christian

Silence – Giving God the Chance to Speak

christian, easter, encouragement, lifestyle

The past few weeks have been absolutely insane if I am going to be completely honest. After starting my job, I have been on a tight schedule, dedicating any and all of my free time to school. I wish I could say that I manage things well, but lately, I have been slacking on posting these blogs at the right time, reading the books I need for class, and finding time to do what I am doing now…sitting at the park I talked about in the “finding your quiet place” blog.

It seems as though every hour I have has been strictly set for work, school, or church. And truthfully, it is exhausting. I love church and serving at youth, but that’s about it. School has been draining and work has been killing my body. But the other day, I realized something absolutely crazy. For the past week or so, I have been getting ready for the day, driving, doing homework, and eating in SILENCE. Not a single beat of a song. Not even instrumental music!!

For some, this may not seem that big of a deal, but for me, it is HUGE. I like to live my life like I am in a movie. I have songs blasting in my ears almost every hour of the day. But not recently. Why did I start doing this? I have no clue. I didn’t realize it until I finished getting ready one morning and was humming a song, then realized there was nothing playing! I found this to be the case again and again after that. I honestly never thought I would be one who enjoyed silence, but with so much on my mind, and so many to-do’s, silence has become my saving grace. The only time I feel like I can breathe and remember that I am a human being, not a human doing.

After taking the last few days enjoying my silence as I get ready or drive somewhere, I remembered this park I am at now. The one that I use to come to just a few months ago to hear God and just talk with Him, not worrying about any distractions. It honestly ached my heart to realize how long it has been since I last came here.

So this morning, I had no idea I would end up here, but after being denied entry at chapel because they were full, I felt the immediate hunger for these towering trees, perfectly short grass, and countless leaves that often hit me in my face because of the wind. So I stuffed my fat face with some chicken pot pie in the cafeteria and then headed out.

On my way here, again I drove in silence. Somewhat talking to God then singing some worship songs that have been stuck in my head, then talking to Him again. During that time, I realized how easy it is for us to stop prioritizing the things that we say mean the most. I asked God for this job at Chipotle, but not too long after, I spent weeks obsessed with the blessing He gave me, but not Him. The multiple hours a week that I used to spend with Him turned into maybe 3 hours total. I forgot about Him unless I was struggling or coming back from church.

Terrible. I know. But as I found this great value in silence and became more aware of it, I started tuning into His voice more. I began saying short prayers and leaving the rest of the time for Him to speak. And Holy smoking macaroni! It has been so good. It’s not like I heard His literal voice, but I felt His peace. I was reminded of verses I haven’t read in a while. I thought about songs that I often forget the lyrics too. God showed up big time.

His faithfulness is something I knew always existed and I have seen before. But recently, my church has been talking about God being the Good Shepard. The one who will consistently search for His sheep, regardless of how far and long they wander. And wowza. I can joyfully vouch for Him on that. I was so worried and focused on my own things in life, that I didn’t realize how far out I was grazing. But oh what a beautiful and loving God we have. He knows us by name, face, and personality. He seeks nothing but our trust and love.

With silence, God had room to speak. Not room that He had to force me to give Him, but room He gladly filled as I offered it to Him.

Too often we get bombarded with our daily obligations. We get so jam packed with work, school, family, etc. But I pray you do not forget your source of true life. I pray you do not forget your first love.

Silence has never been something I liked, but as I realized the value it can have when I lay it in God’s hands, it has become all that I long for. I may never see a bush on fire while a loud voice speaks my name, but living in silence that is dedicated to God (get that? not just plain old silence, but that in which you intentionally lay in God’s hands) has filled my life in so many more ways than music ever could. It has made my heart more aware of the moment and more sensitive to His guidance.

I am so happy because in the last blog, you can see that I struggled to realize the time has gone so fast that passion week is already here, yet in the last few days, I could not be more joyful that THIS was the lesson God showed me this week.

Easter is just around the corner. Amidst the egg hunting and family visits, I encourage you to make room for God to move and speak to your heart.

Whether you have five minutes or five hours, will you give your heart a chance to rest in the hands of it’s beautiful creator?

