What To Do When Our Joy Fades: Three Simple Ways to Rediscover Joy
Today I'm blogging at Club31 Women about what to do when your joy fades
Do you sometimes feel like your joy is slipping away, eroding or stale?
I do too.
It happens to each of us at different times and for a variety of reasons.
I remember standing in my laundry room facing piles of dirty, stinky laundry. With five little kids, my house was a disaster. And I knew that whatever I accomplished would be undone by that evening. I did not feel successful at parenting or marriage or anything. I just felt stuck. No joy. In the corner of the room, I noticed a faded poster that said, “He will make you glad.”
Father, I whispered, I can’t even make myself glad. I need You to do this within me.
Was I suddenly happy and joyful? No. Instead, I was humbled as I realized this was one more thing I couldn’t do. I had to rely on Him to do it within me. And it would not be instantaneous or immediate but more likely a slow growing, one step at a time.
Many things can rob us of joy: a breakup with the person you thought was “the one,” a devastating diagnosis, a rebellious child who has left, ongoing acrimony between your children, the loss of a professional dream, emotional and physical exhaustion, or simply feeling stuck in the mundane of life.