New Year Devotions

Choosing Joy

Philippians 4:4 (Living Bible)
“Always be full of joy in the Lord; I say it again, rejoice! Let everyone see that you are unselfish and considerate in all you do.”

I remember singing as a teenager the simple but unforgettable song:
“I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart.”
Each verse grew more enthusiastic—
“I’ve got the peace that passes understanding…”
And even, “I’ve got the you-know-what, I can’t explain it…”
It was exuberant, innocent, and full of life.

G. K. Chesterton beautifully captured this divine design when he wrote,
“God made us for joy. God is joy, and the joy of living reflects the original joy that God felt in creating us.”

But as adults, we discover something sobering: the human spirit has only so much room. When our inner life fills with sorrow, sadness, anxiety, or discouragement, joy gets crowded out. Paul’s call to rejoice in the Lord is not a command to pretend everything is fine. It’s an invitation to anchor ourselves in a joy that does not depend on our circumstances—
a joy deep enough to steady us, sustain us, and even surprise us.

For Paul, this joy was not surface cheerfulness or forced optimism. It was a deep, settled gladness in Jesus—a joy so rooted in Christ that it becomes the very bedrock of who we are. A joy that bubbles up from the heart, even when life feels heavy. A joy that is chosen, not faked.

Imagine carrying a backpack filled with heavy stones—each stone representing sorrow, disappointment, worry, or regret. With every step, the weight pushes down, making it difficult to move, breathe, or look up.

Now picture someone gently opening the backpack and lifting out those stones one by one. As each is removed, you suddenly feel lighter. Your posture straightens. Your steps become easier. Space is created where heaviness once lived.

Joy works the same way.
It isn’t the denial of our stones—it’s the clearing of space when God lifts them from our souls. Joy comes not by pretending we aren’t burdened, but by allowing the Lord to make room for something deeper, steadier, and more life-giving.

Joy is not the absence of sorrow, nor the refusal to acknowledge pain. It is the decision—sometimes daily, sometimes moment by moment—to root ourselves in the goodness of God. True joy is chosen, not manufactured. It grows when we bring our honest hearts to Jesus and allow Him to replace despair with hope, heaviness with grace, and fear with His abiding presence.
Joy doesn’t deny reality; it redefines it in the light of Christ.

Lord Jesus, teach me to choose joy—not as a mask, but as a deep confidence in Your love. Clear the clutter from my heart so there is room for the joy You long to give. Lift the heaviness that weighs me down and fill me with the peace that passes understanding. Let my life reflect the quiet, steady joy that comes from knowing You. Shape my heart so that joy becomes the rhythm of my days and the testimony of my life. Amen.

Practice: Do one small thing that lifts your spirit.