Sometimes we approach joy as if we were taking a pop quiz. The art of joy requires more than one coat of paint.
When my son turned three, TJ graduated from the crib to an actual bed.
Solid wood beds cost a big chunk of money. Add in a super-hero boy, arms loaded with hotwheels and tinkertoy spears — and you’ve got a stressed out mom in the making.
So we settled on a lower cost, saner approach. We hauled a bed made out of “natural wood” upstairs and I was commissioned to hit Home Depot to pick out the perfect shade of honey.
In short order, I piled cans of wood stains into my cart, each promising tints in thumbnail images that looked menacingly alike. I was stuck on aisle 2 with a string of cans under my arms and in both hands, torn between too many colors.
My left brain would’ve probably self-imploded had it not been for the guy in a canvas store vest.
I walked out of the store semi-traumatized but got educated on the basics of wood staining:
Buy some samples and experiment with colors on the back of the bed.
Apply a layer at a time and allow time in between to dry.
The stain turns deeper with each application.
One detail: Paint looks different wet than when it’s dry.
Last but not least: Have fun! ( I definitely threw him a blank look at this point. )
There’s quite a lot of new changes I’d like to make in the new year.
I’ve taken a faith dare: to see myself as God’s delight.
Expressing Joy — in bold and care-free quantities — is a big part of taking on this identity.
Joy is a journey I began last year and now, it’s become my soul resolution.
A Soul Resolution
I don’t make new year resolutions. They’re great for setting goals at work or getting things done. But at the end of the year, my life isn’t about what I’ve done, but who I’ve become.
I’ve developed a yearly habit way that goes back to my college days, that’s continued into my adulthood — from student to working woman, singlen to married — to life now as a mother and a writer.
I take time out to reflect on my spiritual journey. I look back on the past year to see where I’ve been. Then I pray and read Scripture to ask God where he’s pointing me in the coming year.
Soul resolutions are not about what I’m doing, but who I’m becoming in Christ.
I call it my New Year’s “Soul Resolution”, because it’s more about living it out in my heart, rather than striving to accomplish a goal.
This year, my one word for the new year is “delight”, taken from Isaiah 62:4 —
“It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,” nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”; But you will be called, “My delight is in her,”… For the Lord delights in you.”
Five Principles of Joy Staining
As I try on different ways to experience “delight”, I see the same principles of wood staining apply to joy.
We even have someone more knowledgeable than the store reps. We get to practice these Five Principles of Joy Staining with our Beloved Carpenter, Jesus Himself.
“These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” John 15:11
The Five Principles of Joy Staining
1. Give joy a sampling. Try different things — or doing things differently — to see what joy looks like for you. Experiment in small doses.
2. Give your joy ideas time to dry. Once you try something for the first time, avoid judging yourself or criticizing the experience harshly right away. Give yourself (and others, if they’re involved) some space to be imperfect.
3. Joy takes more than one coat of paint. You might not even feel joyful at first. You will find that joy gets a little deeper as you feel the freedom to trust and just try. (I found that by just trying, even as I’m nervous, I feel a tinge of joy!)
4. Joy looks different wet than dry. You’re on a journey, not taking a “Joy Test”. There is no pass or fail. Joy comes from the heart and the heart is very resistant to demands or “Thou Shalt”.
5. Joy is fun! Yes, there is a shade of peaceful, quiet joy that comes through suffering. Don’t forget that the kind of joy that is sunny, exuberant and just plain fun is equally as godly too!
Heard of Naaman?
I gathered up these five shots of faith, after being inspired by Naaman, the “valiant warrior” from Aram who was also a leper. He wanted to be healed of his disease. But when the prophet Elisha told him to travel to Israel and dip into the river Jordan seven times, he got angry and discouraged.
After some encouragement from his friends, he decided to do it anyways. On the seventh dip, the Bible says his skin became as soft as a newborn baby!
As you step out new this year — on your faith journey — you may be tempted like I’ve been thinking, “Who am I kidding?”
Before you throw in the towel —
~ Remember who inspires your new beginning — God.
~ Keep dipping!
On the nth dip — God knows when that is — we will see joy deeper and truer in our everyday experience.
Let’s keep encouraging each other. Let’s keep painting the world with faith in what God’s doing.
I’m not even talking about the “big” things.
In the everyday things that no ones sees, that is where God faithfully meets us — because He sees.
~~~~~
What keeps you encouraged to step out in joy?
Do you have a soul resolution? How is God calling you to become new this year?
Pull up a chair. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Share a comment .
~~~~~
By Bonnie Gray, the Faith Barista, serving up shots of faith for everyday life.
Join Bonnie and the community at Faith Barista as they swap soul resolutions in January’s One Word Faith Dare Series on Faith Barista.
