Choosing Joy

(traduccion español)

We all know choices are important. Some choices are small - such as choosing what to order on the menu. Some choices are big, like choosing where to buy your house. But there is an everyday choice that can bear even more importance in your life: choosing joy.

Henri Nouwen said, “Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.”

On Facebook, someone complimented me about my positive attitude towards life even in the face of an illness such as mine. I told that person that I didn't always have such a chirpy attitude. Last fall, after I was discharged from the hospital after my illness had flared up severely, there were several days where I felt miserable because it seemed that my illness was not letting go of me.

Then one day, I decided to stop thinking with the "woe is me" attitude and decided to be joyful instead! If I am going to live with an illness, I will do so joyfully; because whatever happens down the road is going to happen anyway. When you're living with an illness, and you're on chemotherapy and struggling with the side effects - sometimes choosing joy is difficult, but it's always the better choice to make.

Does having joy mean that you should never be sad or mad? No! There is a difference between joy and happiness. Happiness is a temporary state of emotion that expresses your enjoyment and satisfaction with your current circumstances. True joy is found when you know that despite what your circumstances are, there is something inside of you that is stronger than the mountains you face.

"Though sorrow may last through the night, joy comes in the morning."  Psalm 30:5

Where do you find your joy? Some people find joy with their significant other - because they rely on that person to lift them up when life goes down. Some people find joy in what they do as a career - they relish in how they serve others and their community. But people are not guaranteed to always be around …and careers don't last forever. As a Christian, I know that I can always find my joy in God.  He has promised to always be my side and endure with me whatever trials I am going through. When I feel pain, He feels it too. Knowing God means knowing that earth is our temporary home, and that one day we will be in a place where sorrow and tears will never enter.

We may not be able to control what happens to us, but we can always control our attitude towards life. Every day is a new beginning…even if joy has not been your friend lately, you can still choose joy today and see the difference that it can make in your life!

How does joy make a difference? You begin to look at the world and your problems through a new perspective. For me, Instead of viewing my rare isolated illness as "bad luck," I choose to view it as a "gift of special circumstance" - because I get to be challenged in ways that most other people don't. I endure struggles that other people don't have to face. And by overcoming these challenges and struggles, I become a stronger person. Strength builds resilience. And your resilience to life events helps you to hold on to your joy.