Choosing JOY Every Day | Inspiration

Choose JOY today and every day! JOY doesn’t simply happen. You have to intentionally choose JOY and you have to choose to be JOYful every day.  JOY begins with gratitude – being thankful for all you are and all you have. It is not dependent on your everyday circumstances; JOY comes from deep within your soul.  It is finding beauty, happiness, and contentment in everyday things. The more grateful you are on a daily basis, the more JOYful you will also be.

Start your day with Gratitude

Upon wakening each morning, let your first thoughts be of gratitude. Say “thank you” for some of the things or people that are important to you….. your family, your health, the rain, for example. Even just saying the words “thank you” will raise your gratefulness and also your JOY. This short statement will set the tone of gratitude for your day.

Affirmations

Then say a few affirmations such as:

            I am brimming with energy and overflowing with JOY.

            My life is filled with JOY and abundance.

            I always live in comfort and JOY.

            My heart is bursting with JOY.

            I am worthy of love and JOY.

Even if you are not feeling “bursting” with JOY, saying the affirmations will help lift your spirits and your energy. Or you can make up your own affirmations that resonate with you.

Count your many blessings

In the evening before retiring, list 10 things that you are thankful for that day. You can do this in your mind before drifting off to sleep. You will find an added benefit by writing down your list every night in a journal.  The process of actually writing down these things helps to instill the thankfulness in your mind and in your heart. Every now and then, take time to reread the things you have written in your journal. This will remind you of all the great things you have going on in your life.

Once you’re in the habit of CHOOSING JOY EVERY DAY, you will feel the change in yourself and the world around you. And your JOY is contagious. As you exude more JOY in life, other people around you will begin to also feel more JOYful.

My story

A few years ago, my minister spoke about JOY. He cautioned us to watch for “joy stealers”, people around us who try to take away our JOYful attitude. You probably encounter people every day who do not want to see you happy. Everything they have to say is negative.  Sometimes you will have to make a decision to limit contact with these people. The scripture my minister was using is “Be joyful always” found in 1 Thessalonians 5:16. Not only has this become my favorite verse, it is also my life mantra.

His message spoke to my heart and I launched a process of bringing JOY into my life and everyone close to me.  Today, my home is filled with JOY sayings of all kinds.  They hang from every possible nook and sit on every shelf. There is the constant reminder to be JOYful always.

Sometime later, I heard that PEACE is JOY at rest.  Yes, I do believe that is true. JOYful is a happy, upbeat feeling. Yet when I feel happy but quiet, that is a peaceful feeling. It is a refreshing energy to calm and soothe you. Your peacefulness also has a ripple effect which will calm others around you. PEACE sayings have since been added to my repertoire and my home now exudes JOY and PEACE at every turn.

Now it’s your turn…..

Being JOYful is something you have to deliberately choose over and over until it becomes a natural part of your being. It takes at least 21 days to effectively form a new habit. For the next few days, try listing the things you are grateful for every day. Before long, you will start to feel the positive effect this has on your life. You will have made CHOOSING JOY a new and fabulous habit!

“Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are.”  ~Marianne William

Coming soon…..

Here are a few posts that are in process:       

            Is it Happiness or is it JOY?

            Choosing JOY when you don’t feel JOYful

            Moving from Emotional Pain to Immense JOY

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