When Life Lacks Sunshine

Most people know that Florida is the Sunshine State. What they may not know is there are a lot more alligators than sunny days, but no one is going to plan a vacation to the “Alligator State.” In 1970, the tourism department knew what they were doing when they legally adopted the state’s nickname! Last year alone, there were over 130 million visitors. That’s a lot of people in search of sunshine!

Additionally, for those who’ve spent much time in the state of Florida, you might say it has only one season—hot. However, Floridians would argue that there are two: ‘Snowbird Season,’ when all the northerners flock to the coasts for the warm sunshine, and ‘Hurricane Season,’ when the same people decide to head north again to avoid the heat and potentially destructive storms. Isn’t it interesting that people run from the very place they escape to once a threat of a big storm comes? 

In life, we, like tourists, tend to pursue sunshine, not storms (unless you’re a storm chaser, and that’s a whole other story!). But the truth is, even in the storm clouds of challenging times, we can experience sunny days and sustain our joy—and that’s great news!

Now, it’s important not to confuse joy and happiness. Joy is a condition of our heart rooted in our faith in Jesus, an expression of our spirit. Happiness is a condition of our mind rooted in our circumstances, an expression of our feelings. Joy can grow. Happiness will diminish.

There are two ways we can sustain our joy even in challenging times:

1. Reflect on God’s Faithfulness. This takes intentionality and time and requires expressing our thanks and admiration and worshipping through song. It’s easy to get stuck and dwell on the negative parts of our life. But 1 Chronicles 16:8-11 gives us an inventory of truths we can reflect on when we need to be reminded of God’s goodness to us. If you’re struggling, start there!

2. Relate with God’s People. John, one of Jesus’ disciples, tells us in 1 John 1:3-4 that we can actually double our joy when we share it with others! In spite of being persecuted, the New Testament believers were filled with joy because they had a deep faith in what they saw, heard, and experienced in knowing Jesus. They didn’t want to keep it to themselves—they wanted others to enjoy it too! These are the kind of people you need to be around if you want to strengthen your faith and increase your joy. 

As you reflect on God’s faithfulness and relate with God’s people, you can not only sustain your joy—you can grow it. Even after Florida’s most destructive storms, the landscape recovers, people rebuild, and communities are stronger. You can trust God to do the same for you through your own storms, and THAT should bring you great joy!