I Am Joy

I am called Joy by a very few.


If I was christened with that nickname, I do not know. I just remember seeing the 3-letter word not so much around the house and on not so many letters & notes I have received with "To: Joy", sometimes "Dear Joy". I did not grow up hearing that name most of my years either. But, if out of nowhere I hear that name, I will respond and look around because I know


I am Joy.


To date, it is the unpopular name of mine. It is barely known. It is hardly missed. But I still own it and I love it.


I am Joy.


To be called Joy again or not anymore is not my paramount melancholic, nostalgic sentiment right now. I own it by heart and simply want to live up the name. And with that, joy did not fail me. 

This joy has many faces.

It springs up from inside-out awareness, 

communicates in silence or in audible utterances, 

projects in statics or sometimes in dances, 

speaks in smiles or in expressive body languages,

at times when I am at my highest or even at my lowest.

Calling someone Joy can just be a blurt. But living with, and living the joy is not just difficult --- it is IMPOSSIBLE in this fallen, broken world where hurts, sufferings, and pains consistently strike and are undeniably real. We have our own share of despair, so we know how it feels and how this world operates, and how joy can sometimes be a scarce staple commodity.


When 'weights' seem heavier than the usual, a simple joy can be an understatement. The inspiration of the Lord makes it real, makes it alive, makes it powerful, makes it complete.

The joy of the Lord is what it really is.

Joy I maybe called, but man, I can't manufacture joy --- it will surely alter or fail. It is the Lord who gives and makes it grow in me. It is not from me, it is from Him. It is not a result of my doing, but the fruit of His being. It is not of the flesh, but of the Spirit. The common joy can sometimes be just a facade, but the joy of the Lord comes genuine, in and out.

I don't want to settle to be Joy by calling, but to the utmost, be Joy by living. 

The world has done so much in its power to steal joy away from every heart. A consistent tug-of-war has it been. It is hard to be caught by the world's schemes & treachery, but the Lord has promised a sweet and joyous victory, that we can wear the sweetest smile at the end of every journey.  :)  :)  :)

If I was christened with that nickname, I STILL do not know. But, if out of nowhere I hear that name, I will STILL respond and look around because I know

I am Joy,


because the joy of the Lord has helped me live it, and it will always be so.