December 21, 2020
What Makes You Jump for Joy?
I've got a question for you to start today. The question is would you like more joy in your life? And if you want more joy in your life, where do you go looking for that joy? Do you have a sense of where does that joy come from? What are the things that most bring you joy?
Today is one of my favorite readings. So it's the reading where Mary goes to visit her cousin, Elizabeth. So Mary has discovered she's going to be the mother of God. The angel appears, tells her this, and says, "Also, by the way, your cousin Elizabeth is pregnant." Mary's first reaction is to go off and serve her cousin Elizabeth who's in the latter months of her pregnancy. As soon as Elizabeth hears the voice of Mary's greeting, the child in her womb leaps for joy or dances for joy. Why? Because the child, John the Baptist, recognizes even from the womb that he is in the presence of God. This reference in the New Testament is a connection to a reference in the Old Testament where David danced for joy before the Ark of the Covenant. What did the Ark of the Covenant represent to the people of Israel? It represented the presence of God. God in their midst.
And so we see the same thing. If we want more joy in our lives, it's really quite simple. We have to ask ourselves, okay, am I living in the presence of God. Do I connect with God for a couple of moments each day and then wander off and do my thing, and then come back and connect with him again later in the day or tomorrow? Or do I recognize that God is with me at every moment of the day, in every situation, every circumstance? We are living in the presence of God because when we recognize God's presence, there is a natural joy that erupts deep in our souls.
