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5 Minute Friday { J. O. Y. }



Joining with The Gypsy Mama for a five minute un-edited free write 
about the topic of her choice:  JOY...


:::


Not long ago, our surfer-cool priest gave a homily about joy.  He said something I haven't forgotten.  He said,   J.O.Y. stands for:
 Jesus
Others
You

If we live life in that order we will find an everlasting joy.

It's a simple acronym for ordering our priorities.  The truth is, I usually live my life like this:

Y(me). O. J.

While I am often joyful, I think living joy backwards is a short-lived, shallow-depth kind of joy. It is more of a temporary happiness, an instant-gratification joy that is in constant need of refilling.

When I do manage to turn my YOJ around, I experience a deeper peace of mind and soul.  It feels good to begin my day with the word of God, to serve my family a great breakfast, to see them into uniforms and off to school smoothly and unselfishly.  Sitting at the computer, calling out to them to wait one more minute while I finish this post (ahem!) doesn't feel like everlasting joy.

So I am off to do those things today, to re-order my disorder, and to sink deeply into the joy that only J.O.Y can bring.


:::

   



Comments

  1. Hi Misty! The order of the letters is goofy no matter how we mess them up, isn't it?

    Sometimes as a people-pleaser, I fall into OJY --- I try to meet the needs of my family and friends in my own strength, then go to Jesus for a bit, and wonder why I am so run-down all the time.

    I guess if you "say it fast," OJY ends up sounding like "Oh, gee!" which is what I sighingly say when I see one MORE need from someone I love when I'm operating in my own strength.

    Keeping Jesus first...thanks for the reminder!

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  2. Hi Misty,
    Great response! I liked how you SPELLED IT OUT for us. Hoping that you find joy in abundance today- and more wisdom this weekend to share :)

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  3. Hi Misty! Thanks for the J.O.Y. reminder...I need to remember it more often than my kids as I use it to remind them :D

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  4. What a fun way to remember our priorities- I think many of us are living back to front!

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  5. I love this acronym! What truth, too. Living for Jesus and serving others is definitely the way to hold onto the joy that He gives!

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  6. What a great way to think about it! I "met" you at (in)courage and thought I'd check out your blog. So glad I did!

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  7. Yes, I remember it as a child that acronym. Jesus, others, you. It's a wonderful and simple reflection for where my focus should daily be.

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  8. Okay, I've never seen that acronym for Joy before, but I needed to! I think I might sometimes do O.Y.J.... and need to switch it, big time. What a great reminder, thanks!

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~Grace and peace to you~

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