Finding Joy on Life’s Journey!

“The Joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives.” Russell M. Nelson

Finding joy right now may be a challenge with all that is going on around us. I found great wisdom and hope in “The Book of Joy. Lasting Happiness in a Changing World” by the Dalai Lama, the Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and their writer, Douglas Abrams. One of my Seeds of Faith book group members suggested it and I am so grateful she did. The groups’ discussions praised the pearls of wisdom, the history of the two men, and their inspiration for being joyful when both could be the opposite. I underlined meaningful ideas and thoughts and saw I almost marked every page!

The book brings together a Christian, a Buddhist, and a Jew. It almost sounds like the start of a joke. I’ve learned much about the Jewish and Muslim faiths from the Daughters of Abraham group and was curious to learn more about Buddhism. I long remembered the two men’s stories, their views, and interactions about commonalities and their differences. As a Christian reading it, I found we have much in common about loving our neighbor.

Both famous spiritual men had their share of horrendous challenges, violent oppression, and genocide, and yet they exude joy. The book explores their thoughts on how to get and keep joy in our lives.

“We are fragile creatures, and it is from this weakness, not despite it, that we discover the possibility of true joy.” Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

“The more we heal our own pain, the more we can turn to the pain of others. The more we turn toward others, the more joy we experience, and the more joy we experience, the more joy we bring to others.” Dalai Lama.

“Joy is contagious, as is love, compassion and generosity. We cannot bring peace if we do not have inner peace.” Douglas Abrams.

The book begins with the nature of joy, moving on to the obstacles, and ending with the positive qualities of joy which they formulated as “The Eight Pillars of Joy.” Below is my synopsis of the eight pillars:

Perspective: The ability to reframe our situation more positively creating a compassionate perspective.

Gratitude: The ability to experience gratitude in every situation.

Humility: The Dalai Lama states he is only one of 7 billion people. Learn to understand how we depend on others and give them respect.

Humor: Humor will always help in finding joy. Laughing at our own mistakes will lighten our heavy loads.

Acceptance: By accepting what is reality, we can move forward to joy.

Forgiveness: Forgiveness heals our souls; we may not forget what happened, but we choose forgiveness to ward off hatred and easing the weight we carry.

Compassion: Despite all the bad news circling around us, by caring and understanding others, we can give back joy in our service in our healing.

Generosity: It is in giving that we will find joy. When we are feeling our own pain, helping others will be a gift to ourselves.

It is no wonder that this book has a five-star review. It is a book that you can read again and again. If you are feeling overwhelmed with the news and what you can do to help our world heal, this book will be a balm for your soul and inspiration for finding joy in life.

The book highlights the importance of sharing our Light with each other. Our light is contagious and brings not only joy to others, but to ourselves. So let your light so shine!

May it be so.

Here is the link to buy this excellent book: