"Joy doesn't simply happen to us. We must choose joy and keep choosing it every day." (Henri Nouwen)

How can we choose joy, when there is so much negativity all around us? Paul tells us in Thessalonians, "Rejoice always!" He says to us in Philippians 4:4, "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say, rejoice." What we are choosing is to rejoice in the Lord's love and presence in our lives even in the midst of the darkness. As Isaiah tells us, "I rejoice heartily in the Lord, in m God is  the joy of my soul." to rejoice in the Lord is a choice that bears fruit. The alternative is not to rejoice and let the heaviness of life overwhelm us. One is life-giving. The other is not. Your choice.