Genuine Joy.

Good morning.  :)


I'm in a fantastic mood today. I was able to sleep in, which is a first in a while. Praise Him for rest. I know something so simple as sleep being able to put me in a good mood is kind of sad. But hey. 


Yesterday was a such a full yet.. rewarding day. I only got about three hours of sleep the night before, so I was running on Jesus and caffein for the day. Even though the whole day seemed to continue on forever, it was such a joy! I was thinking about this last night as I was going to sleep... It's  such a blessing to pouring into other people and not myself. How ridiculous does that sound? I think it sounds absurd, quite honestly. But that's because I know it's not coming from my being; the joy and satisfaction from pouring into people comes from Him. It's His joy and satisfaction being poured into me, He's just doing it through other people in my life.
For example, yesterday afternoon at the group home, I made peanut butter cookies. When I do tasks, I usually start singing a random song stuck in my mind. Ha. I was singing "Come Thou Fount," and I'm not exactly sure how this progressed now that I think about it. But I hear one of the residents singing a song as well. I stop my song to listen in.. It was the Little Mermaid, "Part of Your World."  So I walked in the living room to where she was sitting, not allowing her to notice I was watching her, and just stood to listen. I'm still smiling as I remember it because it was so priceless. Once she realized I was standing right behind her chair, she did her scrunched-up grin, and continued on. I don't know why that brought me so much joy. I guess it was the fact that it reminded me to enjoy every moment I have. Even while working. I find it so incredible that even those who have physical and mental disabilities find more things to be joyful about than I do. The residents humble me more every time I'm with them. 
Another example, the bible study girls. I don't think they realize how much they encourage me every time we meet. It's awesome how God uses each lesson I prepare in a completely different way than I originally envisioned it to. I love that. Because I can't take any credit for it, it's all Him. Yet again, this occurred last night. I planned to talk about body image and what a struggle it is to find our identity in Christ when people are feeding us lies about conforming to the world. I was pumped! A guy friend even wrote a note to the girls for me giving a guy's perspective about the subject. Yeah... God changed it completely. Instead of going through the lesson, one of the girls shared about a friend who struggles with an eating disorder. From there, God just took the evening. We talked about how we're God's hands and feet to the hurting, how we are the Light that beams into the dark world. If we just shine, we'll.. shine. It basically had little to do with the lesson, but I didn't care! It's God's group.. and I love how He does things so unpredictably. So awesome.


So those are just two examples of how God used yesterday to encourage a selfish Ally. Do you ever find that you're encouraged right when you're not expecting it? If we expect it, want it, think we deserve it, it's almost like we're attempting to tell God, nuh dude. We artificially are looking for encouragement. But true encouragement can only stem from Jesus, and we can only receive it when we stop looking for it and stop preconceiving ideas about how we should receive it. If we let God be God, wow... He will show Himself present. He's just that incredibly Glorious and Sovereign. 


Alright. Time for a run out in this gorgeous weather. 


Ally