I may feel disappointment and the despair may flood high but to give thanks is an action and rejoice is a verb and these are not mere pulsing emotions. While I may not always feel joy, God asks me to give thanks in all things, because He knows that the feeling of joy, begins in the action of thanksgiving.
And true saints know that the place where all joy comes from is far deeper than that of feelings; joy comes from the place of the very presence of God. Joy is God and God is joy and joy doesn't negate all other emotions - joy transcends all other emotions.
Joy is a flame that glimmers only in the palm of the open and humble hand. In an open and humble palm, released and surrendered to receive, light dances, flickers, happily entertains. The moment the hand's clenched tight, fingers all pointing toward self and rights and demands, joy is snuffed out.
It speaks to the whole of my life and the vision brands me: the demanding of my own will is the singular force that smothers out joy -- nothing else.
From "God in the Moment" daily devotional by Ann Voskamp
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