Would you prefer to be happy or joyful, (or both)?
It seems easier to describe happiness as we see happiness around us. People out celebrating look happy. When Ipswich Town score the fans look happy – unless of course you are a fan of the opposition! We might meet a friend who has received some good news and say, “oh, you look happy.” We are perhaps less likely to say, “Oh you look joyful.”
When I write my Christmas cards I try and wish people a “Joy-filled Christmas and a Peace-filled New Year.”
We may well be happy at Christmas, presents, family, good food, but are we joy-filled?
What is the difference or are they both the same thing?
Happiness is transient, it is the effect of something good happening, an emotional response to external circumstances. Whereas joy, particularly the joy we feel when we think of Jesus and all he promises us, is a deep inner emotion, independent of our external circumstances. It may not be immediately apparent to those around us, but the joy of knowing Jesus is eternal. We might not experience happiness but we can still have joy, however true happiness cannot exist without inner joy.
In this world there are many things that may give us happiness, but all these are short lived. However knowing Jesus is with us, whatever our external circumstances, whether it be a happy time or a time of sadness, can bring us joy.
For some Christmas is not a time of happiness. It can be a lonely time where loved ones are missed, or the stress of trying to be happy can lead to greater unhappiness. Even in that loneliness and unhappiness, we can experience joy. Jesus, who was born as a baby into difficult times, in the dirt and smell of a stable, and whose family were refugees in a foreign land, came for each one of us then, and will come again to bring true joy to the world.
May your Christmas be joy-filled and the New Year bring us all true peace.