Reflecting Joy

 

Good morning!

 Our church has a Bible study every Thursday morning.  There are quite a few people who gather for the study…most are retired.  The study is led by one of our members…a retired minister.  Doug is his name.  On the days of the study, Doug comes in early and sets up his powerpoint and streaming for those who cannot be here in person.  He was in the class room today doing just that when I went in the room and walked past him, greeting him as I went.

I paused for a moment as I greeted him, and we exchanged the usual pleasantries.  He then asked me how I was doing in a way that told me he wanted a real answer rather than the usual “fine.”  I told him I was doing OK and that things were going well, but I was a little tired due to long days the past couple of days.

He then told me that I didn’t have any “spring” to my step, which was why he asked.

I jokingly retorted that I haven’t had any “spring” to my step for many years and went on my way.

However, later on I thought about our short conversation.  Did Doug really spot something in my demeanor that suggested to him that I was perhaps less than “fine?”  Am I really “doing OK?”  And what about that “spring” in my step that has been missing for some time now?  Do I possibly need to work on changing my presentation to others?

I really am doing OK today.  I’m looking forward to tomorrow and the weekend, but really, I’m doing OK today.  Oh, I have the usual aches and pains of older age, but they are minimal today, and in any event are manageable if they should flare up.  I’m not a  happy-go-lucky, outgoing, gregarious person by nature, and I normally have something on my mind that I’m trying to think through or resolve.  Maybe that shows in my demeanor and how I present myself to others.

Or maybe I’m just overthinking this.

Regardless, I received a reminder this morning that other people do see us in certain ways, and some of those people care enough to ask in a more serious way if all is OK.  And I was reminded that my presentation…how I look to others…is important.  Do they see someone who is constantly in an apparently beat-down, tired, and cranky mood?  Or do they see someone who is thankful for the gift of life and the ability to be and do as much as is possible?  In simpler terms, do I go around with a half-empty glass or a half-full glass?

I don’t know that I need a spring in my step…I don’t know if I’ve ever had a spring.  But perhaps I do need to show my thankful and grateful heart just a little more.  I can be more intentional in greeting others with a smile and more hearty “hello.”  I can walk in a way that doesn’t make it seem like I’m carrying a 50 pound burden all the time.  I can be more careful in the things I say, keeping to myself things that may be, or appear to be negative.

When I do these things…when I smile a little more, walk a little more upright, and be more circumspect as well as encouraging and positive in my speech, I’m not being fake.  I’m choosing to present a side of me that is inherent within, but doesn’t often come out.  I’m choosing to make the lives of others a little better for having come into my sphere of influence.  I’m choosing to let goodness and kindness show up in my life.

As a Christian, I have been given the most marvelous and unfathomable of gifts…the gifts of freedom, life, and forgiveness.  I need to let my body know that, and as a result reflect the joy of those gifts.

Blessings…