I love the late 19th-century Christian gospel song written by George William Cooke that I fondly remember singing in my youth around the glowing campfire as a Girl Scout, “I’ve Got the Joy.” Recalling the lyrics (feel free to sing out loud), “I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart. (Where?) Down in my heart. (Where?) Down in my heart.”
Joy, like Christ’s love, is always with you. You carry it in your heart. Like faith, hope, love, peace, empathy, and passion, it’s a burning ember that makes your soul glow, your inner light shine.
“Though you have not seen him, you love him, and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with inexpressible and glorious joy.” – 1 Peter 1:8.
I recently had lunch with my girlfriend, Lauren, who became a new mom four months ago. She and her husband decided that she would not return to her job, but jumpstart her new business adventure. Together, they are supporting each other’s dreams and thereby teaching their children to find joy in your career, by pursuing what you love to do, every day.
Lauren expressed that she has been tested along the way, but is learning to find joy in the journey. She is surrounding herself with supportive people and mentors who share in her joy-finding mission. Lauren explained, “I created The Rosewater Edit as a resource for all things in beauty that are green and clean. I’m passionate about health and wholeness for women – mind, body, and soul.” Lauren is combining her love of beauty products and fashion, developing her own cosmetic line in 2018.
Joy can be easily misplaced and forgotten. If you have lost your joy, sit down and make a list of those things that make you the happiest. Then, go out and do them and pursue them. God has hidden talents within you. When discovered, use them for His glory. Use your gifts; find your joy.
“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.” – 1 Peter 4:10-11.
About Katie Hart Smith
“Words, written or spoken, have power.” Katie Hart Smith’s column, “From the Heart,” touches the heart, inspires, entertains, and speaks to one’s heart and soul. Her historical fiction novels Hope Never Rests and Aspirations of the Heart, have been placed in the Georgia Governor’s Mansion Library. To learn more about this Southern author, visit www.katiehartsmith.com.
