As a child, I loved the song “They Will Know we are Christians by Our Love.”  I played it on the piano to accompany my school’s choir. I knew all of the lyrics by heart and I truly understood its message. It was easy for me to sing this song as a prayer. But I wanted more. I wanted it to promote and proclaim how else others might know we are Christians. I thought joy could be the answer.

Christians are called to live differently. Too often that’s perceived as a to a list of what we should and should not do. But those who follow Christ and seek His spirit are blessed with many gifts and fruits. Joy is one of them.. But joy is a virtue—a good moral habit. It must be cultivated and practiced. The joy of Easter and the fire of Pentecost should be something that others witness in us year round. So as we settle into Ordinary Time, I would like to offer four simple ways to nourish Christian joy.

It might be helpful to start by understanding what we mean by Christian joy. In today’s society, there is a lot of talk about happiness; it seems to me that happiness is a near science. Sociologists and psychologists alike offer ways to cultivate and sustain it. But I would like to heed a word of caution. There is a distinction between happiness and joy. In “On Vocation: Three Key Questions” Rev. Michael Himes states

What’s the Difference Between Joy and Happiness? It’s not a matter of whether this makes you happy or not because happiness is affected by many external factors (sleep, illness, hunger, loneliness, etc.). Happiness changes from moment to moment, day to day. Joy, on the other hand, is much deeper and much more central, it comes from within, and it’s a genuine rightness of how one lives one’s life.

Definition: Joy – the sense of the rightness of the way in which one is living one’s life.

So I would like to reflect on what any Christian can do—or at least the way he or she can live their life with the “rightness of way” Jesus models for us—to cultivate joy.

1. Pay Attention

One of my favorite poems is "Instructions on How to Live a Life" by Mary Oliver. She writes,

1. Pay attention.
2. Be astonished.
3. Tell about it.

So simple, yet so profound.  Why? Because it’s both true and it’s challenging.  

I struggle with that first step. It’s hard to focus in on one thing. But, I have noticed, that when I pay attention to someone or something, my brain settles into a different gear. Distractions lose their power. Music sounds better. I never heard that base line in that song before—wow! Conversations are richer. The questions I ask are more thoughtful. Relationships improve. Humans are more interesting; we are indeed funny and quirky beings.

My 2015 New Year’s Resolution was to pay attention and to laugh more often. I made the claim that I think the first leads to the latter. And it’s true, paying attention has allowed me to find humor in daily life. Which it is the second step…

2. Laugh

Who doesn't feel better after a deep laugh? Laughter never goes out of style. Jim Martin, SJ the culture editor at America Magazine agrees. In his book “Between Heaven and Mirth: Why Joy, Humor and Laughter are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life, Martin writes,

“Humor serves some important purposes,” he said. “First, it can remind you of your poverty of spirit. Laughing at yourself reminds you that you are a human being reliant on God just like anybody else.” For leaders, humor is essential, Martin said, “particularly in the religious world, where we all tend to think that we alone are doing God’s work.” 

We feel drawn to religious leaders with a sense of humor. It shows us that they understand their essential poverty of spirit and their own reliance on God. It shows humility, which is also essential in the spiritual life. You take God seriously, Jesus seriously and the Gospel seriously, but you shouldn’t take yourself too seriously.”

Some of my favorite people are able to strike that perfect balance—they know when to take themselves seriously and when to laugh at their humanity. I think these are the same people who laugh often and laugh loud. I know it is the joy in their spirit that I am drawn to.

I am also drawn to….

3. Spend Time in Nature

Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “The earth laughs in flowers.” Who doesn’t feel better after smelling a fresh flowers or gathering wildflowers for a bouquet?

Indeed, another way to cultivate Christian joy is to spend time in nature or at least pay attention to it. I just spent a week in a small town in North Carolina. Every lamppost was graced by baskets of hanging flowers. Noticing their vibrant colors, distinct fragrances and simple beauty brought a joy into my heart and a smile on my face.

I write of flowers, but nature is evidenced in seascapes and mountaintops, majestic trees, flora and fauna. In “The Ecological Crisis: A Common Responsibility,” St. John Paul II wrote,

“Finally, the aesthetic value of creation cannot be over-looked. Our very contact with nature has a deep restorative power; contemplation of its magnificence imparts peace and serenity. The Bible speaks again and again of the goodness and beauty of creation, which is called to glorify God.”

When I hiked in Yosemite Valley, I couldn’t help but glorify God. Words of praise and reverence burst from my heart. All of creation is a reflection of the Creator. I was further drawn to the source of joy—God the Creator.  One need not go to a national park to feel that joy. It can be seen in a hanging basket or the face of Gerber daisy.

Spend some time out of doors paying attention to the natural world and I think it’s hard not to “be astonished,”— the second step of Mary Oliver’s “Instructions for how to live a life.

4. Tell Stories

I will never forget when I first heard Greg Boyle an American Jesuit speak. I don't think he ever prepares his remarks; as a preacher and poet I guess he doesn't need to do that. He shared many truths and lessons gathered from his ministry. One special insight was this: "great stories come to those who can tell them."

As the creator and founder of Homeboy Industries, the single largest gang prevention in the United States, I believe no one is more worthy of those good stories. He is priest, poet and prophet. He was asked to pen "Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion" so that those stories could be shared beyond those who happened to hear him speak in church or at a convention. 

And they ought to be captured, discussed and heard because stories have power. They capture our heads and our hearts. Jesus knew this, which is why he used so many of them in His ministry. Stories can reveal a beautiful or painful truth about life and about love.

I believe that living a life for others or in service to one another can’t help but yield a few stories. When we spend time with those in need, when we put others before ourselves, we open up more than just our hearts. We open our eyes and our ears, too. In that time, eventually a story is shared or is revealed. We all have them.

You might not have your own adventures that merit dramatic story telling, but when you stand in solidarity with others, you might learn about theirs. Pay attention. I think you might be astonished. To cultivate joy, tell others about what you have seen and what you’ve heard.

As Christians, we are called to transform the world. Think of the stories of those who have—all because they heard of the story—the life, death and resurrection of one man. I believe they did it with more than just love. I have a feeling it was with joy, too.