protecting the joy in your life

gypsy ed

One thing I've been learning over the past year is how to protect joy in my life.  Some lessons have been difficult, but all so freeing.  A few days ago I saw a post by Shelley Giglio on Instagram about this very thing.  Her points really honed in on exactly what I have been trying to practice in my life, and I wanted to share them with you along with a few thoughts of my own...

How do you protect your joy in life?

1. Stay focused on the majority impact before you focus on the minority criticism.  YES YES YES!  As a worship leader I face criticism from time to time, whether it's about song choices or leading style or other things.  As a spouse I sometimes face criticism (although usually very healthy) from my husband.  As a teacher I face criticism.  Heck, I sometimes face criticism from my elementary aged students!  And I'm sure regardless of the nature of your job or situation, you face criticism from time to time, too.  First of all, healthy, helpful criticism is a good thing we should welcome in our life.  But then there's criticism that is perhaps undeserved or rooted in unhealthy motive or merely subjective opinion or just plain unhelpful or even destructive.  You guys, you've got to LET IT GO!  Believe me, this has been a hard, messy, beautiful process in my life (and I'm still working on it), but I've come a long way.  When I receive helpful criticism, I try to learn from it and move on.  If it is not helpful, I pray for God to remove it from my thoughts and then I intentionally focus on the most positive things that happened that day including any encouragement I have received from someone.  I give credit to Luke for helping me with this.  He is good at laughing off ridiculous critical comments and focusing on the positive.  And when we focus on all the GOOD things God is doing through us and all the life-giving truths He tells us in His Word, our joy cannot be weakened.

2. Stay connected to Jesus.  The enemy wants to disconnect you during the work you're doing by distracting you from the purpose and person you're doing it for.  Personal walk = my priority = great joy.  If these were listed in order of importance, this would be number one.  Your personal walk with Jesus is ESSENTIAL.  Life isn't worth living without Him.  And I can personally attest to this - you might do all sorts of churchy, Jesus-y, ministryish things in your daily life and work and you can still neglect a personal walk with Jesus.  That kind of life will yield emptiness.  Daily time spent talking with God, listening to Him, reading and searching scripture with an eager heart, and praying boldly to Him to bear fruit in you will make everything else in your life so much sweeter and better, and will most certainly produce joy.

3. You have to make it your personal mission to not lose sight of the forest for the trees. (It's normally the little things that bring us down, but it's the glimpse of the greater thing that inspires our heart.)  It's probably the little things that the enemy uses most to steal our joy.  Like when my child throws a fit when I'm really tired or when my husband walks through the house with his wet shoes on or when my dog chews a hole in my blanket.  Again, LET IT GO!  Not worth losing your joy over.  See and seize the greater picture, the one God cares about and the one you'll wish you cared about when you stand before Him in the end.

4. Avoid isolation.  Stay connected to the people who are invested in what you do and who believe in what you're giving your life to.  This one sounds a touch narcissistic, but I think Shelley's intention was to say stay close to people who are supportive and encouraging of your calling, people who are positive voices in your life regarding what you do.  I would go a step further and say stay connected to positive people, period.  I intentionally limit my time with negative people.  Negativity is a joy-sucker.  Sure, sometimes you can't avoid time with them depending on how they are involved in your life, but unless they are living in your home, you can always choose to minimize time with them.  I'm not talking about ignoring people who need ministering to and only spending time with your best friends.  I'm talking about being intentional with who speaks into your life the most and making sure those people are positive and life-giving.  The women I meet with for weekly Bible study are just that.  They are encouraging and hopeful and we help build each other up (while at the same time, challenging each other).  I make a point to talk to my best friend who lives far away at least once a week because she always makes me laugh and because I can be my raw self with her, and we are significantly invested in each other.  I talk to my mom almost every day for many of the same reasons.  And of course, I am so blessed to be married to one of the most positive people on the planet with whom I get to spend the most time.  I thank God for his influence over my life.  This whole concept has made an immeasurable difference in my life.

(I added the next two)

5. Be thankful for your right now.  There really is power in a grateful heart.  Are there things in my life I wish were a little different?  Sure.  Are there things that go wrong every day?  Yep.  But I don't focus on those things.  I set my thoughts and mind on all the ways I am so incredibly blessed.  The consuming, selfish American machine has brainwashed us to want and covet and strive for what's next or for something one step up from what we currently have.  If we spend our whole lives in that trap, we'll reach the end and realize we were never thankful for today, for the glorious right now, for all the wonder and blessings of this very moment.  And a grateful heart protects your joy.

6. Don't fill your life with too many things.  Being too busy, too strapped, too spread thin all the time will steal your joy faster than you think.  Sure, there are seasons that are busier than others, they ebb and flow.  But don't take on so much in your daily life and roles that it steals your health, your sanity, your clarity, and your joy.  I've been simplifying my life recently and am still figuring it out, but I already feel more peaceful, more rested, and ultimately happier.  If something in your life needs to go, say goodbye to it and be done.  If you can't afford or are unable to cut anything out right now, brainstorm how you can simplify what you are doing.  Maybe you can delegate more.  Maybe you can plan more breaks or times for rest.  Maybe you should just say no to more things that come up.

May you choose to protect your joy this year and every year, and may it overflow!