I engraved it on a necklace to wear around my neck. “Choose Joy.” The letters glitter when I look down at them. I’ve always loved the idea that I could choose joy in any circumstance, whether or not the “feeling” of happiness was happening to me at that time. These two words have redirected my thinking and as such have brought me through many difficult situations on the field.  

And yet joy isn’t merely a choice; it’s not just the result of positive thinking. We can’t drum it up on our own. Yes, we have the choice to embrace it or not, but at its source it’s a gift from God; a fruit of the Spirit. That is where we find the true power.  

Fruit is produced when we abide in the vine, letting the supernatural power flow through us to produce the joy, the peace, the patience and all the rest of that delicious fruit of the Spirit. 

Joy flows from the inside out, rather than us waiting for something external to somehow work its way into us. It’s a working out of our salvation, an overflow of the heart as we abide in Christ.   

Jesus never promised us that we’d find happiness if we follow Him. But He does offer us the fullness of joy. In John 15:11 he says, “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.” 

By dwelling on His word (the things He has spoken to us), His joy remains in us (abides!), and THIS is the fullest joy we can imagine.