Losing Access to Joy

As adults, we tend to trivialize joy. We tell ourselves we will feel joyful another day, once everything is tidied up, checked-off and finished.  

Oh, have I been there.

In fact, even with all of the features of a good life, including an amazing family, a healthy child, and loving friends, I am just emerging from a period in which I could not even let myself experience joy.

With the world getting more and more chaotic and out of control, how could I justify wanting to feel joyful?  

Plus, there was always something to do, to finish, to check off the list. I was just too busy to stop and smell the roses.

Does this sound familiar to you too? I know I am not alone in this.

Recently I began to wonder if perhaps I was missing out by discounting the importance of joy. When I started to dig into the research on joy, I learned I was definitely missing out on something important.

Why Joy Matters

Research conducted at the Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology of Glasgow suggests there are really only four foundation emotions, three of which are the “negative emotions” of fear, anger and sadness. The only “positive emotion” on the list is joy, or happiness.

As explained so beautifully by the authors of The Book of Joy, â€œExploring joy is nothing less than exploring what makes the human experience satisfying.”

This means that if we don’t consciously cultivate joy, we risk living a life dominated by the other, less enlivening foundation emotions. It also means we risk missing out on a huge part of what it means to be human.

When we are caught up in our stress, speed and to-do lists, we easily miss the beauty, awe and mystery that fills our world.  Yet it is in these moments that experiencing joy matters more than ever.

When we are joyful, our whole body benefits, especially our heart and mind. Research shows that joyful people experience less chance of having a heart attack, lower cholesterol, decreased stress levels and longer lives.

Joy is imperative for boosting our resilience and wellbeing. It gives us the strength and energy we need to do our important work in the world.

In a world that seems more and more out of control, joy is the well that we can drink from again and again.

When you look at it this way, reclaiming our joy just might be the very ingredient needed in the world today.

As activist and scholar Joanna Macy explains in a recent interview:

“The most important thing to do is find your gratitude for life. Take stock of your strengths and give thanks for what you have, and for the joys you’ve been given. Because that is the fuel. That love for life can act like grace for you to defend it.”

It’s Time to Reclaim Your Joy

Reclaiming your joy is a bit like coming home from a long journey. You may have even forgotten how to be joyful.

But here is the thing: I don’t believe we find joy. I believe we create it.  Joy, is something always inside of us that we can access and create more of.

Joy is a type of relationship we have with ourselves and the world. It is an inner attitude. Joy is lasting and ever present. Joy is available to us in every moment.

Joy is one of the most important ingredients in the Kingdom of God. We read that “The Kingdom of God is … righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 14:17) Joy is also the very atmosphere of heaven. We read in the Book of Revelations, “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, …”.(Revelations 21:4)  Heaven s a place with no more sorrow, crying or tears, a place of pure joy! The good news is that we can have this experience right here in earth today. Jesus wants His Kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven. 

Can you remember the last time you felt joyful? A time when you really felt joy all through your body from your head to your toes?

In our fast-paced lives, where we can often feel overworked and overwhelmed, being joyful seems a bit like having your cake and eating it too. Joy seems like a nice idea, but who has the time?

Not only that, but when the news is filled with so much sadness and suffering, it may seem downright selfish to even want to feel joy.

Even though we can come up with all sorts of reasons to avoid feeling joyful, research suggests it’s imperative that we do. Turns out joy is a radical act that can help combat stress, boost our resilience, and re-energize us so that we’re better equipped to face the challenges of this world.

In other words? Far from being selfish, joy might be just what we need to show up for the world (and ourselves) in a bigger, more sustainable way.