Four Simple Things Stealing Your Joy (And What to do About Them)

Richard Foster writes about four obstacles that keep us from joy. [i]   The first obstacle is inattention. We simply do not pay attention to good things God has given us.  We miss them though they are right in front of our eyes.

A second obstacle is the wrong kind of attention. For example, we might pay attention to a sunset. But rather than allowing the sunset to stir us to applause, we allow it to stir us to analysis—why does the sun turn that color, etc.?

A third obstacle is greed. Foster writes, “Instead of simply enjoying pleasures, we demand more pleasures-whether we enjoy them or not.”

The final hindrance is conceit. Conceit leads us to focus on and admire what we have done rather than attend to and appreciate what God has done.

Thus, even when the sun is shining and all seems right in the world, experiencing genuine joy requires the following:

1) opening our eyes and paying attention to the plentiful presents God’s placed in front of our noses,

2) adoring the Giver rather than analyzing the gift,

3) choosing satisfaction with what God’s already done rather than dissatisfaction for what God has not yet done, and

4) embracing the conviction that it’s not our hard work that has filled our hands—it’s God’s great grace.