Joy Over AnxietySample

Joy is Delight

Bestselling author, Brad Stulberg, wrote in an article the reason many of us are exhausted today is that we’re replacing our desire for excitement with anxiety. 

When the COVID pandemic took the world by surprise, we holed up inside our houses. No more concerts, restaurants, shopping, or getting together with friends. In our desire for excitement and delight, we turned to social media. We started “doom scrolling” on our social media news feed for a jolt of excitement. Instead, we just deepened our anxiety. 

There’s truth to this insight. In today’s world, opportunities to feel more anxiety are everywhere. The solution to combat this psychological fatigue and push back growing anxiety is to commit to excitement and delight in our lives.

Psalm 37:4 states we were created to delight in God. Zephaniah 3:17 states God delights in us. This delight is so central to our relationship with God. 

Yet, in an anxious world, this delight is not automatic. Because of our natural negativity bias, anxiety is more automatic than joy. We have to fight for greater delight, excitement, and joy in our lives. 

The solution is simple: ask God to meet your desire for excitement and delight. 

In John 16:24, Jesus instructs the disciples to ask and their joy will be complete. Like a joyful child asking a caring father, he will meet our request. 

All too often, we don’t ask because we’re not honest about how we feel and we lack trust that anything could be done about how we feel. Once we practice vulnerability and reclaim our trust in God, the last action for joy is to simply ask God to bring delight and excitement back into our lives.

In today’s anxious world, God is ready to surprise us with more joy. We just have to let down our walls and allow him to do what he does best.

Today, pray God will meet your desire for excitement and delight so you can have joy in an anxious world. 

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