Preparing For Passion Week

christian, easter, encouragement, lifestyle

Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. 3 Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 4 But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, 5 “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” 6 He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. 7 Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. 8 For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.”

John 12:1-8 ESV

This Sunday is Palm Sunday. The day that Jesus made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem less than a week before His crucifixion. I was going to focus this blog around that part of scripture, but I did that last year, and after reading the full chapter that story is in, I could not help but be drawn to the passage just before it.

Just 6 days before the start of this beautiful week we know as Passion week, there was a woman who you may remember from her previous cameo in the Bible. Her name was Mary, the sister of Martha. The same woman who left her sister to clean the house and serve the guests while she sat at the feet of Jesus, listening intently to all that He had to share. If you recall, after Martha’s aggravated blow up, Jesus said that Mary was the one who chose what is better. She chose Jesus.

And as you read the story at the top of this blog, you will see her heart has not changed. As she was given the opportunity to sit with Christ again, she not only gave Him her attention, but her most expensive ointment as well. If you have ever bought perfume or cologne, I am sure you are aware of the prices. They are not cheap, and if you ever had to use it all on someones FEET of all things, you would feel some pain in your heart, or at least I would. But such was not the case for Mary. She willingly poured out her rich ointment and cleansed the feet of Jesus. Wow. What a beautiful picture of humility. Why did she do this? Well, I can assure you it wasn’t something she did for just anyone. It’s because she knew who Jesus was. Just like she put Him above all things when He came to her home before, she did not hesitate to do it again. And just like last time, Jesus did not hesitate to defend her as she was criticized by others.

Far too often, we get caught up in what the world tells us our attention needs to be on. Overwhelming ourselves with keeping this perfect life, job, gpa, relationship, etc. when that is not at all what Jesus tells us to make our priority. Instead, through the actions of Mary, we see how He longs simply for our humble hearts. For a hunger to serve and seek Him first, regardless of what is going on in our lives.

The other day, I mentioned to someone at church that I have to “prepare for passion week” and they asked “how do you prepare?”. And I am not going to lie, I didn’t exactly know how I was to answer that. Last year, I remember doing devotions and stuff that got my heart so excited as Easter came closer and closer. But this year was different. I honestly didn’t realize Palm Sunday was this Sunday until a few days ago. With college and work, the time seemed to have flown by and I realize that it is a little late to start a 30 day devotional before Easter.

So on my drive back home I thought about what I can do now. How in the world was I going to cram in enough Bible studies and sermons to make me as excited as last year? I didn’t quite figure that one out, but as I read this passage I realized how bad it was that I only prepared when there was a special occasion like Easter. It was as if Jesus only mattered when His birthday or death day was coming near. My heart was crushed, but at the same time, filled with joy and gratitude.

It was crushed because of the way I neglected the Holy Spirit who lived in my heart everyday, yet filled as I realized I get the blessing of God’s presence in every second of my life. What better way to come to Jesus as a humble servant, resembling Mary, than to serve others, dedicate time to growing with God, and striving to be a little more Christ-like every day. (again, this is why it is critical to learn about WHO Jesus actually is. You can’t be like someone you don’t know.)

I may not have the time to finish a 30 day devotional before Easter, but I most certainly have time to spend with God and to act in love and humility as I encounter hundreds of people within the next two weeks or so.

Something I have come to notice lately, and I am sure you can tell by my recent blogs, is that humility and joy are not always easy decisions to make, but they are biblical and necessary. So as you “prepare” for passion week, or shall I say for eternity, because our hearts should be in a constant pursuit towards the Lord, I hope you can be encouraged to realize this is not a competition of who has a greater fire in their soul as Easter comes near, rather, how we as the body of Christ can live for what He died for.

Something I found quite mesmerizing was how Mary never said anything to Martha when she told Jesus to discipline her. And when Judas criticized her for using the rich ointment on Jesus’ feet, she again let the Lord speak in her place. How amazing. When we put God first, ignoring the judgement of the world, He will defend us.

So as you seek a humble heart, don’t let that just be towards God, but towards all whom may have good or bad things to say about you. And as you spend this Sunday singing “Hosanna! Hosanna in the Highest”, truly aim to live that out. We get the privilege of having God reside in us. Don’t wait to praise, serve, and love Him. He’s already made a home in your heart.

