What Is This Space?

Welcome to Joy's Daughter.

I am so glad you are here. I know that sounds lame, and like something anyone who asked you to sign up for a newsletter/read a blog would say, but it is unequivocally true around here.

If you are alive, you know that lately things can feel pretty grim around the world. Most mornings I feel so overwhelmed and helpless that I miss my one, precious life.

But, I am here to make sure I don’t miss it anymore.

Here is something you should know about me; I believe your life is precious and I believe you were made by a loving God for joy unspeakable. 

Some of you have already tuned me out for religious talk, some of you leaned in closer because something I said touched your soul in a way you didn’t expect, others are still here so you can laugh about it later- but whatever the reason I hope you will stick around.

I hope I can show you that, as a preacher’s daughter who has seen the worst of people and the best, there is something to this way of life, this faith, this hope.

Let me tell you a bit about the name "Joy's Daughter" because it is important. 

First, the most literal meaning, my sweet momma is named Joy and it is not just her name, it is the essence of who she is. I have never met anyone who loves so deeply, celebrates life so fully, or embraces those around her so fiercely. There was a season in my life when I had strong ideas about how the world needed to change and what actions and behaviors would bring us there and, in that season, I remember thinking she just didn't get it. She couldn't possibly know how bad the world was and still respond to people with such grace.

But, as I have gotten older, I have realized not only does she know but she lives it silently every single day. She weeps with those who weep, loves, and celebrates those who are winning, embraces the silence when people feel alone. And don't tell her you will help her with anything, or you will end up singing "you are my sunshine" very off key on the porch of someone spending Valentine's Day alone.

When I had had it with church people and their hypocrisy, she patiently loved me right back to the cross. She has taught me that knowing how bad things are, how broken people can be, how dark things can seem and choosing to act in love, choosing joy, is the most radical act of bravery there is. Perhaps most importantly she taught me what it is like to stand in the grace of the cross. Every part of who I am has her fingerprint all over it.

Secondly, Joy's Daughter reflects my journey to be just that-a daughter of joy. In the English Standard Version of the Bible the words "joy," "rejoice," or "joyful" appear almost 500 times. This elusive way of being is obviously something that is near and dear to God's heart and so it should be to mine as well. But it is incredibly hard in a world that is loud and demanding- always pulling us in every direction except upwards.

I find myself wondering:

• In a world that is more connected than ever why does loneliness abound?

• In a society that is more literate and informed, why does hatred prosper?

• When you can learn anything or visit anywhere with a click of a button why do we feel so stuck?

We live in a heavy world, and it can often feel like darkness is everywhere, but we also have access to an unquenchable source, the very source, of joy. But we must know where to look and how to tap that source. And that is a journey that was never designed to be taken alone.  

I am after a life lived open and free and joyful.

I believe joy is the greatest weapon that we have to fight the darkness back.

Joy refuses defeat, it pushes ahead, it drives out fear, and teaches us to revel in beauty and create a brighter world, even if it is just those things right around us. Here on this blog and in these newsletters, you can join me as I carefully untangle the messy parts of my life and learn which parts are to be embraced and which to be discarded. Which parts of me are true, real, and authentic and which have been carefully constructed cages keeping me back from a life of a freedom and a life of joy.

I am after a life of handwritten love notes and cozy spaces, authentic conversation and comfortable awe inspired silences, a life of growth instead of perfection but most importantly a life connected to the source of joy. 

PSALM 16:11, You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (ESV)

Joy on this earth, removed from God, will always be tempered at best and unattainable at worse. I don't know about you, but I am choosing the source of joy instead of the shadow of what could be. No, not choosing, fighting for.

Would you like to join me?