joy - Jeannie Waters, Writer & Speaker

Embrace the New Day with Joy and Prayer

October 14, 2020Jeannie Waters24 Comments

I’m a “wannabe” morning person. How about you? Do you bounce up early, eager to get started? Or are you sliding under the comforter after midnight?

By nature I’m a night owl who’s trying hard to convert. I’d like to see more of God’s glorious colors painted across the eastern sky when a new day begins.

Three hundred and sixty-five times per year, God wraps a new day with fresh air and promises. Whether the package includes the sun’s rays streaming through the trees or rumbling thunder in an ominous sky, each twenty-four-hour period represents a gift.

When I wake up, I often repeat, “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24). The verse sets the tone for joyous gratitude.

Lest you think I spring up like Winnie-the-Pooh’s friend Tigger with extra energy and exuberance, I’ll admit my attitude on occasion is less than cheery.

When I’m tired or overwhelmed with a long to-do list, my response to the alarm clock sounds more like Pooh’s other friend, Eeyore, the forlorn donkey who sees the glass as half-empty.

On those days, as my hand reaches for the snooze button, my pillow entices me more than the smell of strong coffee. Gratitude hides deep under the covers.

Regardless of our mental state upon awakening, we can embrace each new day with gratitude for God’s gifts. After all, an additional dawn represents an opportunity to seek our heavenly Father’s will in prayer and to love and serve Him and others throughout the day.

Some believers spend concentrated time with God in the afternoon or evening. We’re all unique. As long as we engage in prayer and Bible study, we can grow in Christ regardless of the time of day. Some who have extended prayer and reading time later in the day, pray briefly in the morning to acknowledge God’s presence and gain focus.

Praying passages from the book of Psalms often jumpstarts my early moments. Focusing on God’s words pries open my sleepy mind and awakens my heart to converse with the day’s Creator. The verses below are some of my favorites.

Embrace-the-Day-with-Joy Verses to Pray

Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
Psalm 143:8

Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Psalm 90:14

But I will sing of your strength; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress.
Psalm 59:16

But I, O Lord, cry to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you.
Psalm 88:13

I rise before dawn and cry for help; I hope in your words.
Psalm 119:147

You may want to print the verses and add others to include in your conversations with God.

Please share how you turn “Eeyore mornings” into “Tigger days.”

Bouncing like the tiger character in the Winnie-the-Pooh story is optional (whew), but embracing the day with prayer helps us rejoice in the new morning God has made. Filled with joy, we can brighten someone else’s day.

Have a good day, dear reader friend, and enjoy time with God whether you meet with Him in the morning or evening. Thank you for your comments.

Bible verses are from the ESV.

Image by Pixabay

Sharing Joy in January

January 15, 2020Jeannie Waters21 Comments

She plodded down the hall of the rehab hospital with the help of a walker, head bent downward, each step an effort. When she passed me, she looked up with a radiant smile and answered my greeting with a cheery “Good morning! How are you?”

As my family would predict, I couldn’t leave it at that and go my merry way. You see, my “hobby” is meeting new people. Each person has a story, and I love to hear those tidbits tucked away in the memory banks of strangers. When spontaneous visits include a conversation about God, they are even more precious.

I said to the lady I met, “You seem joyful this morning even though you’re using a walker. I think God wants us to be filled with joy, don’t you?”

Her smile widened. I believed her when she responded, “You are right! I wake up with joy every morning.”

I asked, “Do you know Jesus?” (I suspected she did.)

She nodded and answered, “Oh, yes, I’ve known Him for a long time. My name is Kwajalein.”

We had a brief conversation about the Lord as Kwajalein became my new “joybit” friend. (That’s my name for dear folks I meet in places like waiting rooms, elevators, and shopping lines. We may never see each other again, but we share a bit of joy and friendship for a short time.)

My sweet, new friend went her way and I went mine, but we parted with smiles and joyful hearts because of our shared relationship with Jesus.

Kwajalein and I may never meet again as both of us were outpatients. However, God used us to fill each other’s joy tanks that day.

I left with a smile as big as my new friend’s because Kwajalein’s trust in the Lord eased anxiety about my back pain and reminded me to rejoice as I trusted Him.

An oft-quoted verse reads:

This is the day that the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalm 118:24 ESV

We don’t always feel like rejoicing and “being glad,” but with the joy of the Lord in our hearts, we can choose to do so, just as Kwajalein did even though she needed assistance to walk.

