As I look up today, I see a wooden plaque that hangs on my wall that says, “Find Joy in the Journey.” I bought this hanging at one of the summer festivals last year because I tend to rush through life.
There is a delicate balance between enjoying life and constantly striving for more. Have you ever encountered a person who never seems content? Someone who always seems to be chasing something? Maybe you can relate to this feeling. In reality, I believe that all of us can identify with these sentiments in some way. So, how can we find joy as we journey through life, and what does that entail?
Table of Contents
Find Joy in the Journey at Work and Home
We must find joy in the journey at work and home. When we feel stressed and overloaded on the job, being short-tempered, isolated, and unhappy is easy. We often feel like work adds “one more scoop of mashed potatoes” to our already full plate. The problem is that work stress can overtake us if we are not careful. For example, if we bring paperwork home or even think of all the paperwork while we are at home, we are less available for our spouse and kids.
As a mom, wife, or homemaker, even if we choose to stay home and not work outside, we can still find ourselves with a lot of work and very little time. We often have a mix of things we want to do and tasks we must do. For instance, we may need to clean the house, but our child has a project due for school the next day and needs our help. Viewing the project as another thing to add to our already heavy workload can be easy. However, we must be careful with our words and actions as our children may feel like a burden, and as a result, they may choose not to ask for help and end up getting a low grade. We need to remember the acronym LIVE to find joy in both our work and home life.
- Laugh and smile often.
- Invest your time and energy wisely.
- Visualize each day from God’s perspective.
- Envision each day as written in your biography or eulogy.
Laugh and Smile Often
It’s essential to take time to laugh and smile, no matter what’s going on in our lives. We should choose joy and make it a priority. I recently read an article that explained how laughing and smiling could help reduce stress and improve our well-being. The Bible also talks about the importance of joy as good medicine. Understanding the significance of laughter should motivate us to smile and be happy more often.
Even when there is no time for anything, we must find something to laugh and smile about. A hug or kiss from a loved one, a smile or funny joke, or anything that makes us laugh can help us remember that living should be full of joy even if it is busy.
Invest Time and Energy Wisely
We all have 24 hours each day and no more. We watch as days turn to weeks, and weeks become months. Years come and go, and our children grow up. We should decide to invest our precious time and energy wisely. When our children are grown, we do not want to regret how we spent the years while they were young. The Bible reminds us that we never know what tomorrow brings and life is short. We must invest time and energy wisely by placing a high priority on enjoying “joy” moments.
yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.
James 4:14 ESV
Visualize Each Day From God’s Perspective
As we set our goals, it’s important to visualize each day from God’s perspective. We should prioritize and ensure that our priorities align with what brings God honor and glory. We know that God would want us to pray and ask for His help rather than worry and be anxious. Doing so can increase our joy when we see how well God works in our favor. God would not want us to misbehave at home or work. Instead, God would want us to be joyful and not overwhelmed.
And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
Mark 12:30-31 KJV
God is love, and He wants us to show love daily. According to Jesus, two commandments are essential: we are to love God and to love others. If we ever have to decide what task to do, we should let love guide us.
Envision Each Day as Written in our Biography or Eulogy
When our days end, no one says, “I wish I would have worked more” or “I wish I would have spent less time with my family.” Whenever we pass away, what will hurt most is knowing that there is no more time with those we love. When we lay our heads down at night, we should think about the good we accomplished related to showing love. Living a life of love will increase our joy and the well-being of others.
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 ESV
We should live each day as if it were our last, but we should envision each day as written in our biography or eulogy. If someone writes or tells about us, we want to be described as loving, cheerful, hard-working people, not irritable, rude, or impatient.
A Prayer to Make The Most of Today
We know that each day is a gift. No one knows how many days they will be on this earth. Let us bow our heads in prayer and ask God to give us the strength and wisdom to live today to the fullest, according to His will. Let’s pray to make the most of today.
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