Fight for Your Joy
By Peter Mirus ( bio - articles - email ) | Oct 06, 2010
Sometimes things just don’t go right. You have that moment in the day when you want to pound your head against the wall and shout. Maybe you indulge in a private “Why me?” moment. Perhaps that one client (customer, coworker, friend, relative, or any situation) has driven you around the bend. Then the heart slows down, the brain stops running in 25 different directions. Anger (and maybe fear) is followed by exhaustion. Then you have to pick up the pieces, and start moving again.
Life can often seem like a series of misadventures. I know in this economy in particular, I’ve had a few tense moments. Most of us have. Life seems uncertain. It can seem like no options are left on the table. Nuts, crazy, ridiculous... all of that.
Joy. We need it. We want it. We cling to the idea of it. We steal our few moments with it. But if we want to find joy, we have to look for it.
When I’m feeling low, it is often a friend or family member that pulls me out of it. I say to myself, “I need to rediscover my joy... and I need to reboot my brain. I’m going to talk to THIS person.” Sometimes I rediscover joy by slowing down enough to get down on the floor with my children. Those are grace-filled moments. All of these sources are reflections of the loving, outstretched arms of our God. So, when attempting to rediscover our joy, we need to also go to the source. God is waiting, and His presence and inspiration are all around us. His grace is there whenever we need it. He is always giving.
Living a joy-filled life takes a dedication to a mindset. You have to say to yourself, “I’m NOT going to let this person, this situation, steal MY joy. God gave me this joy to be my own. Nobody can take it from me.” You have to have that good, counter-cultural rebellious spirit. “I am NOT going to judge myself the way that the world judges. I am NOT going to allow that client to take my spirit of optimism. I am NOT going to forget about Jesus today.”
I find this a helpful way to check myself when I’m tempted to give in. I just say to myself, “NO. Not today. This is my day to keep that joy, to hold on to the love of Jesus. Today, nothing is going to take that away. I know this situation stinks, but I AM going to fight for my joy. This is MY time; God made me for this situation. I can do this.”
So when you are frustrated, tired, disappointed, struggling—rebel against the world and against the devil.
Fight for your joy.
Peter Mirus is a business, marketing, and technology consultant with more than 20 years of experience working with companies and nonprofits, ranging from start-ups to large international organizations. From 2004-2014 he contributed articles on the Catholic Faith, culture, and business to the CatholicCulture.org website.
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