Discipline > Motivation

christian, encouragement, lifestyle

“This Moses did; according to all that the Lord commanded him, so he did.”

Exodus 40:16

If I got a dollar every time I heard someone say “I just lost motivation”…oh boy, I would be rich. Whether it is a sport, hobby, project, job, or lifestyle, thousands upon thousands of people quit everyday because of a lack of motivation to finish what they started. And sadly, far too often, we see this in the lives of Christians all over the world. Day after day, people give up on reading their Bible, praying, going to church, or trying to acquire a Christ-like character. And honestly, for a very long time, I was one of those quitters.

I would try to live this “Christian Lifestyle” so that I could say how great it was to live for Jesus and how good I am because I did it so perfectly. My motivation was not to please God out of love, but to prove to others that I was in fact a great Christian with a great life and I hoped God would see my reputation and be overjoyed by that. However, every…single…time…I failed. I would do it for a little bit, feel on fire for Jesus, post about it on social media, see that no one really cared, face a struggle in life, lose the fire, become numb , not know how to get it back, then eventually give up. This was a constant cycle I found myself going through every few months.

However at the beginning of this year, I wanted change. True transformation that not only wiped my heart clean of pride, but then put on as much pride-resistant spray as I could, that being, a nice thick layer of humility that absorbed deep into the core of my heart. I wanted to know what it was like to live a life where the seasons I encountered did not effect my faith. If you have heard me tell my story, you know the past 2 years or so insanely impacted my life as I set out to focus strictly on the Lord, giving all my symptoms of loneliness and fear of failure to God. But that does not mean it was an easy two years. As I did that, I experienced so many days, and months, where I wanted to give up as I saw no fruit in my life. In fact, I did sometimes. I stopped reading my Bible. Praying went from daily to weekly. And my belief that I would never experience God’s presence again was very high. I lost motivation so many times. And as a result, I stopped living the way God tells us brings the most life.

But then of course there were times where everything felt great again. The fire seemed to be rekindled. I would find that motivation. Every few months, something good like me getting the chance to preach at youth group, or church camp would happen, or I would be encouraged by those around me. This is what reset the cycle. It’s what would make me remember why I set out to focus on the Lord in the first place. But as I said, it was a cycle, or season if that’s better fitting.

Now I am not depreciating the impact each season left on me. Every time, I would grow, or learn something new. And as I look back, although I always failed at staying disciplined, I left a little stronger. And thankfully, God brought me this phrase of “discipline over motivation” before the most recent cycle went downhill.

I honestly forgot where I heard this, or got the idea of this phrase, but I feel like it is too good to not share as I have recently been seeing it’s value in my life and those around me.

I chose to share the verse from Exodus 40 because it perfectly captures the kind of obedience we ought to have as servants of the Lord. I encourage you to read the full chapter, but in case you don’t have the time, or attention, I’ll give you some of the juicy points I was able to pull from it as I read it during my quiet time last week.

Exodus 40 is about God giving Moses the commands to build the Temple in which the Jews would eventually worship in and where the presence of God would be. This was still during their time of wondering in the desert. The beginning of this chapter is not the most interesting story one could read, but it is important. God basically gave Moses the Lego Instructions book for the Temple. Except, what is so amazing about this, is that it was audible. Imagine building a Lego set but doing it completely off your memory. As a master builder myself, “impossible”, I would think. But the fact that Moses did it, just shows us that if we make our hearts so sensitive to the Holy Spirit, we too can understand and remember what exactly God is trying to tell us.

Moving on to the next part of the chapter, we come to the verse highlighted at the beginning of this blog. Moses did it. He obeyed the Lord and the rest of the section is dedicated to explaining Moses’ construction piece by piece. And as you read it, you will see “as the Lord had commanded Moses”, seven times. After every step, scripture clarifies Moses did EXACTLY what God commanded. Now I don’t know what Moses was feeling or how long this took Him to build, but I can only imagine that he was not exploding with joy and excitement every second of this project. But nonetheless, he obeyed.

Moses chose discipline over motivation.

