshing sleep and thank him for a much gentler wake up call than my alarm clock. I thanked him for the desire I had to spend time with Him, and then I got up and opened his word.

Today I started another Reading Plan. In the past four years I have read through the Bible three times, in several different ways. This morning I started a Chronological Plan. It is set up to complete in a year, but my goal is to complete it by June. I am excited to see what God shows me from this incredible journey I have started on this morning and will be sharing in future posts some of the discoveries God gives me.

This morning I also continued my study of the Beatitudes in Matthew 5 (here's where the Greek comes in.) This morning I looked up the Greek text for the key words in vs. 3-7. Here is a passage from The Complete Word Study Dictionary edited by Zodhiates Th.D. that stood out to me most this morning:

"Meekness, but not in a man's outward behavior only, nor in his relations to his fellow man or his mere natural disposition. Rather it is an inwrought grace of the soul, and the expressions of it are primarily toward God (James 1:21; 3:13; 1 Pet 3:15; Sept.: Ps 45:4). It is that attitude of spirit we accept God's dealings with us as good and do not dispute or resist. Prautes, according to Aristotle, is the middle standing between two extremes, getting angry without reason, and not getting angry at all. Therefore, prautes is getting angry at the right time, in the right measure, and for the right reason. Prautes is not readily expressed in Eng. (since the term "meekness" suggests weakness), but it is a condition of mind and heart which demonstrates gentleness, not in weakness, but in power. It is a balance born in strength of character."

First Day

For forty days I'm deliberately choosing to find joy. To start from the begging, click here.


Day 10

Today was my first day of work out in the "real" world.
Today was a day of schedule.
Today was a day of new things.
Today was a day of leaning written policies...
and unwritten policies.
Today was a day of laughter.
Today was a day of seriousness.

Today was my first day of work out in the "real" world.

Today was my first day of work at LeaderTreks.

Today was

JOY

My List of Joy

For forty days I'm deliberately choosing to find joy, to start from the beginning, click here.

I may have been a slacking a little bit on posting here, but I have not slacked in my joy challenge.
Since the last post I have flown back to OKC and have been helping my mom as we prepare for my brother's wedding which is happening this coming Sunday up in Wichita, KS. So admist, I crazy schedule here are some of the things that I've found/chosen joy in.

Day 6 - Sunday evening I spent with my host family and their friends. We made dinner and then started a camp fire and played several rounds of mafia (yep, that crazy middle school youth group game). This was a little bit of finding and choosing joy. Here I was having fun with practical strangers having fun very similar to the fun that my community back at JBU would have choosen for a relaxed evening. I found joy in remembering all of those fun times with the people whom God placed in my life for the past four years. I choose to set aside some of those memories also so I could enjoy time with this new community that God has placed me among in Chicago.

Day 7 - I have found lots of joy returning to OKC and getting to see and hang out with my family. Right after flying in, I went and saw a movie with my mom. The next evening my grandmother, aunt, uncle, and cousin came over to celebrate my birthday with me. I got pedicures with my mom AND my dad last night. I know that more joy with family is to come as I head to Kansas this weekend to celebrate my brother's wedding. This is one of the most joyful reasons of the weekend:

My niece the flowergirl! Can't wait to see her tomorrow.

Day 8 - The other night I had trouble falling asleep and was just thinking through some things that I discovered joy in from this summer. So day eight is dedicated to a past joy

- living without mirrors -

The church I lived in for three weeks while on trips only had mirrors located in the boxing gym in the basement. So I learned how to live without looking in the mirror, and actually avoided looking in the ones that I knew were there. Reasons I found this joyful:

+ I found that it was actually easier to see myself as beautiful since it was harder to view the things I typically critique
+ You learn to trust your friends to tell you about the important things that we've leaned to use mirrors for, such as (a) food in your teeth (b) hair looks too ridiculous or (c) when a zit is ready to pop.

Day 9 - Finishing a journal brings me a small amount of joy. I feel joy at knowing my relationship with God is growing and changing and living. Each journal represents a certain stage in my life and I smile at knowing one day I will go back and read where God has brought me from and remembering what he has done in my life and what he will do because of that.

So have you been thinking about your choice to live in joy?