I will be the first to admit that I greatly enjoy new pop covers of traditional Christmas songs, and some of you may question my sanity and musical taste for saying this. One of my favorite Christmas covers is “Joy to the World” sung by Pentatonix. They keep the traditional lyrics of this age-old Christmas favorite but give it a fresh spin. Recently, after listening to this song on repeat, I looked past the beautiful harmonies of the Pentatonix crew and listened to the words of this song (and truthfully continued listening to this song by different artists).

Joy.  Growing up, I was always told that joy is different than happiness. I had been told that happiness is fleeting and dependent on external circumstances while joy is an internal state that we can experience in any circumstance. To put it simply, happiness is what you experience when life is bliss and there is lots of laughter, while joy remains after the laughter stops. Joy can be experienced amid turmoil. Joy is a choice that sustains our soul in seasons of heartache, injustice, and sorrow. (Wow, have I been wrestling with and chewing on that in 2020 and it makes reflect on the beginning of the book of James in the Bible.)

James 1:2-4, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything”.

Here is the declaration to choose to experience joy, despite the trials you are experiencing. It provides reassurance that there is a reason for this season and that if you “lean into it” you can better yourself and see the blessings in the time. Again, bringing this back to 2020, I and many of you have probably not been happy this year. I have personally been sad, confused, and lonely, but along with those feelings I have tried to remain joyful in the way that pastor Rick Warren stated, “Joy is the unsettled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright and the determined choice to praise God in every situation.”

Back to the song, “Joy to the World”. This song is about praising and celebrating the birth of Jesus. But, word on the street is that in the year that Jesus was born, which many scholars believe was around 4 B.C., the world was in a turmoil of its own. According to Douglas Oakman, Jesus was born into a third-world society context, one where 90% of the citizens were considered peasants, including Jesus’ early parents Mary and Joseph, and people were under a politically oppressive, dictatorship society. The ruler of the time was King Herod, who liked to call himself Herod the Great.  He was a brutal ruler for many, and when Herod heard about the birth of Jesus, he ordered that Jesus be killed because he thought that Jesus would destroy his throne and power. “Joy to the World” was written based on Psalm 98 in the Bible. At the time of Jesus’ birth and many years after, it is proclaiming joy to the world and declaring that man, heaven, and nature sing. It emphasizes praise and joy, even in a time of turmoil, whether that be in the year of Jesus’ birth, 2020, or other years or situations that are difficult and less than desirable.

As I mentioned early, Joy is a choice, we have to actively choose joy and focus our mind on it in in our daily life. I have been able to be joyful this year and in this Christmas season because of the promises of Hope, Peace, and Love, from Jesus and even family and friends. We will get through this time and we can experience happiness again, but we can also rest in the joy of this time, trusting the blessings that it is bringing and will bring to us presently and in the future.