A season of JOY

Amongst the many cards and messages of encouragement I received at my baby shower, there was one in particular that stood out to me. A watercolour whale graced the card with the words ‘Shout for joy’ painted below. Inside the card, my friend had written that she was praying that this would be a ‘season of joy’ for us as a family.

Aside from the beautiful painting and the loving words, the card struck a special chord in my heart as we had already decided to name our imminent arrival ‘Joy’, should she be a girl (which she was!).

The weeks and months since then have indeed been a season of joy. Watching our little one grow from a tiny curled up bundle of newborn rolls and snuggles to a chatty and characterful four-month-old with a contagious laugh has been a precious time. However, as any new mother will attest to, it is not an easy ride and there are moments when it can be very difficult to find joy at all. Recovering from childbirth, the shock of realising my body may never return to normal, exhaustion from round the clock feeding, despair and frustration when breastfeeding didn’t immediately click and the struggle of keeping on going through sickness are just some of the moments in which I have found it difficult to know joy.

Thankfully though, joy is not contingent on my circumstances, as the Bible reminds me over and over again (430 times to be precise, compared to just 10 references to happiness). Jesus states that he has shared these things with us that our ‘joy may be full’ (John 15:11) and that no one will take our joy from us (John 16:22). Peter talks about joy that is ‘inexpressible and filled with glory’ (1 Peter 1:8-9) and the Psalmist praises God that in His presence is ‘fullness of joy’.

In a world where we are constantly being told that we need to control our circumstances, those around us and acquire material possessions in order to be happy, the Bible is clear that true and lasting joy is only available as a result of the work of the Holy Spirit. It is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22) and is presented as a choice: ‘rejoice in the Lord always: again I will say rejoice’ (Phil 4:4). We are also reminded that as the body of Christ we are to ‘rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep’. (Rom 12:15).

Joy is not a glib emotion that comes and goes, but rather the outworking of the Holy Spirit within us and a response to dwelling in God’s presence. It does not come and go based on our circumstances but can be lasting and complete. When we are filled with joy we are able to share that joy with others around us.

Two and a half days into my three-day labour, when I was feeling at an end of myself and unable to go on, a lady from my church sent me a scripture, unaware of my circumstances or the choice of name that we were about to use for our child: ‘there may be pain in the night but joy comes in the morning’. How true this was for me in my circumstances in that moment, and how true this can be for each of us when we put our hope in the Giver of Joy.