JOY!

Happiness is a perception!

 

Happy People...

This article should give us all some things to think about...


There are two types of people in the world: those who choose to be happy, and those who choose to be unhappy. Contrary to popular belief, happiness doesn’t come from fame, fortune, other people, or material possessions. Rather, it comes from within. The richest person in the world could be miserable while a homeless person could be right outside, smiling and content with their life. Happy people are happy because they make themselves happy. They maintain a positive outlook on life and remain at peace with themselves.

The question is: how do they do that?

It’s quite simple. Happy people have good habits that enhance their lives. They do things differently.

Check out what they do here...

Joy

Joy is not something that just "happens" to us. Joy is a choice we must make, every day. It should be based on the knowledge that NO matter what happens, we belong to God.

In Him we have found our refuge, our safety and our strength. There is NOTHING, not even death, that can take Him away from us. 

 

God and Humor

Yes! It's perfectly okay for Christians to smile, giggle, laugh and be happy! Many believe that we have just too many rules to be a joyful people, how I wish we could show them the truth. 

Cardinal Dolan shared the following in a speech recently at Fordham University:

My assignment was to share with you for a few moments what you might call the theological reasons for laughter.  Why would a person of faith be cheerful?  Why is a crabby believer a contradiction?

Here’s my reason for joy:  the cross.

You heard me right:  the cross of Christ!

See, when Jesus suffered and died on the cross on that hill called Calvary, on that Friday strangely called “Good,” literally, the “lights went out” as even the sun hid in shame.  Literally, the earth sobbed with convulsions of sorrow as an earthquake occurred.

Jesus, pure goodness, seemed bullied to death by undiluted evil;
Love, jackbooted by hate;
Mercy incarnate, smothered by revenge;
Life itself, crushed by death.

It seemed we could never smile again…

But, then came the Sunday called Easter!

The sun – S-U-N – came up, and the Son – S-O-N – came out as He rose from the dead.

Guess who had the last word? God!

Hope, not despair;

Faith, not doubt;

Love, not spite;

Light, not an eclipse of the sun;

Life, not the abyss of death.

“He who laughs last, laughs best…” …and we believers have never stopped smiling since that Resurrection of Jesus from the dead!

So, as the Bible teaches us, if God loves us so much that he didn’t even spare His only Son, well, then, “nothing can separate us from the love of God,” can it?

So, Good Friday did not have the last word…Easter did!  That why I can laugh.

Because I believe all is God’s providential hands, and, that – the Bible again –  “All will work out for those who believe.”

Lord knows there are plenty of Good Fridays in our lives…but, they will not prevail. Easter will. As we Irish claim, “Life is all about loving, living, and laughing, not about hating, dying, and moaning.”

That’s why a crabby, griping, whining believer is an oxymoron!

That’s why we say, “Joy is the infallible sign of God’s presence.”

I saw it in Haiti when I went there with Catholic Relief Services right after the devastating earthquake two-and-a-half years ago – crying, horror, death, anguish – you bet, in abundance.  But, still, a resilience and a hope in a people clinging onto faith after centuries of oppression and grind.

I see it every time I visit the pediatric oncology department at Sloan –Kettering – beautiful, little, innocent children, baldheaded, emaciated by chemo, but they and their folks still radiating an interior trust and calm such that they can smile while I’m choking up.

I see it every time I visit cloistered nuns.  Eventhough they posses nothing of earthly value, but the clothes on their back and the prayerbook in their hands; eventhough they live a life of silence, penance, enclosure and virginity, unknown to most of us, they still laugh heartily and, Stephen, they are the best audience I could ask for in roaring at my corny jokes.

A young man in college once approached me as a parish priest to say he wanted to become Catholic.  When I asked him why, he replied, “Last week I was at the wake of a Catholic man  I admired very much, who died suddenly, still young.  And his family, while mourning him deeply, could still laugh, as if they knew it would all be ok.”

Faith in the cross of Christ, and hope in His Resurrection, does that….

We Christians are a forgetful people, thanks for reminding us of our joy Cardinal!

The best treehouse!

The vision of one man has been shut down by the local Fire Marshall. While I do understand it's their job to keep people safe, this is a truly unique place that perhaps should warrant special consideration.

From the wooden sculptures by John Teeple representing the Lord's Supper,

 to the chapel (Horace Burgess, the creator of the Treehouse, sits in one of the pews),

to the really cool swing (you're looking down on it from the top),

 to the Bell Tower 97 feet up.

