Seeing More Fully: A Week of Joy

by Lori Wilson

At times, we can all find ourselves focusing on the negative. We see what is wrong with the world, how disagreeable it all is, how we miss the mark and don't love the way we are invited to love. And we can get very down on ourselves. We begin to see through a set of glasses with only one perspective. And that perspective is negative, harsh, and cup-half-empty-ish. Sometimes, these glasses we put on can block God out.

We find ourselves way out of balance. The negative is real; we do miss the mark; our perspective holds truth; and there is more. We need to see things more fully. One way to work on this is to allow yourself to sink into a week of Joy. Spend time each day on it.

Here's a plan:

Day 1 - Where did you experience joy when you were a child? How did it feel? How did you know it was joy as you look back on it? What might God have been telling you in those experiences?

Day 2 - Where is there joy in your life right now? In simple things - that first cup of coffee, the snowfall, the visit from deer. And ask: God, what am I missing that you might be putting in my path that would bring me joy, but I don't see it? Look back on your day, your week, and see if anything else pops up for you.

Day 3 - Look at the big joyful events of your life. What are they - the birth of a child, a wedding, a vacation that was just perfect, the job offer you were waiting for? Experience these big moments. What does joy feel like for you in your body? What do you say to God about these moments of joy right now?

Day 4 - Look at your day yesterday, or if you are doing this at the end of the day, reflect on today. Where did you not experience joy? When did you see the negative - that is real, and there might be something more. Is there another perspective, an invitation to enter the situation that can allow you to find joy? Here is an example: I'm running late for work. The freeway is backed up due to an accident. I'm going to be 20 minutes late. I'm sick of this highway. I hate my commute. I find myself angry and blaming the world for this commute. And I wonder if I could look at it differently. I'm going to text my boss to let her know I'm going to be late, and I'm going to use the time in the car to pray for the other people in their cars who are probably frustrated too. Has God given me these moments to see where God is in this? To invite God into my day? What is a new insight God is sharing with me right here? 

Day 5 - Today, notice where joy wants to emerge but you resist it. We sometimes hold back from joy - perhaps feeling we don't deserve it, or that joy is frivolous when there's so much suffering in the world. Or maybe joy feels risky, like opening ourselves to disappointment. Pay attention today: Where do you sense joy beckoning but find yourself turning away? What would it mean to let yourself receive it as a gift? Ask God: What are you offering me that I'm afraid to accept?

Day 6 - Consider how you might share joy or become a source of joy for another person. Joy multiplies when given away. This doesn't mean forced cheerfulness - it means genuine presence, attention, delight in someone else's existence. Who might need to experience joy through you today? Perhaps a phone call, a note, a moment of undivided attention. Notice how offering joy to another affects your own heart. What is God teaching you about joy's generous nature?

Day 7 - Gather the graces of the week with gratitude. Return to each day's reflection and notice: How has God blessed you with joy this week? What new insights have emerged? You may find that you can see more fully now - there is what you see, and there is always more. Joy isn't about denying the hard things; it's about letting God show you the fullness of what is. It's learning to hold both sorrow and gladness, struggle and gift, in the same open hands. Spend time thanking God for this expanded vision.

A Word on Joy

Joy reveals itself as resilient presence - it can exist alongside difficulty rather than requiring difficulty's absence. Joy is what happens when we're fully alive to this moment, awake to grace even in small things. It's not something we manufacture but something we notice, receive, and allow. Joy may be God's way of saying, "I am here. You are seen. You are loved. This matters." When we practice noticing joy, we're practicing noticing God.

Closing Prayer

Loving God, you delight in us and desire our joy. Forgive us when we've held joy at arm's length or worn the glasses of harsh judgment - toward ourselves, toward others, toward the world you love. Help us see more fully, with your eyes of compassion. Teach us to receive joy as a gift and to offer it freely. May this week awaken us to your presence in all things. Amen.