Ah, There you Are
"I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them." (John 17:13 NIV)
I misplaced my joy this morning. I woke up to find it missing like a set of
lost keys. I started looking for it everywhere. I looked for it in the
morning paper. It wasn’t there. I looked for it in my books. It wasn’t
there. I looked for it in some music. It wasn’t there. I looked for it while
I ate breakfast, got the kids ready for school, and headed out the door this
morning, but I couldn’t find it anywhere.
When I finally got back home I decided to take a walk. I thought that if I
couldn’t find my joy then at least I could get some exercise. The last
leaves of Autumn were thickly covering the ground. I walked for awhile on
this beautiful, crunchy carpet and breathed in the fresh, cool air. It was
so peaceful and wonderful. After walking for a bit I stopped and smiled. I
suddenly knew where to look. I glanced down and saw my joy peeking up at me
from deep inside my soul. It had been sitting there right next to my love
and God’s love just waiting for me to find it. "Ah, there you are," I said.
Then I laughed at myself for not knowing where to look all along.
It is amazing how we so often look for joy in every single place except the
only place where it can truly be found, within ourselves. We are like a
person running around searching for the glasses that are perched on the top
of his head. We need to stop the search. We need to look deep into our souls
and see the joy that has been sitting there all along. It isn’t hidden and
it isn’t hard to find. It is there shining brightly right next to God’s love
and our love. It is just waiting for us to smile down and say, "Ah, there
you are."
Reach down and grab that joy today. Choose it, rejoice in it, and live in
it. Take it along with your love and God’s love and share it with the world.
And if you ever misplace it again remember where to look for it first.
By: Joseph J. Mazzella