It's Your Choice.

Favorite Color? Target or Walmart? Dream Car? Ice Cream or Chips? Tide or Gain?

Every day we make many decisions, from the clothes we wear to the food we eat. What drives your decision-making? Do you look at how the decision will benefit you or if it will pay off in the long run? What about hard choices, like choosing which area you should live in or the job you should apply for. I know for me, when making hard decisions, I often make a list of pros and cons. This helps me see both sides of the decision to make a smart, well-calculated decision..Just like the many daily decisions related to our health and wellbeing, we also have a choice in choosing what we believe.

I believe choosing joy means trusting God and knowing He will come through for us no matter what. In this life, we will experience disappointments and unforeseen circumstances, but through it all, our choice should be joy because God has promised that for those that love Him, all things work together for good! So even when it doesn’t feel good, or it doesn’t make sense to our natural mind, it’s still working for our good. One day, I was overwhelmed about a situation I was facing, and I couldn’t seem to think of anything else. I kept trying to think of ways I could fix it in my own strength and how I could make things better. BUT…the moment I stopped thinking about what I could do and decided to trust God, I felt an overwhelming peace and joy. I found rest at that moment, and what I was worried about was handled within hours.

In order to continually choose joy, we must identify our joy stealers and guard our hearts and minds against them. Joy stealers are just that..they steal your joy…some may be obvious, and the moment you read the words “joy stealers,” you knew exactly what they were, while others may be a little more subtle. Some popular culprits, greed, comparison, and busyness may seem overpowering, but as we face them, we can overcome them. Romans 12:12 tell us that we are to find joy, or rejoice (which means to keep on finding joy), in hope because of our confidence in Christ!

Will you choose joy today? The choice is yours!