As life throws good, bad, and ugly days at us, it is inevitable that we experience moments of exhaustion, pain, or boredom. But I would like to encourage you with this.

Making a daily schedule for myself where I included praying, devotionals, and reading the Bible was the best decision ever. I once heard someone say “You will not always stay on track. Sometimes you’re going to miss a day, just don’t miss two.” And wow. I totally forgot who told me that but it has been the kick in the butt that I needed as I realized I forgot to spend time with God the day before. Now I’m not going to lie. There were times this year where I missed a LOT more than 2 days. But this desire to choose discipline over motivation forced me to get back on track.

If I could give you one phrase that offers so much relief, it is this: God knows we are humans, so make sure you know that too.

We will NEVER be perfect. You need to humble yourself enough to realize that, because until you do, you won’t realize how much you need Jesus. With that humility, comes the understanding of where true life comes from. In the process of obedience and discipline, I have realized the clear difference that the days I spend with God have against the days I spend without Him.

And honestly, because of the way my brain decides to function, I experience a LOT of days where I sadly have no motivation. But the story in Exodus could not reflect those days any better. At the very end of the chapter, AFTER Moses did what God commanded Him to, there is a section with the title “The Glory of The Lord”. It talks about how God’s presence comes upon the temple (the fruit of Moses’ obedience…mmm so cool!!) and remained there day and night. Ahh CHILLS.

What a beautiful picture portrayed here. God saw Moses follow His commands step by step and He did not hesitate to reveal His Glory to Him as a result of His discipline. I honestly never realized how often this happens in my life until I read this. Recently there have been many days of numbness or exhaustion, but EVERY…SINGLE…TIME that I read my Bible anyways and prayed even though I was mumbling over my words because I was so exhausted, God revealed the most perfect little feelings of peace, joy, hope, and love to me. It may not have come until the end of the day or even a few days later, but it always came.

God remained faithful. Sometimes it was through songs, overhearing other people, reading scripture, or even just re-reading some old prayers I wrote a long time ago. I found reason to CHOOSE joy and hope regardless of how bad my day was going.

One of the main things that inspired this blog was what I heard from two girls in the high school group I lead at church.

As we went around with prayer requests, they asked for the fire they feel for Jesus to never die down. What a beautiful prayer to have. But from experience and the testimonies of others, I knew that prayer would never come true. The fire, or excitement, we have to read our Bibles, or passionately live for Jesus every second of our day will not always be as lit as we’d hope. Certain experiences can certainly make it grow, but scripture tells us our faith will experience trials (James 1:2-4). But it also tells us to let those trials strengthen us, not break us. So what I felt was necessary to remind them and any of you who have this same prayer, is to pray for strength and an ear for what the Lord is telling us to do. Because ultimately, what we feel is so easily effected by this world, but the commands of God are not.

With that being said, I hope you understand the importance of choosing discipline over motivation. Remembering that your feelings should not determine your faith. I heard this song the other day by Maverick City Worship (lol when am I not listening to them) called “Million Little Miracles”. It was honestly so sweet to hear. I was walking to my car to go to work as I heard it and even though I heard it before, it hit different because I was so tired and annoyed but it convicted me so much to stop and realize there are far more blessings than things to be bitter about.

So, as you go about your day, and continue on this journey with God, I pray you never forget the little miracles He makes happen. I pray you realize that all good things require a choice to be made. So I pray you choose discipline, joy, hope, love, compassion, and peace. I pray you gain a sensitive heart and ear towards the Lord so that you can clearly follow where He leads. And I pray you never forget how madly God loves you and desires to grow with you, but will not intrude on your life if you don’t let Him in.

Seek His heart and remember that you can never experience true life if you are away from the One who created it.

Imitators By Nature – Prioritizing THE Creator

christian, encouragement, lifestyle

 1Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Ephesians 5:1-2

Earlier this semester I attended a chapel service at my school. I was very hungry and did not really want to go because I didn’t think I could focus, but our God is too good. What He revealed through the man who was speaking was incredible and definitely filled me in a way food never could. With that, I felt it was only necessary to share this insight with all of you.

