Great Things
The Lord has done great things for us and we are filled with joy.
Psalm 126:3
This is such a brief verse, yet it arrested my attention when I read it recently. The Lord has done great things for us. Great things.
As I reflected on this verse, I began to consider all the great things God has done for me in my 50 years of walking with Him. The list certainly could go on and on and on. But here’s a sampling:
Ambushing me with salvation when I wasn’t even looking for it.
The amazing way my parents came to faith while in their 50’s.
The wonderful gift of Gwen and 43 years of marriage.
Three incredible kids and the close family we enjoy.
A mind-boggling run of 35 years at Fellowship.
Special friends who have enriched my life.
Being a cancer survivor.
To be sure, when we count our blessings and, as the old song suggests, name them one by one, it will amaze us what the Lord has done.
Yet, when we lean into those great things and access our memories of them, something else occurs. Our capacity for joy increases.
Building Joy Through Appreciation Memories
In his book Building Bounce, Dr. Marcus Warner offers this observation regarding that. “Staying in a state of appreciation for five minutes or longer two or more times each day is an important habit for growing the joy center of your brain.”
In fact, he goes on to say that medical research has discovered that you can actually rewire your brain toward a more joyful default when you regularly engage in gratitude and appreciation.
Medical research has discovered that you can actually rewire your brain toward a more joyful default when you regularly engage in gratitude and appreciation.
The key isn’t that you come up with a comprehensive list, though there is some benefit in that. It’s that you take one of those “great things,” connect it to a specific memory, and linger in it.
For example, when I think about the moment of my salvation, I remember the time of year - a June evening in 1971. I remember kneeling on a shag carpet in a house on Calhoun Street. I remember the overwhelming emotion as I prayed to receive Christ and His forgiveness.
I remember rising to my feet, feeling as if a heavy weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I remember going out into the summer night and thinking the stars seemed brighter and the air smelled cleaner. I remember going home and eating an orange and observing that it was the sweetest orange I’d ever tasted.
And I remember sharing all that with my brother. He knelt next to me and received Christ as his Lord that very same night.
As I linger on memories of not only the events of that night, but the things I could sense (see, smell, taste, and touch), the emotions I felt, and the people I was with, I can’t help but smile. I feel a deep gratitude and joy. And I feel a closeness to God.
“The Lord has done great things for us and we are filled with joy.”
The psalmist may not have understood brain science, but he was dead on with the linkage between pondering the great things God has done and being joyful.
A Little Joy Experiment
I’m convinced that you can experience that benefit too. So, how about engaging in a little experiment to test that hypothesis.
Ask the Lord to bring to mind some of the “great things” He has done for you. Make a list.
Ask Him to bring to mind a specific memory of one of those things on your list. Linger in that memory, focusing on the sights, sounds, senses, people and emotions. Ask the Lord to make you aware of His presence in that memory.
Stay in that place of appreciation for 5 minutes. This can be hard to do at first, so if you struggle to stay in a state of appreciation that long, go back to your list and pick another “great thing” and engage in the same process. Do this as many times as you need to. The point is to “stretch your capacity” for joy.
Take a 5-minute “appreciation vacation” 2-3 times a day for a week. Set an alarm on your phone to remind you to take a gratitude break. See if you don’t find your joy growing and your complaint shrinking.
This holiday season will be unlike any we’ve ever known. But it can be a season of joy if we will set our hearts and minds on the great things the Lord has done for us.
This holiday season will be unlike any we’ve ever known. But it can be a season of joy if we will set our hearts and minds on the great things the Lord has done for us.
PRAYER
Lord, I confess that all too often I take for granted all the great things You have done for me. As a result, I often miss the joy you want me to know. May this holiday season be filled with the gifts of joy and peace as I remember with gratitude Your amazing blessings.
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