Scripture Reading: Luke 12.13-21 Today's inspiration: "A man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."

Luke 12.15

Good Morning.

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? I have been looking around for the 'hot' gifts this season. . . You know what I mean--the thing that your 12-year-old can't wait to unwrap. After all, the purpose of gift-giving is to bring a little pleasure to someone. . . oh sure, the gift is not likely to be life altering, but then again, what if it could be--life altering, that is-- May I take you away this morning? May I have your attention? Please. . . just for a few minutes--I want to give you something. . . not another possession, though.

I want to give you a gift. . . so that when you open it, it will just sort of softly pour out and envelop you. 'Kinda reminds me of this perfume I smelled in a racquetball locker room years ago--oh, my goodness--it smelled so good! I sniffed out the fragrance to its wearer, and learned that the lavish scent was called "Quell que Fleur." (soon after, I learned that I could not afford to own that sweet scent--bummer) Back to this gift I'd like to give you--when you get it, you'll be able to drink it in, take it inside of you, make it part of you. . . . . What would I like to give you? I would like to give you joy.

The world could use a little more joy, to be sure, but what is joy? What does it look like? What does it FEEL like? Is there really such a thing? It is more common to talk about the pursuit of happiness than the pursuit of joy, yet joy seems to trump happiness. Let's take it apart so as to understand--Joy is not about personality or temperament. I've heard women say things like, 'it's easy for you to be joyful--it's kind of your personality--you're just bubbly, and besides, you've got a great life!' Joy is not personality or temperament specific.

Joy must be experienced in the moment. Unlike my favorite perfume, it cannot be kept in a bottle, and used when you go to dinner next week. It is not for tomorrow. The psalmist said, "This is the day that the Lord hath made, I will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118.24. This is the day. . . joy must be experienced in the moment. Joy is not dependent on circumstances--whereas happiness tends to depend more on external goings-on. One thing in life is a constant--change--so happiness has the potential to elude us. . . sorta like the bubble that we finally reach up to grab, only to find it popping in our hand. Quoting a current-day rabbi, "happiness as defined by our culture has become just a synonym for pleasure. . .' Indeed. Happiness, at some point--sooner or later, is fleeting, while joy is lasting. Joy seems to be inextricably tied to HOPE. Hope keeps joy alive; it feeds it. Furthermore, even in times of ambiguity, anxiety or pain, we have joy as we put our HOPE in the Lord.

Today, I wish for you, my dear friends, JOY. . . it seems appropriate at Christmas, that I would wish to give you joy because this is the holiday that we link with joy. I've been thinking about why that is--and I think that Christmas offers joy because joy is linked with the heart of God--joy comes from the heart of God, because at the heart of God are all things good. Read that sentence again--it is a trustworthy saying. For some that might be hard to swallow because maybe religion or judgmental, hypocritical Christians have painted God as austere, far-off, possibly vindictive, or as a 'cosmic killjoy.' Not so.

But, consider this--we celebrate this Christmas, 2008, because God sent Jesus, His one and only Son, to be born as an innocent baby. Why do Christmas carolers sing 'joy to the world'? Because the Lord HAS come. Have you been to the manger to see Jesus? Have you considered the difference His coming has made? Jesus, the hope of glory, holds the gift of joy--we open that gift by coming to Him. We won't find it in 'just the right gift,' either for ourselves or for others. . .no, 'A man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.' Look for Jesus while He may be found. Joy to the world, the Lord has come. . . receive Him.

So that you may know. . .

Christine