Click here to visit Faith Barista and add your voice too!
Photo courtesy of Photobucket.
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{ Faith Dare } Joy Takes More Than One Coat Of Paint | Faith Barista says
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Charina @ Pondered Thoughts says
Bonnie, its my deeper intimate relationship with Him, that deep trust and the desire to live according to His will, His purpose.
Stepping out in joy…thank you for sharing!
Bonnie Gray says
Charina! Thanks for sharing a virtual moment encouraging each other! Blessings of intimate joy with Him!
Kris says
Thank you for this solid truth, Bonnie. Learning this new year to trust that joy can only truly be found when in all things, my heart delights in the will of my Father… Bless you, sweet sister.
Bonnie Gray says
Hi Kris, my heart smiles imagining you delighting … and I’m learning right behind you too!
Leslie says
‘In the everyday things that no ones sees, that is where God faithfully meets us — because He sees’. So powerful and true. Thank you for sharing.
Bonnie Gray says
Thank you, Leslie. May God fill your heart this day with joy!
Jamie says
Thank you for this! It is exactly what I needed to hear this morning.
Bonnie Gray says
Jamie, it’s wonderful to reflect on the joy God has for us together!
Karen W says
There is always so much in your posts to glean…the nth dip…we wouldn’t want to stop one dip short would we?
I believe my soul resolution this year is to be Expectant. Not just to know that Jesus can show up but ‘to look with outstretched neck in eager anticipation’ for His arrival. I am looking for Him as I walk with Him daily, but I am also looking to see how He will show up for my unsaved family members, how He will reveal Himself in ways He hasn’t before. This is the year I believe He will. I don’t want to give up praying one day short either.
I am creative and I loved your word picture with the staining. Although God can do things instantly, He often takes His time. I have rushed projects and they often don’t come out as good as the ones I take my time on. Love sharing a cup of coffee with you! It really starts my day off right!! God Bless Bonnie!
Bonnie Gray says
Let’s keep dipping, Karen! 🙂
Nikole Hahn says
Friends. Coffee. Daily readings from God’s Word. Words from other bloggers who might be sharing the same journey. And oh, did I mention coffee? The kind with an inch of foam, a drizzle of caramel, and the spike of cafiene? :o) Great blog. (Mmm…I know I spelled that word wrong, but my spell check isn’t working).
Bonnie Gray says
Hey, you’re speaking my language.. ! God’s joy is here now as we sip our coffee and words form each other. Love your words, Nikole!
Dawn says
I love what you said towards the end…..sometimes it feels good to just bask in the joy that is just plain fun! I don’t think I take enough time to do that, and I need to.
Bonnie Gray says
Let’s dip together in joy, Dawn! 🙂 Right there with you! xxoo
Christy says
I’m mindful of this whole concept “joy”….It’s a work in progress for me…being attuned to God’s joy in the everyday that surrounds me. I’ve shared a story on the joy filled moment (small one) my daughter and I experienced the other night via http://www.thepaperbagprincesses.blogspot.com, “Moon Chasers”.
Thanks again for being such an inspiration and a writing catalyst Bonnie! Hope the book writing is coming along.
Bonnie Gray says
Christy – thanks for sharing moonchasers! He sees you and your daughter.. small is big to Him!
Stacey says
Bonnie I love the idea of “Joy Staining” – what a beautiful picture! And this…”Expressing Joy — in bold and care-free quantities – is a big part of taking on this identity. ”
I am on that joy journey too! I so want to be known for Joy, don’t you? God is doing a work in me. Praying that I am patient enough to let that ‘stain’ dry and deepen my character.
Blessings!
Bonnie Gray says
Aw, Stacey! I can still feel your infectious smile and the joy that comes from a heart spilling over with words! Love locking arms with you on this joy journey, friend! 🙂
Katie says
Thank you Bonnie! Your five steps to joy are an encouragement to keep trying joy out!
Bonnie Gray says
Thanks, Katie! 🙂
Lynne Hartke says
This I love:
Before you throw in the towel —
~ Remember who inspires your new beginning — God.
~ Keep dipping!
Thank you for this.
Bonnie Gray says
Thank you for being here to share, Lynne! 🙂
Kellie says
It’s a rare place where the comments are as inspiring as the article… i love this place. I’m finding “joy” in the journey so thanks for the reminder to keep “painting”.
Bonnie Gray says
Isn’t it so true!? We are a community of joy — sharing ourselves, AS IS. What joy there is in each other, bobbing our heads in the everyday journey of faith with one another!
tinuviel says
We feel the same about trips to the hardware store! Thanks for sharing what you learned.
“Delight” was my word last year. It’s amazing how much remains for me to learn. Thanks for extending my journey through yours.