People from all over the country have enjoyed spending time in this remarkable place. I will really hate to tell our young people we can't go back. 

Read more here...

The reason for the season?

With the holiday season right around the corner...sometimes I feel a looming sense of dread.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy visiting with family and friends....some of whom I only see during the
holidays. And nothing gives me more joy than to have my children under my roof...if only for a few
days.

I mentioned this particular feeling to a friend the other day followed by "but I must remember, Jesus
is the reason for the season". At which point she corrected me..."Sweetie, Jesus is not just the reason
for the season, He's the reason for your whole life!"

And then I realized that once again, I've allowed others to define my relationship with Christ. I've
allowed myself to focus on "feeling" not on "doing". If I am not practicing my faith and my joy every day...doing, praying, reading, living, then it's no wonder I feel nothing. As long as my joy is my Christ,
from my Christ, no one can take it from me. I can squander it, as easily as I stop “doing” my faith,
but no one has the power to remove it from my life. For Jesus is the reason I do everything in my life.

Joy!

When you think of Christianity and your spiritual walk...what is your first response? Gratitude? Well, that is a good place to start...but what about joy? Pure unadulterated joy! Wait, are we supposed to feel that? Or are we suppose to feel grateful and then set out to “earn” our salvation?

Jesus was a Jew, we all know that. But did you know that most Jewish scholars would tell you that the dominate mood of the sabbath should be joy? When you enter the sanctuary on Sunday morning, would delighted be a word that you would use to describe the congregation? How about when you're singing the hymns...now while I realize many of them are not meant to be joyous, what about the ones that are? Do you sing them with a smile on your face? Does your body feel the need to move? Even just a little? How do you think God feels when He sees us “worshiping Him”? What would you think if you were Him? I'm not trying to say we can ever know the mind of God but, He did make us in His image and with that comes the capacity for heavenly joy!

If this description doesn't fit you, don't despair! The Puritans shaped the way many feel about being a follower of Christ, even several hundred years later...and don't get me started on the Protestant work ethic can be misconstrued! While in and of themselves, what they've taught us is not wrong, but it's certainly does NOT encourage a thrilling, enchanting, delightful attitude. How do those outside the church view us...honestly, think of the way many of us look and behave on Sunday morning...would you want to get up and join that?

There is a time and place to work for God's kingdom. There are times and places to be somber in our spirituality. But it is not meant to be ALL the time. Jesus us tells us to come to Him as a little child. Next time you worship or talk to another about Christ, think of your child-self, and worship or talk with enthusiasm, with devotion, with exhilaration, with conviction!

There is no greater way we can Honor God than by showing our delight at being His child!

Joy!

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have joy in your soul regardless of the circumstances? The Apostle Paul lived this way through all his trials and tribulations. He is a testament to a life lived that is neither dependent on circumstances nor changed by difficulty.



This beautiful child is showing us an outward manifestation of joy...tell me it doesn't make you smile...Don't know about you, but I want this in my life!

For you...

I have a dear friend who does not like the winter. The cold, fewer hours of sunshine, being cooped up in the house all contribute to bring my friend down. Just to let you know I'm thinking of you friend...here's a little Boom De Ah Dah for you...hope you have a happy day!

Giving in to the world...

We humans are such frail and fragile creatures. Physically it is amazing what the body can withstand but mentally we break easily.

Even though the Bible is filled with promises from God, we choose always to look on the dark side...to take events at face value without looking for God's hand. I'm sure it distresses Him for us to question and doubt. It is easy for us to look back at the Israelites thousands of years ago and say, "had I been there, I would have believed!" Angels appearing, prophets speaking, seas parting, walls tumbling, even the "still, small voice of God" and yet they turned away time and again. Why should we think we are any different?

In times of peace and tranquility, we are happy Christians...all is going our way! But let there be one pothole on the road and we question, doubt, even rail against God. "Why is He letting this happen to me?" Do we ever stop to think that perhaps things are happening because of choices we ourselves have made? Are we down because we "let" the world get the better of us rather than choosing to be joyful?

God expects a steadfast hope from us. After all, He has told us He will be with us always...to the end of the age. I say this as one who fails to live up to the expectations, who is quick to fall into depression. It's my prayer that I can turn to the one from Whom all Blessings flow and choose to live my life as one He loves.

Brave your storm with firm endeavor,
let your vain repinings go!
Hopeful hearts will find forever
roses underneath the snow.
George Cooper

Where do the animals go?