The speaker focused on imitation. How we as humans are imitators by nature. We are designed to follow. Yes, we can lead certain things, and some have a greater gift in that than others, nevertheless, we all were crafted to be fulfilled by following the Lord. This idea is remarkable.

So often, we see people claim “that is just how I am” as they act in a certain way. Although subject to change, many of our habits or ways of reacting are results of us naturally imitating our parents, guardians, or other important people who were involved in our development. It is incredible that we are so susceptible to imitating those around us, that even if we wish to be nothing like our parents or guardians, we either still pick up those traits and characteristics, or we build our life around dodging them.

How crazy is it that a simple natural response in a human can shape their lives in a variety of ways. But do you know what is even crazier? Our God knew exactly how He designed us, and knowing that we desire power because of sin, He does not feed into that, instead, He leads us back to the root of our blueprint. He calls us to imitate. Imitate whom? Jesus.

Imitation in itself is not a sin. In fact, it is the only way to become a genuine ambassador for Christ. However, when one directs their focus on someone other than Jesus, it leads to idolatry.

Let’s be real for a quick second: It is EXTREMELY easy to want to imitate others. Whether it be for fame, for success, or simply for productivity. YouTube currently is filled with loads of “productive daily routines”, “what to do to become a pro athlete”, “What to focus on when seeking success”, and so on. Social media is flooded with influencers and celebrities seeking people willing to follow them. Shaping the infamous lives to reflect those who are. But this is all wrong.

I believe in this generation, we have become so desperate for leadership from people who have already found success so that we do not have to make the same mistakes many others have in the past. Honestly, dodging mistakes and things bound to fail doesn’t sound so bad, right? Frankly, it isn’t. To clear things up, there is nothing necessarily wrong with watching these “how to” videos, or making a daily routine similar to what you saw on a popular YouTube channel. In fact, I’d be a hypocrite to say I don’t do that. My YouTube history coming into this year is a very, very, VERY long list of “productive 6am routines” or “How to balance school, work, and God”.

There is nothing wrong with letting influencers inspire you. But let that be all they do. Inspiration and encouragement is what we should be giving to others, and it is very helpful when we receive it ourselves. However, the moment you allow these digital creators, athletic influencers, or business leaders become more influential than THE Creator, we lose sight of our purpose.

We are called to glorify God in ALL that we do. When pursuing this, the best “How to” resource for learning what we should and should not implement in our lives is none other than the Bible. Breathed and inspired by the Lord Himself.

Answered Prayers – Hope for the Rough Answers

christian, encouragement, lifestyle

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

Galatians 6:9

This past week, I finally got a job. I did not tell anyone besides my family that I was pursuing one. And by one, I mean exactly ONE. What job? Chipotle.

I know, I know. If you ever heard me talk about my history of working there in high school, you have heard me say “I promise that you will never see me in the food industry again.” But here I am. Two days down. Roughly 17 hours charted, and two nights of coming back to my dorm at nearly 1 am.

I have applied to jobs this semester prior to getting this one. Mainly just to see if there was any chance someone would be super flexible with their hours due to my chaotic schedule, but if they got back to me, between anxiety in getting rejected after telling them my availability and knowing I will have to quit in a little over a month and a half, I never responded back to them. I know that probably doesn’t look good to employers but it’s what happened.

This was the routine until about a month ago. It wasn’t until then that I started praying circles. I have Morningside church to thank for this amazing book I started reading called circle maker by Mark Batterson. Here I learned the value of asking God for EVERYTHING, big or small, and most of all, God-glorifying. I am planning on writing a blog once I finish the book to talk about the power of praying circles and explaining exactly what that means, but until then, bare with me.

So there I was one day, realizing I am extremely low on money and the prices of everything is going crazy high for some reason. I knew I vowed not to get a job so that I could focus on school and this blog, but I believe that season of unemployment was coming to its end, as I no longer found peace in the place I was at.

Before I even looked at indeed again, I wrote a list of what I was going to do with the money I earned as well as reminders that regardless of how much I make, it should never go before God. I did this because if you know me, I have a terrible addiction to shopping. It’s like the cute clothes just jumps off the shelf, into a bag, and my money disappears. And before I know it, my wallet is on life-support as it tries to fathom only having a few dollars left in it. (haha. I thought that was kinda funny so I hope someone relates to this addiction too.)