(Sara Frankl offered image files of all her readers’ “one words” in 2011. If I can find the file for “delight” on my computer, I’ll email it to you. I printed it out to tack around the house as a reminder and found that helpful.)
May God give you joy and fun in whatever He sends today.
Karen says
This fits perfectly with what I am teaching in bible study today. I am going to quote you “at the end of the year, my life is not about what I have done, but who I have become”!
THANKS!
eileen says
Great thoughts. I’m reading a SoulPrints by Mark Batterson right now and your quote sounded much like something he said. “The goal is not accomplishing the dream God has given you..the primary issue is who you become in the process” It’s all about the lessons along the road.
Bonnie Jean says
Not to spoil your joy, because we all want things just perfect for our children and we want them to last as they change through the years… but for their first bed… keep the stain light to medium… the digs and scratches won’t show so much because the wood won’t be in too much contrast to the stain… or always keep an extra can or two of that stain (from the same lot) on hand to touch up over the years. Better yet just clear coat it with several coats of varnish. Either as is or after the staining. The hard part, as it is in the Christian life is in the waiting… waiting for the coats to dry… waiting for the varnish or clear coat to dry completely so it is not sticky. Also having lots of air in the room and just the right temperature range makes it go better. Kids destroy furniture. Having real hard wood is great… but they will destroy even that… girls and boys both. So by the time they are in their tweens you will probably want to replace it anyway unless you like severly distressed furniture. Even then you will probably want to strip and sand and re-stain or paint the furniture. Nothing of this earth lasts forever.
robin says
2012 is a year of courage for me. Stop trying to try so hard, be right, good and responsible.
To breath…. Let the Lord speak to me and move forward
Steph says
I love this! Thank you – you said what my heart feels!
Beth Williams says
Knowing that God has plans for me..to big for me to even realize right now. My soul resolution is to do a devotion daily with my hubby and to encourage each other daily as we struggle with work, older parents, etc.
New this year–I’m listening to Christian music more and working out. These two things combined help keep my attitude in check and make me a better person and Christian.
Wonderful encouraging post!
Beth Williams says
Knowing that God has plans for me..to big for me to realize now. My soul resolution is to do a daily devotion with my hubby and encourage each other in work, older parents.
I’m listening to Christian music more and working out. These two things help my attitude and thus make me a better person and Christian.
Thanks for an encouraging post!
Joyce Varlack says
Thanks for your thoughts on “JOY”. Bonnie ♫
For most of my adult life, my desire has also been to give joy to the sooo deserving heart of God ♫♪♥
This year “I live to glorify You” is what the Holy Spirit has been impressing on my heart, to meditate on and to live out in my day to day life/moments.
Rejoice my sister ☼
(~_~)
Jennifer says
Just keeping dipping (Like Nemo’s “Just keep swimming”). Love it, Bonnie!
Laurie Wallin says
Wow. I saw this title and was kind of in shock… how God reaffirms things in so many different ways in our lives. I just wrote something so similar this week – Repainting Life – that is all about joy too. Clearly God wants me to marinate in this concept more than just working through my own post. Thanks for what you shared!
http://livingpower.blogspot.com/2012/01/repainting-your-life.html
Christine says
I did it! http://warrriorforchrist.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/intrepid/
Mandy says
I decided to take the challenge. Silly me, I thought I would have some word like “comfort” or “peace” that would, to me, create a walk-in-the-park kind of year…
Feel free to stop by my place to read about the word I have claimed for 2012:
faithful.
Laurie Wallin says
That’s where I’m at for this year too, Mandy. Faithful… in the little things, the bigger things… everything even when things feel wound up in such a way I can’t see the light through them. God is faithful. How can we be any less?? May your year be full of reminders of His faithfulness as you live out this soul resolution!
Kaitlin @ Perceptions & Passions says
Loved this post! Even though I FEEL joy as a 6-months pregnant full-time working mother of a rambunctious toddler…I ABSOLUTLEY have trouble expressing my inner joy! This is something that I will add to my character reformation of 2012. I believe that showing joy is an incredibly important characteristic to have as a Christian. It is our oppurtunity to allow someone to look at us and think, “MAN, I’ll have whatever SHE’S got!”
I too was called for character reformation verses a specific, annual “DOING” goal.
I feel that God is calling me to be PATIENT this year.
See more here! 🙂
http://perceptionsandpassions.blogspot.com/2012/01/my-new-years-goal-patience.html
Erika says
What a WONDERFUL reminder! We need to remember this day after day. Thank you for sharing!
Julie Sunne says
I step out in joy only by grace, Bonnie. How else can we do it? We do need to remember the source of our joy, don’t we. There is endless hope in the nth time–God’s time. It is always the right time.
Stepping out in “boldness’ is my soul resolution. Joy in the journey toward being bold for Christ–even if I don’t feel like it!
