Unexpected Joy

Unexpected joy

Having a sense of faith provides hope and community. When life gets a little more difficult, that faith brings a sense of hope and knowing that “this too, shall pass.” At the same time, it reminds you that you are never alone. You have others around you who can bring that sense of hope and help cultivate joy in just about any situation!

One of my personal goals is to spread as much positivity and joy into the world on a daily basis as I’m able. The best way I’ve achieved this goal is to make at least one person smile every day, even if it’s yourself!

Joy showed up in a very unexpected way this year through our cat, In-ho. He was a stray cat that kept visiting our house for seven months. One night, during a particularly bad thunderstorm, and even though at the time I didn’t want to admit it, I realized I was worried about this stray cat being outside during the storm. Then, I saw him hiding under our garage awning for shelter. I called for him, he bolted towards the house, walked inside, and is now part of the family. And a few months later, we now have cat toys all over the house!

— Josh Baez 

 

Joy in being together

Love is joy to us. Being together, being home and relaxing gives us peace of mind. We look forward to the little things in life; a good cup of coffee, family dinner together at the table, a warm home, hiking, and traveling. Connection and togetherness bring us joy; it helps us to manage the noise of life. We would say the small things in life, but those small things aren’t always so small.

Being in a community—both a church community and our professional lives—is a joy of life. We’re lucky we have the support of our work and faith community, so we like to make other people feel happy and like they have somewhere they belong.

St. Paul has made it easy for us to be in community with others. We know we’re not alone. There are no absolutes in life, but there’s a great roadmap in this community that’s been laid out for us as a family. It’s setting those milestones in place and us being able to take advantage of that.

— Mike, Molly, Mae, and Elle Pettis 

 

Growing in joy

I’m realizing, now, that as a youngster, things like an ice cream cone, a merry-go-round ride, pleasing my parents, were things that made me happy, but not necessarily ‘joyful.’ Throughout the years, as I’ve been ‘ripening,’ I understand that gratitude has added depth to that early feeling of happiness, and that happiness has grown into a more mature joy. To me, the words ‘gratitude’ and ‘joy’ are synonymous.

I trust God in my life to help me share qualities of positive strengths, understanding, and kindnesses to others so that I’m able to do exactly that—radiate genuine joy!

The most unexpected way that a very quiet and quite reverent joyfulness filled my heart was during my brother’s last few living hours. It was from the kind actions of a complete stranger and, also, a gift from God just before my brother took his last breath. I feel that God has molded and blessed me into becoming a person who has a grateful, trusting, and harmonious heart resulting in peace and joy.

— Diane Nauman