prismaticbleed | advent study devotion day 06

"Joy is a choice." This does not mean simply saying, "I have decided to be happy today, no matter what," although that is definitely a doorway. Because when we are determined to find happiness, we focus on it-- we look for silver linings & roses among thorns. However, we cannot have such a perspective without faith that there IS Good to BE found, that there IS a Light, even in the darkest times. That Goodness & Light is both perfected & personified in Jesus. He is proof of Joy umconquerable, for He alone creates & bestows is. All human optimism is baseless without Christ, for human perspective is temporal, worldly. It is mere happiness, shifting & tenuous, even backed by determination. Christ gives JOY-- a song of the heart, a spark in the soul, blazing brightly despite all circumstances, for it exists beyond all contexts. Joy simply IS, because GOD IS, and HE is OUR Joy! No matter what happens here, Christ is born for us, to save us, and to remain with us forever in love. Rejoice!