Erin Campbell Naman, church member since 2009, member of Children’s Council, member of Lay Leadership Council

Psalm 96 (NIV)
“Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.  Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day.  Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples.  For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods.  For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens.  Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and glory are in his sanctuary.  Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.  Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come into his courts. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth.  Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.” The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity.  Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it.  Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.  Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes, he comes to judge the earth.  He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his faithfulness.

Reflection:
Years ago, when I first joined the Tuesday Mom’s Bible Study, we read Kay Warren’s book “Choose Joy: Because Happiness Isn’t Enough.”  It was the first time I had really thought about the difference between joy and happiness. Until then I had always strived for happiness, but I came to understand that happiness isn’t enough, that happiness is fleeting.  What God wants for us is joy! I like definitions and Kay defines joy this way—“Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be all right, and the determined choice to praise God in all things.” For years I have had that definition saved in my phone. 

We also talked about who in our lives embodied joy. Joy is easy to talk about, but is it easy to live out in this broken world? I immediately, then and now, thought of my late paternal grandfather. My grandfather was one of those men who lived life with a twinkle in his eye. He loved life and he loved people. His very being exuded joy. He wasn’t joyful because God had granted him a life full of ease and blessings; he was joyful in spite of hardships he had faced. He chose joy. 

My grandfather kept that twinkle in his eye in spite of what this broken world threw at him, including a rather public disappointment that would have turned another man bitter and angry.  My favorite quote about him comes from a friend who was asked if he was ever scared of flying with my grandfather. Big Mike had flown in World War II and continued to fly recreationally until the day my grandmother told him to stop. His friend’s response was, no, he wasn’t afraid because no one loved life more than Mike. He loved life, with all its messiness and with all its blessings. He loved the life God had given him. He chose joy.

It is that kind of joyful love for life that God has intended for us. God wants us to joyfully sing, to praise his name, to rejoice. You only need a passing knowledge of the Old Testament and the history of David and the Israelites to know that their lives hadn’t been all sunshine and roses, yet David exalts them to sing to the Lord and praise his name. Though the word joy is only used once in Psalm 96 (in the NIV translation), this is a song all about joy and living joyfully. It is about making that determined choice to praise God in all things. 

In December we fill our homes with strains of Joy to the World, not Happiness to the World.  God sent us joy through his son. May we remember this season, and in all seasons, that God is in control of all the details, that ultimately it will all be made right in his time, and may we remember to sing his praises. May we choose joy.

Prayer:
God, I want to live joyfully.  I want to sing your praises in all things and through all circumstances.  I want to remember, Lord, that you are always in control.  I want to choose joy today and tomorrow, the kind of joy I can only get by walking with you.  Thank you for being a loving Father who wants and yearns for his children to know something deeper than happiness. For wanting us not to settle for the circumstantial, but for wanting us to abide in deep joy.  Today and always may I choose to walk joyfully through this life with you ever-present at my side.