Complete Joy

Photo credit: Free-images.com

For our Christmas present, our daughter and son-in-law put together a ‘Surprise Pre-Planned Road Trip.’ One day this summer Ted and I will get to “explore a new area, and the work is already done for you to hit great spots!” We’ve been given several sealed sheets of written instructions, to be opened one at a time, that will take us to a number of interesting locations. We don’t know yet where each stop will be – we don’t even know the final destination! If we follow the directions as prepared, they’ll lead us to a day’s worth of fun. We could, of course, ignore all the instructions and just go our own way. But Theresa and Andrew picked this trip specifically for us, and so we’ll trust those directions and be open to the adventure that awaits!

Christ has given us instructions, too. Not for a road trip but for life. He’s given us directions on how to find what our hearts long for most of all: love, peace, and joy. His joy. He’s told us that, if we learn to trust Him and listen to Him speak to us through Scripture, through our spiritual leaders, and through each other, His Way will lead us to our deepest joy. 

And what is His Way? 

“You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-39).”

He makes it sound so simple! However, we know from experience that it’s not easy. We often ignore His instructions and try to find joy our own way. This may lead to happiness, but that happiness is fleeting. Christ’s directions for His joy are clear: First, love God above all else; make time to talk to Him and listen to Him in prayer; open our minds and hearts to what He wants to teach us; strive to do His will in all circumstances. Second, love our neighbors as ourselves, including those neighbors we find difficult to love; reach out to them in service; give to them as we would want them to give to us. This is His Way.

 

Let’s start this journey with the Lord today. Let’s open our hearts to Him, love Him, and learn to trust Him. Let’s follow His directions for loving and serving others. When we do these things, we’ll find the deep, peaceful, and complete joy our hearts are longing for. We’ll find His joy.

“If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.” – John 15:10-12 

Let all I do be with You, for You, and because of You.

Thank you for reading my reflection.  All thanks to God for giving me the ideas and guiding my words!    © 2025 Gina Bedell   

  

Through these reflections, I invite you, the reader, to reflect on a given topic and then seek deeper answers through prayer, additional spiritual reading, and/or consultation with clergy or other qualified persons in order to grow in your faith and understanding of God’s love and will for your life. 

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P.S.

Pray for peace at home and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the people around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

His Purpose at Work

 

“Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples... He said to them, ‘Cast your net over the right side of the boat and you will find something.’” –John 21:1, 6

The apostles are good at what they do. They’re able to provide for their families with the fish they catch. This night, though, they’ve caught nothing. Their usual way of doing things isn’t working. He tells them to cast their nets over the right side. We usually interpret ‘right’ here as being the opposite of left, but if we read it as ‘correct’ the message changes a bit. They do it His way and haul in a boatful of fish.

What about you? Maybe you used to feel productive, but lately you haven’t. Maybe you feel stagnant. Picture yourself telling Jesus how empty life feels sometimes. Imagine Him saying something like this to you:

“You’re doing good things; now, change how you do them. Try My way. Change your attitude from that of ho-hum obligation to one of anticipation and expectation of what I may do through you in your work. Let Me reveal Myself to you and those around you. Drop the attitudes of ‘Is this all there is?’ and ‘There’s nothing to look forward to.’ You have ME to look forward to. Look up and out instead of downcast and you’ll see Me. ‘Cast your net over the right side of your boat and you’ll find something’ -- you’ll find Me.”

Our Lord’s not asking for an attitude adjustment; He’s asking for a purpose adjustment. Look beyond the work itself and see it as part of His mission. You play an important role in His work of loving the world! He needs you to reveal Himself to the people around you. You may see it as only a job, but consider: Your friendly smile may reassure a stressed coworker or customer. The father of a feverish child might offer a silent prayer of thanks when he sees you’ve stocked the store shelf with the medicine his little son needs. The products you sell may be treasured gifts that strengthen friendships. Your compassionate ear may help a young woman feel valuable, which motivates her to take better care of herself. The music you share lifts the spirits of your listeners. The small children you care for will learn from you how to show love and respect to others.

Your way was good; now our Lord may be asking you to let Him show you a more fulfilling way – with Him as your purpose. Let Him use you to reveal His love for the world through your work.

“Lord, I want to work for and with You. Show me the way.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2022 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! Feel free to share it with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Thanks!

 

p.s.

We continue to pray for an end to the war. If you’d like to help the people of Ukraine through the Cleveland Maidan Association, you may use either PayPal or a credit/debit card here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/...