Wonderful post. Thanks for the thoughts. Have a joy-filled day!
Ms. Adams says
I love the idea of making a soul resolution. What an amazing way to honor Christ. Joy is definitely one we are struggle with in today’s fast paced society. I like to think that through Christ I can find the joy in any situation…sometimes it just takes me a little longer than others. But that’s okay, the point is that we are all trying to see God’s way.
Angie W. says
Wow, this is a lot to reflect on. First of all, God is totally speaking, because I just was studying the Isaiah 62:4 verse yesterday – looking up synonyms and definitions to really understand it. I even fee like its a verse that I am to meditate on this week. Thank you so much for this post. Thank you Abba.
The word that came to mind when thinking of this year was “Quality” – and while talking with a friend about being fearless; the phrase, “enjoying quality fearlessly” came to my heart. I’ve been thinking of small ways to do that each day. Last night I went to bed thinking about joy too – drawing me to Philippians. Wow God is really present to my heart’s thoughts! I enjoy listening to uplifting music. I enjoy being around joyous people. I find joy in creating things. I find joy in being around nature; I also find joy in pampering situations – sit down tea; a quiet book store. Pretty wallpaper 🙂 !
I have more to think about. Thank you again for this post!
Angie
Marina Bromley (Marina's Kitchen Table) says
Hello Bonnie!
Well, what I thought was going to be my soul resolution, is not what HE is bringing fruit in…after a “winter blue day” the need for JOY cried out of my heart – and into the ears of dear friends that lifted me in prayer. NOW, weeks later, I’m still getting uplifting bits of JOY sprinkled around me, and I crave more and more.
Winter blues are no more – but the craving still remains. It may be a part of His bigger PLAN for my year, but for now I’m relishing the joy that He’s sending my way…
<3
grace and peace…
marina
emily says
Wow! Thanks so much! Such truth…
We are all on this journey… seeking for the Joy. Even in the hard, dirty, grimey days in life. Even when we don’t realize we’re searching for it…
Because it is this. This that we were created to know. at all times.
We have such a good Father… and I’m so thankful that He doesn’t want us to miss out in all this Joy.
I would like to quote our dear sister Ann…
“The holy grail of joy’s not in some exotic location or some emotional mountain peak experience. The joy wonder could be here! Here, in the messy, piercing ache of wondrous now, joy might be-unbelievaby-possible! The only place we need see before we die, is this place of seeing God, here and now.”
“So then as long as thanks is possible… then joy is always possible.”
thank you so much, sister! May we all learn to walk out this life of faith in seeing and experiencing the Joy of God Himself.
laurie says
As you step out new this year — on your faith journey — you may be tempted like I’ve been thinking, “Who am I kidding?”
Before you throw in the towel —
~ Remember who inspires your new beginning — God.
~ Keep dipping!
*remember who inspires your new beginning! I truly needed this today. I’m going to print this out and keep it as a reminder the next time I have a day like today–filled with distractions and mess-ups!!! Thank You!!
Katie @ Imperfect People says
Oh how beautiful to think of ourselves as “God’s delight” I love it!
Diane Bailey says
This year I feel Him saying “Sanctified” I feel like I’ve been called out of my regular circles, to step into new territory. That is scary for a woman who likes her schedule and lists to check off. But I’be got my spritual boots on and I’m stepping out!
When you are not sure where to look for joy — Sitting At His Feet says
[…] goes out of his way to orchestrate the timing of a page in a book and a segment on a video and a random blog post, I’d do well to take […]
Debbie says
Bonnie, I love what you wrote:
“Soul resolutions are not about what I’m doing, but who I’m becoming in Christ.”
How true your words are! It’s more important as to who I’m becoming in Christ that what I do. Our character and growth are so important to Him.
I wrote my joy post a day late but didn’t want to miss out on this one either. May you have a joyful day.
blessings and love,
Debbie
Caitlin says
I feel like my soul just gained space to breathe through your words. Your 5 steps are life-breathing! It’s so great to be reminded that I don’t have to be perfect immediately!
That is one of my soul resolutions this year – to learn how to REST in God without worrying or striving or performing or pleasing! I want to find joy in the peace of His rest 🙂 I also want to embrace authenticity and substance in my walk with the Lord.
I am encouraged to step out in joy because I know that when I find joy, I find God because His presence is the SOURCE of joy!
LeAnn says
I need more joy in my loneliness….
Nicole says
My soul resolution is “create in me a pure heart, O God, & renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (ps. 51). I have been struggling to get back into writing for the sake of myself, my family & my God-ordained purpose. Your post encourages me to keep at it, especially as I learn & yearn to become more the woman God intended me to be. Thanks, & see you soon
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