Joy for everyday

"You can find Joy even in your most difficult days."

~Sarah Young, Jesus Calling

Yesterday was a fabulous day filled with happiness in our house.

But not all days feel like yesterday.  I was reminded of this as I did some spiritual reading during nap time.  I was reminded of the many days when happiness is elusive, when my mood is sour, my heart discontented.  Can I hope to find Joy even in my most difficult days?  What if my days are even harder than they have been in the past?  What if I lost someone I loved?  Faced disease or injury?  Sometimes joy feels as fleeting as the summer sun this time of year. 

In Jesus Calling, I was reminded today that some of the world's most miserable people are those whose circumstances seem the most enviable.  Some of the greatest saints the world has ever seen had nothing, died penniless and suffered greatly in their lives.  These examples and my own experience force me to admit that true joy must not depend on my circumstances.  

In the book of Habakkuk, a prophet offers a compelling testament of faith and finds joy in all circumstances, even those that feel the most devastating or dreary.

"For though the fig tree blossoms not,

nor fruit be on the vines,

Though the yield of the olive fail

and the terraces produce no nourishment,

Though the flocks disappear from the fold

and there be no herd in the stalls,

Yet will I rejoice in the Lord

and exult in my saving God."

~Habakkuk 3: 17-19

Incredible.  Lord, let my heart draw close and rejoice in you when my day seems too hard.  Because that might be my today or tomorrow.