Miriam Writes
Joy changes the landscape.
A little while ago I had a picture during a time of worship of a volcano erupting, but instead of lava coming out it was bubble bath. When volcanoes erupt, they change the landscape because the molten lava solidifies and creates new shapes. Along with this picture I had the phrase ‘joy changes the landscape’.
Exploring this image, I sense God showing me 4 ways joy can change the landscape of our lives and our communities:
Joy changes our starting point. Joy is not about our circumstances or about the things we do or don’t have, but about Jesus and who He is and what we have in Him. Jesus tells his disciples in John 15:11 that he desires His joy to be complete in us. He wants us to know the fullness of joy found in Him.
Joy changes our perspective. If joy changes our starting point, it follows it also changes our perspective because we see through a different lens. James begins his letter by instructing the church to ‘count it all as joy’ (James 1:2). He is not denying the troubles or challenges we will face but is saying they do not negate the pure joy in Jesus and so ‘count it all as joy’ becomes our new perspective in Christ. The world’s narrative is often cynicism, but in Jesus ours is joy.
Joy changes our ability to persevere. Joy is not about being relentlessly cheerful, or ignoring reality and messiness of our lives, but instead it enables us to keep putting one foot in front of the other because we chose to trust Jesus is who he says he is and does the things he says he will do. Nehemiah 8:10 declares ‘The joy of the Lord is our strength’. The context of this verse is Nehemiah has finished rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and chooses to read Scripture to mark its completion. As it is read, they receive revelation of who God is and respond with rejoicing. They know the joy of the Lord is their strength because they know nothing is too big or too hard for God.
Joy changes how others see us. Joy is an attractive quality and is often what people see in us and take note of. In Galatians 5 joy is listed as one of the fruits of the Spirit, a gift from the Holy Spirit that we are to grow in as we grow as disciples. Sometimes people seem to think growing as a disciple is about getting more serious, but instead it is about growing more joyful. As we grow in joy people often take note and we pray they will discover Jesus is the source of our joy.
How do you want the landscape to change? The landscape of your heart? The landscape of the communities you are a part of? How might joy play a part in changing the landscape? Because joy does change the landscape.
Rev Miriam Thurlow