Joy and Lent

Sharon Wilson shares a new meaning of joy as it factors into the Lenten spirit of detachment.

A few years back I remember watching the Netflix series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo prompting me to clean my house and get rid of excess junk. Trends like this and the Home Edit might be all the rage, but we Catholics just call it Lent!

If you haven’t seen the series, Marie goes into people’s homes and helps them deal with clutter. Her technique is to have the individuals go through their closet and hold each item. If the item brings them joy, they keep it. If the item doesn’t bring them joy, then it is sent off with a hug to Goodwill.

There is a lot to be learned from this process of detachment and going through our closets to get rid of our excess, especially during this time of Lent. One of the things I pondered while watching the show was how to describe joy.

How do you describe joy?

Here are a few of my favorite Bible passages that mention joy.

All you peoples, clap your hands; shout to God with joyful cries. (Psalm 47:2)

Go, eat your bread with joy and drink your wine with a merry heart, because it is now that God favors your works. (Ecclesiastes 9:7)

Although you have not seen him you love him; even though you do not see him now yet believe in him, you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy. (1 Peter 1:8)

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)

So you also are now in anguish. But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you. (John 16:22)

These are wonderful descriptions of joy and I try to hold on to them in my heart, especially during times of sadness.

Click to tweet:
Is your life ordered for JOY? #CatholicMom

Recently I heard a different definition for joy: an acronym, actually.

J meaning Jesus.

O meaning others.

Y meaning yourself.

The challenge is to live your life with JOY and keeping things in the proper order of Jesus, Others and then You.

Instead of cleaning just my closet and finding what brings me joy, maybe I could bring this kind of joy into my whole day. What would happen if I kept the proper order of joy in my life?

Is your life ordered for JOY? Try keeping Jesus, others, and then yourself in your interactions today.

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