CHOOSING JOY

By Sherri Christopher

Joy is a choice! You can have it starting today.

Negative thinking and a toxic environment are some of the leading causes of illnesses, according to researchers. Learn how to choose joy despite your circumstances. Life happens, and when it leaves you in unexpected places, how you choose to respond can pave the path for blessings or strife. Be encouraged with testimonies, tools you can begin using today, and a new routine that will leave you in a healthy state of mind.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 30, 2024
• ISBN: 9798891306400

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CHOOSING JOY

Sherri Christopher

ISBN 979-8-89130-639-4 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-89130-640-0 (digital)

Copyright © 2024 by Sherri Christopher

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

You can do anything you set your mind to.

—Thomas Poisel (Dad)

Introduction

Chapter 1

Can True Joy Exist without God?

Chapter 2

You Don't Understand What I've Been Through

Chapter 3

Can Joy and Sorrow Coexist

Chapter 4

Finding Joy in a World That Is Lost

Chapter 5

Finding Joy in Relationships

Chapter 6

Self-Care and Detoxing Your Environment

Chapter 7

Finding Purpose

Chapter 8

Overcoming Darkness with Light

Chapter 9

When God Speaks

Chapter 10

Steps to Getting My Joy Back

Epilogue: God's Wisdom for Your Future

God's Wisdom for Your Future

About the Author

You can do anything you set your mind to.

—Thomas Poisel (Dad)

Introduction

Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.

—Romans 12:2

My husband and I sat in the movie theater, chatting before the movie started. We were getting ready to watch C. S. Lewis: The Most Reluctant Convert. C. S. Lewis looks back on his remarkable journey from being an atheist to the most-renowned Christian writer of the past century.

This should be good, I thought. I reclined my seat back as I watched all the previews, and now the movie is starting. Okay, I am focused and ready to watch this movie with popcorn in hand. Little did I know God had different plans that night.

Just as the movie started, God started downloading sentences, chapters, and titles into my mind. I couldn't hear the movie. I was thinking, What in the world is going on? But the more I tried to focus on the movie, the more God downloaded information. I was starting to feel anxious because there was so much, and I couldn't write it down.

My husband wanted to talk about my thoughts on the movie when it was over, and that would have been great if I could have heard it! It makes me laugh because God's timing cracks me up. We arrived home, and I immediately grabbed my laptop to start transferring all that I could recall and putting it in writing.

Just a few months back, I also participated in a study group with the author Deborah Gall on a book she wrote called Created For So Much More. In chapter 7 of her book, she walks you through how to do cloud forming. Cloud forming is just another way to hear from God and learn why you were created, your purpose, and the choices you have for all He has made you to be.

I quickly went looking for my cloud map the day I returned home from the movies to see if writing a book was on there because I definitely didn't recall God ever telling me I would be writing a book. Tickle me pink! There it is, circled in a cloud in the corner of my page, and it said, Write a book. How I could forget this, I'll never know, but I am so thankful God reminded me.

I didn't always choose joy, but once I learned how to, I will never go back to the way it once was. Did you know the average three-year-old laughs about forty times per day, yet adults laugh less than three times per day? Is it possible to find your joy if you lost it? Is it possible to find more joy if you want more in life? Does joy always equal laughter?

Thank you for being on this journey with me of hearing from God and sharing life's testimonies. My prayer for you is that you will walk away from reading this book with a newfound joy despite your circumstances, and every day you wake up, you know that joy is a choice! Consider, at the end of each chapter, taking time to meditate on the one word and see how God speaks to you. Journal along the way! Take your thoughts captive and reach for joy! Don't let anyone or anything take it from you!

Okay, now put on some Sidewalk Prophets music and listen to Smile to set your mood for a new perspective! Happy reading!

Chapter 1

Can True Joy Exist without God?

Joy is not necessarily the absence of suffering, it is the presence of God.

—Anonymous

Joy and happiness are not the same. You can experience both at the same time, but happiness can be circumstantial—meaning you experienced something that brought you happiness, or you received something that brought you happiness. It may be momentary and disappear after a while. Pleasure can create happiness, but the effects do not last. Sometimes I take my daughter on shopping therapy. It always makes her happy to find a new outfit or a dress on sale, but it is a temporary happiness. It doesn't last forever.

Joy, on the other hand, lies deep within the soul, and you find a way to choose joy despite your circumstances. Joy is a lasting inward experience. You can lose a loved one and still choose joy. You may not get the job of your dreams yet still choose joy. You can be divorced and still choose joy. You can be diagnosed with a terrible illness but still choose joy. You could be sitting in prison but still choose joy.

I hear what you are saying, but, Sherri, you don't know what I have been through in my life. You don't know how I was raised. You don't know what I've done. You don't understand what has happened to me. No, but God does! Do you believe God is a big enough God, full of grace, and can bring you to a place of joy even when it may seem so far away? Do you believe God can use your circumstances to bring glory to His name?

First, let's evaluate your thinking patterns. Do you have toxic thinking?

Do you live as a victim in your life?

Do you feel like terrible things are always happening to you?

Do you feel life is not good?

Have you ever said, I can't wait until this year is over?

Do you keep track of all the bad things happening in a year?

Ever feel like everything keeps going wrong?

Have you ever said, Things will never improve?

Do you find yourself living in fear?

Have you ever said, I can't do that?

Do you choose not to do things because of fear of failure?

Have you ever battled with the negative thoughts in your mind?

Do you deal with depression and sadness?

If you answered yes to two or more of these, you may need to rehabilitate your thinking. Choosing joy doesn't come naturally for most people. Choosing joy takes much time and effort, retraining the mind and aligning the heart! Seeking a counselor or therapist to help you sort through your thoughts is always a great idea.

Looking back, I don't know how people make it through life without God. My marriage would not have survived without God at the center of it. I would have fallen into a deep depression when I lost my dad if I did not have God to carry my burden. I'm pretty sure I would have gone insane if I didn't have God during the teenage years with the kids. This list could keep on going. What about you? Do you truly know who God is? Do you know His character, His hopes, and His dreams for your life, or that He loves you? Do you know the joy He has waiting for you?

I accepted Jesus Christ into my life when I was a teenager but fell away until my early thirties. The only reason I returned to seek Jesus was because I thought my newborn daughter needed Him. Forget the reasons that bring you to Jesus or return you to Him; the main thing is you have said yes to following Jesus. Then it doesn't stop there. I live my life in daily pursuit of God, always learning about His character. God is not a boring God when you get to know Him. He is exciting, mysterious, adventurous, and loving. He is full of surprises.

Joy was Jesus's motivating factor leading him to the cross. He gave up everything for you. He died on the cross for you and me so that we might have everlasting life.

God loves you. He always has. So no matter what you have done or didn't do in your life, God still loves you. Take a moment to really pause and ask God to show you where you are not aligned with Him. What have you compromised? Have you succumbed to laziness by watching too much television, spending too much time in front of your phone, putting your kids before God, allowing an addiction to take hold in your life, or ignoring your family? What has become an idol in your life?

Take a look at how you spend your time and money, and you will see where your priorities lie. What