Despite our circumstances, we have the capacity to rejoice. Once we accept Christ as Savior, the fruit we bear by the Holy Spirit’s work in our hearts includes joy (Galatians 5:22) and brings honor to God.

We sometimes pass people who wear frowns or whose surface smile seems to mask sadness or anger. Maybe those folks have heavy burdens or simply don’t feel well. Maybe they need a relationship with Jesus, or perhaps they are believers who need a kind word.

Does someone in your path today need a “joybit” friend—someone to smile, engage them in conversation, and share the encouragement Christ offers?

For the rest of January’s thirty-one days, let’s agree to “rejoice and be glad” as we obey God’s nudges to encourage others.

(Of course, we proceed with safety and respect in mind. As my husband reminds me, not everyone is open to making “joybit” friends. But plenty of folks are.)

Please share in the Comments a time someone shared joy with you or an instance when you lightened someone’s heart. The joy of the Lord is worth sharing.

Now, please don’t miss the treasure below that relates to today’s topic.

The Joy Box Journal by Adria Wilkins
https://www.joyboxstories.com

The Joy Box Journal by Adria Wilkins is one of my favorite books! It’s a collection of short devotions that illustrate finding joy in each day. Space for journaling is included.

Adria Wilkins, the author, endured the death of her three-year-old son, yet she spreads joy more than anyone I know.

LOOK at the special features below which are included: joy notes and easy-to-assemble box for storing them

I promise you’ll love it!

No commission involved.

Finding Joy in the Mud Puddles of Life

August 6, 2019Jeannie Waters14 Comments

What can you see in a mud puddle? Maybe the answer depends on the angle of your view.

Following suggested activities in Soul Care for Writers by Edie Melson¹ I took pictures of various nature scenes including reflections in water. The only water available at the time I chose to snap pictures was a mud puddle. (My husband’s truck creates a depression in the ground when he turns his truck around to position it on the driveway.)

Recent rainwater filled the crater and offered clear reflections. I took a picture, then walked around the puddle and snapped photos from different angles. The reflection changed each time.

Angle One

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My first view stirred an emotional response—that of disgust at the eyesore of a rut and impatience with my husband, who had not yet filled the hole with dirt so that grass could grow there once again. The mud puddle glared like a blight on my otherwise perfect view of the lawn.

Rather than appreciating the iridescent-winged dragonfly that hovered nearby, I assessed the water as a mosquito-breeding pool. Instead of enjoying surrounding beauty, I stared at the hole. A missed opportunity for joy!

How like the trials and inconveniences of life! When I focus on them, they can rob me of joy and turn smiles into frowns or peace into worry. The following verse shows us how to focus:

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Philippians 4:8

Angle Two

When I moved around the puddle to snap a shot from another angle, I noticed the reflection of trees, the pine giants I ignored before. Their reflection drew my gaze upward to their tops framed by puffy white clouds in the brilliant blue sky.

When I tilted my head upward, my line of sight included a higher, more beautiful picture. I confessed my grumbling to the Lord, who changed my bad attitude to one of prayer, praise, and joy as He directed me to consider His goodness rather than my irritation.

Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
Colossians 3:2

Angle Three

When I changed positions again and placed my back to the sun, I saw my own shadow. Sunlight created an image of me in the water.

God created us in His image. Once we accept Christ as Savior, we become His image-bearers in this world. Sometimes my attitudes and actions do not represent Him well and require confession of sin. What a blessing that He loves me and continues conforming me to the image of Christ Jesus (Romans 8:28-30).

What view of Him do others see reflected in my life? Which Christ-like qualities shine in my relationships and in my circumstances?

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him.

Genesis 1:27

Just like the ugly duckling became a swan in the famous children’s story, the unsightly mud puddle became a beautiful illustration for biblical truth. As the angle changed on my view of the hole in my yard, the Lord graciously helped me to notice Him as He filled my heart with joy.

By the way, the rut remains, and I still don’t like it. However, I will wait patiently until my husband has time to repair it. In the meantime, after rain showers, you may see me peering into a mud puddle to see what additional lessons God wants to teach me.

Have you seen a time when an unsightly view or circumstance led to a joyful heart? Have you been encouraged by a Christian who is filled with joy even when life is hard? Please share how God has changed your view of life’s “mud puddles.”

¹Soul Care When You’re Weary by Edie Melson is for anyone who needs to slow down and soak up the peace God intended us to have. Soul Care for Writers is addressed to writers and other creatives. Both books contain devotions, prayers, and easy creative activities that will delight even the non-crafty among us. Let me know if you have questions about either book.