Bringing Joy to Your Life

Joy in life is even more important than happiness.  Many issues can impact whether or not you feel happy.  And, although I have often said and long believed that happiness is something you bring to life more than you receive from life, joy is a spontaneous expression that can permeate your life, adding depth and dimension to the most mundane events and activities.

Joy springs forth in your heart and your mind, not so much from what you are doing but from the way you are being.  When you are being appreciative of the myriad of little things in life, joy fills your heart.  It may be as simple as enjoying the cool caress of a breeze on your skin or the fresh smell of the air after a rain.  Thousands of little things in life that could easily be ignored as we hurry and scurry through our busy lives, when we stop to notice them and appreciate them can be a wellspring of joy in your life.

Awareness of the world around you seems to be one of the key and essential elements to bringing joy to your life.  Likewise, gratitude for what comes to your awareness also seems to be a portal to experiencing joy.

What is amazing is that these awareness’s and gratitude’s need not be about major happenings in life. The little pleasures, the simple pleasures, serve to stimulate the wellspring of joy as a natural result of living a normal life. 

By being aware and being appreciative of what is available for us in life, we bring into our life hundreds and even thousands of moments that are joyful.”

By the time the day has passed we find that we are, through these simple techniques, living in joy. It was the realization of this fact that led to my development over the past 35 years of a collection of (12) twelve activity based awareness meditations that I published as a 4-CD set called Meditations for Daily Joy.

In my own spiritual and meditative life I began to observe that engaging in life with greater consciousness, focusing my awareness, expressing my gratitude and expanding my understanding of the connectedness of us to one another lead to my life becoming more joyful everyday.

This did not mean that I never became upset or sad, or walked through life inside a protective bubble, but that the pervading experience in my life, in the midst of the challenges and trials was one of joy.

Gradually my experience of joy increased.  I was able to see the many blessings in life.  Celebration, praise, hope and promise became common experiences in my life drowning out the voice of fear and leaving in its stead trust and faith. 

Knowing that no matter what touched my life each day I could bring forth so much joy that was wonderful and special that I drew the strength to face each dawn excited by the potential of what beauty and blessings were in store for me today.

In all of my work and in all that I teach, I wish you an abundance of joy in your life.