After I made this list, I prayed for God to lead me to the job that would allow me to glorify Him as well as have the flexibility I need for school and blogging. And as I took a quick scroll through indeed, there it was. “Chipotle – team member”. Normally I wouldn’t hesitate to scroll by it, but this time it stuck out like a sore thumb. I stared at the job listing and remembered the high flexibility, opportunity to transfer to the one back home during the summer, and the experience I already had which would make it easy to start racking in cash. Although my body cried for me to keep scrolling as it recalled the terrible pain it was in after standing for so many hours and spilling hot beans on myself all the time, my heart longed for no other job.

Long story short, I applied. Three weeks passed and no word. During those weeks, I prayed and prayed and prayed. Each time, drawing a circle from my knees to my toes as I knelt before God. Ironically, a few of the jobs I applied for before I started praying, got back to me. They kept emailing me, offering to pay more too, but I declined because there was no peace in them. All I remember saying was “thank you God, but I don’t believe that is the job you have for me”.

Then one day, I decided to take that circle a little further. I took my car all the way to the Chipotle building I was praying to get a job at, and I circled it. I am not gonna lie, it was a little awkward, but I believe God sees our dedication in our prayers.

The very next day, I received a call from them and got the job.

CRAZY right?! I know. Our God is too good. But this blog is not meant to be a happily ever after story. I apologize for the length, but we are just getting started.

So fast forward to today. Friday, March 18th, 2022. Last night was rough. I didn’t leave Chipotle until 12:30am. My back was aching, my stomach was growling, and my clothes was covered in sour cream, guacamole, mop water, and sweet tea. It was not my cutest look, but it was what my poor car had to take me back to my dorm in. Although I was tired, for some miraculous reason I was happy.

In the last two days of working, I have gotten countless compliments on my smile and bubbly personality (and my cute necklace from Israel 😉 but that’s besides the point). Mind you, the last one I received was not by a customer who walked in right when my shift started, but by the guy in the kitchen who saw me struggling to wash the lemonade container at 12:15am. For some reason that one made me realize how good our God is.

I have worked harder and longer in these two days than any other shift I did in high school, yet my joy was too abundant to be overcome by my pain and exhaustion. And that was not just the feeling I had on the inside, but God let me realize that others could see it in the slight smile I had as I carried away the 3 huge trash bags that could fit 5 of me inside or picked up the half eaten bowls that some…people whom God loves, oh so very much…left outside on the tables 3 hours ago.

On my ride home and the few moments of thinking I did before I knocked out in my dorm, I realized that by me closing the store, I alleviated this pain from the older woman who taught me how to do all of this. I was able to make the guy in the kitchen question what made me remain filled with joy after a hard day. And I was able to experience the humility a servant of the Lord should have. I prayed for this job. I had peace in none other than this one.

Even though I am aching from the inside out, reminding myself “this is where God led me. This is what I prayed for”, gave me the energy to push on with far less aggravation than I used to have at this job in high school. Rather than seeking the things I could make reasonable complaints about, God revealed to me the ways I can glorify Him in every hour of my shift. After all, isn’t that what I prayed for? A God-glorifying job?

So as I sit here in the Starbucks lobby, an hour and a half before I begin my next shift, I write to you with a hope to bring nothing but encouragement and advice. I pray that you pray the dangerous prayers. The ones where you say “yes, God” before you know exactly where He is going to lead you. I pray you dig deep to find the joy in the circumstance you are in. If you are living in an answered prayer like I am, but it is not as easy as you thought, I pray you let God fill you with strength as you fill others with joy. Follow where His peace leads. For if you have God with you, you have all you need.

As you begin to live in the way God desires, you will realize just how good our God is and how nothing, not even a container of hot pinto beans spilling all over you, can ruin the joy He longs to fill you with. Answered prayers are not always going to be a breeze, but they will always be God centered and in that truth, I pray you can find the hope to trust the process of His answer to your cry. My dear friend seeking God’s plan for your life, do not grow weary, believe me when I say there is always more joy to find when you are led by the One who is Joy Himself.