I recently read a couple of articles concerning whether pets go to heaven. I know they don't have souls but...I'm sure God has a perfect plan for them. Being a "dog person" I cannot fathom that they just cease to exist. Where else on this earth do you get such an example of unconditional love?

Interesting read here:
Are There Animals in Heaven?
More to the point, "Will my cat, Puff, be there?"

This question is one that comes up time and again, especially with teenage animal-lovers around. This answer from Peter Kreeft's Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Heaven makes sense to me. He doesn't look at it from the "immortal soul" angle that usually is raised, but from the promise of a "new earth" that is made in the book of Revelation.

The simplest answer is: Why not? ... Much more reasonable is C.S. Lewis' speculation that we will be "between the angels who are our elder brothers and the beasts who are our jesters, servants, and playfellows" (That Hideous Strength). Scripture seems to confirm this: "thy judgments are like the great deep; man and beast thou savest, O Lord" (Psalm 36:6). Animals belong in the "new earth" (Revelation 21:1) as much as trees.

C.S. Lewis supposes that animals are saved "in" their masters, as part of their extended family (The Problem of Pain). Only tamed animals would be saved in this way. It would seem more likely that wild animals are in Heaven too, since wildness, otherness, not-mine-ness, is a proper pleasure for us. The very fact that the seagull takes no notice of me when it utters its remote, lonely call is part of its glory.

Would the same animals be in Heaven as on earth? "Is my dead cat in Heaven?" Again, why not? ... Though the blessed have better things to do than play with pets, the better does not exclude the lesser. We were meant from the beginning to have stewardship over the animals (Genesis 1:28); we have not fulfilled that divine plan yet on earth; therefore it seems likely that the right relationship with animals will be part of Heaven: proper "petship". And what better place to begin than with already petted pets?

From the blog "Happy Catholic"

Love and Joy

Make a list of things you love. Not great big things like houses, cars and trips to exotic places...






Little things like bracelets, cupcakes and bright red nail polish...




If you like them then it stands to reason they make you happy...so why don't you have more of them in your life? Seeing these small things throughout the day can serve to remind us of the joy that is life.

Warmth in Winter

Is a conference wide gathering of Youth and it's this weekend! It's always a joy to attend and we've been looking forward for weeks now! Would ask your prayers for our travels as we've got a major snow storm headed our way...we're there for the weekend so once we hit the doors, all is well!

Joy...

Have you ever "heard" joy? I believe I have...many times. How can anyone hear the laughter of a child and not be instantly entranced? Can you hear it and not smile yourself?

Baby Knocks Down Dad @ Yahoo! Video

See what I mean?

Time...

TIME is:
Too slow for those who wait,
Too swift for those who fear,
Too long for those who grieve,
Too short for those who rejoice,
But for those who love---
Time is not.

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven"
Ecclesiastes 3:1

Advent is a time to reflect, ponder and wait. We reflect upon what we have done and the direction our lives have taken in the past year. We ponder how God's Love and Law have been applied to our lives during this time. And we wait, for the Babe to be born in the manger to reaffirm our belief.

The Christmas season can and does go against all these. Between the visiting, shopping, celebrating, gift giving, decorating where do we find the time to reflect, ponder and wait? Do we work it into our daily lives by making it a point to spend a few minutes alone with God each day? Do we attend church services with an effort to be fully present in the moment? Do we wait to the very end and hope we have a little time left to spend before Christmas Day arrives? Perhaps we put it off until we spend an hour worshiping on Christmas Eve?

Texts tell us that Advent should be marked by a spirit of expectation, of anticipation, of preparation and of longing. We yearn to be delivered from the evil of this world. Advent is celebrated as a time of happiness as we wait the coming of the King. However you manage to bring Advent into your daily life, do it with joyful anticipation of the Birth of the Babe of Bethlehem...with a song on your lips, a smile on your face and love in your heart. He deserves no less!

Consider it Joy...

James 1:2 tells us "Consider it joy whenever you face trials of many kinds."

This is one of those verses that sounds wonderful if all is right with your world, but it seems to disappear from memory whenever trouble comes. After all, can you really say you are happy when things go bad?

What we need to consider is the difference between happiness and joy. Happiness is a "feeling" and as such changes from moment to moment and is based on many variables within your life. Happiness is a choice. Joy is an emotion as is love or anger and is based on our hope in the Lord. We know He holds our future in His hands and will use all things for good.

God does not call us to be happy with the trials that come our way but He does tell us to look to Him and follow His lead. We are to have joy in our heart because of the knowledge that in His eyes, our pain is never worthless.