An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.” 
Luke 2:9-11 NIV 

Throughout Scripture, we see Jesus feel plenty of emotions — anger, sadness, grief. But there’s also a convincing argument to be made that Jesus had an incredible and indescribable spirit of joy. People were drawn to Him, constantly and consistently. His joy must have been magnetic. He hung out with the fun crowd and had dear friends. He was invited to parties. He and His friends went to weddings together! 

Jesus knew joy because Jesus knew God.  

“. . . for the joy of the Lord is your strength,” says Nehemiah 8:10 (NIV). 

We can lean on the strength of this joy. God’s joy. We don’t have to live at a frenetic pace; we can let God’s peace draw us in. We can let joy take a front seat for once. We can be amazed at the glimmers of hope we feel. We can lean into the joyfulness of the season, even if everything around us is hard. Doing so just might be a gift God is waiting for us to open.  

Jesus, God with us, offers a spirit of joy that can carry us through long after the holidays. There’s hope. There’s joy. 

Christmas is coming, friends. May your heart be light. And may you have a very merry Christmas season.

 

 

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