Joy

John 16: 22 - “ And your joy no man taketh from you.” Joy is one of the fruits of the spirit. It comes from within us and from the Lord. It cannot be affected by external forces. There is no action that any person can take that can rob us of our joy. We can choose to surrender it to feelings of hopelessness and misery, we can allow anger or bitterness to chase away our joy, but it is only through an act of will on our part that we can lose our grasp on joy. Joy is not some effervescent mirth that evaporates when the heat is turned up. It’s not some brittle happiness that shatters when reality slams into us. It’s not the thrill of excitement that fizzles out once the novelty has worn off. Joy is deep, expansive, unshakeable. It’s the pure love of Christ. Look how the Savior describes it. It’s the living waters that if we drink from them we will never thirst again. We don’t have to go chasing after the next promotion or the next sports car or the next amusement park. Regardless of our external circumstances, the Joy the Lord gives us springs up within us and fills us with His light and His love. Whether we’re in a palace or a concentration camp, whether we’re running a marathon or in a hospital bed stuffed with tubes, whether we’re recently engaged or recently divorced, whether we’re surrounded by friends or surrounded by enemies, our hope and our joy in the salvation of our souls does not have to waver. It enhances the good and tempers the bad. Joy shines through the darkness, calms our inner turmoil and pacifies the chaos that surrounds us. It buoys us up from the depths of despair. It enriches and ennobles every aspect of our lives. After being tied to the mast for four days, the first thing Nephi did was to fall to his knees and praise the Lord all the day long. When the Lamanites attacked the men of the Anti-Nephi-Lehi, the Anti-Nephi-Lehites praised God even in the very act of perishing under the sword. Joy shines brighter than our darkest moments, reaches deeper than our heaviest sorrows, is stronger even than the bands of death and the jaws of Hell. No man or woman, no personal failure or weakness, no power on earth or heaven or hell can rob us of our joy.