By Linda Mason
Luke 1:46-48
If we are truthful, it’s not always easy to be joyful. Mary found herself in a less than desirable situation, and yet, she embraced her circumstances because she realized it was going to result in good for the entire world.
Many things can bring us happiness; joy is internal and we recognize it when it happens, it bubbles up from the inside. Michael Yaconelli, the author of Messy Spirituality, talks about “the triumph of tiny living.” We all know the stories of God’s spectacular miracles but most of our lives are lived in ordinary, tiny living. “…the spiritual life is a tiny life, filled with little decisions, tiny steps toward God, tiny glimpses of his presence, little changes and small movings, tiny successes, and imperceptible stirrings.” A joy-filled faith springing from an ordinary life. I wonder how often during this season we let anxiety, need for control, fear of change, box checking and list making rob us of joy. Ah, that we would let God take our hand and guide us, wiping away the clutter so we can use our senses to experience joy in a multitude of tiny ways that would fill our lives like molecules, right up to the brim and maybe over.