How can I be more joyful, all the time? How can I see the lighter side of things, even when all seems to be dark as night? Thinking about these questions, many thoughts came into my mind which I'd like to share with you.
We are imperfect beings. As humans, we are emotionally unstable, we can will ourself to be happy for a short period of time, probably less than a day, but somewhere there, some part of grief or depression sneaks in, threatening to ruin our day. Never will be able to stay happy for a long amount of time.
After we understand this problem, what can we do about it? Nothing! But luckily we have someone who has done something for us. In our sadness we can always have the hope of a better time, when God makes the earth and heaven new again.
Still, we seem to forget this amazing hope, especially when we are too unhappy. The good thing is though, not everyone is sad at the same time. This is where encouragement comes in. By encouraging others, we can keep them hopeful, keep them looking forward, and not looking at their present state. This is probably one of the most powerful things we as humans can do. Not make them happy, but make them look to where they can find true happiness.
One more point, the difference between joy and happiness. To you, they might be synonymous, meaning the same thing, but they are quite different. The big difference is, happiness comes and go, but joy is much longer lasting. It is the core of your being that is joyful, and more your emotions that are happy. As I said before, we are emotionally unstable, but joy seeps deeper inside than that. I hope you can understand that and be joyful, even when you might not be happy.
Please read the page "Feeling down?" for some more ways to keep seeing the bright sides in life, and I hope that you can continue to be encouraged, and also pass your encouragement to others. May God fill your life with joy, as you continue to live for him.
A smile definitely helps :)
ReplyDeleteIf it slips away just always try to keep a positve attitude on life, even if it doesn't seem so.
I try to practice random acts of kindness as counter-action to a down moment. I was feeling sad and I paid for the car behind me at a coffee house's drive thru. I was actually smiling when I drove away picturing the good surprise awaiting that person. My teen daughter puts on "I Love Lucy" episodes when she's feeling sad. These things don't mean that we don't acknowledge our feelings or talk about it. They just act to prevent us from spiraling or dwelling in that sad place too long. A dark room stays dark unless it receives external input of light.
ReplyDeleteBlessings treebytheriver! Great post! -Ella
Thanks for your comments!
ReplyDeleteElla, thank you especially for all your insights.
I loved the analogy of the dark room!