I believe with all my heart that staying joyful can be a difficult thing.
Whether it's the daily rhythms of life that start to wear on you, or if it's sudden, devastating news that breaks your heart.
And I've heard this:
Fight for joy.
It's an interesting concept.
I imagine myself as a warrior in dented armor -- valiantly shoving down evil barricades that keep me from joy.
But I'd like to propose a different philosophy.
You see, you can't technically fight for joy, because you can't win it.
The source of joy is not some unmoving object, passively awaiting your victorious warring against depression.
The Source of Joy already conquered that depression.
Now He's standing in front of you.
You -- a quivering, cowardly warrior.
And He's extending His arms to you.
You can't win Joy.
He is winning YOU.
Don't fight for what truly makes you happy.
What makes you truly happy is fighting for you.
And now the only one left to conquer is The Enemy.
The Enemy who whispers that the Joy before you is not, in fact, Joy at all.
Quivering warrior -- battered by the warring in your own soul -- YOU cannot win this fight within you.
But you can open your eyes. You can unclench your fists. You can take hold of the Joy before you.
You can have Joy.
