If I were to ask you what brings you joy in your life, then how would you respond? Would it be your home or car? Would it be that job promotion? Would it be all of the money that you have in the bank? Would it be that big screen tv? Would it be that new purse or pair of shoes? Would it be…and the list goes on and on.

Most of the time we think all of our stuff will bring us joy, but it doesn’t. It’s so fleeting. That home and car then become a burden to keep up and pay for. That job promotion turns into more hours that you are required to work and spend away from your family. All of that money in the bank is just a false sense of security. That new purse or pair of shoes soon become out of style, so you’re ready to buy more. The stuff is nice for a short season, but it doesn’t offer true joy.

After doing some much needed reflection in my life, God has brought me to a place where I am beginning to find joy in the simple things. For so much of my life, I have been too busy to think about or even notice these things. It’s only been in my season of rest that God has chosen to reveal this beautiful truth to me. Only when I have gotten to this place in my life has God begun to heal and restore me through the simplicity of my life. God has put me back together again just by giving Him the space to do it. I never would have dreamed that I would have found exactly what I was looking for in the place that God has me.

So with this being the case, I want to share some of these simple things that God has brought into my life that bring me joy.

• Flowers out in the yard
• Hearing the birds singing
• Looking at clouds
• Sitting on the front porch eating a popsicle and watching the cars pass by
• Going for a walk with a friend
• Telling funny stories and laughing so hard that you cry
• Singing a song
• Talking to a friend
• Watching a butterfly
• Listening to the rain
• Going for a long drive with a friend just because
• Receiving a card, text, or call from someone at just the time that you needed the encouragement
• Sitting around the dinner table with friends and family
• Laying down to go to sleep at night and realizing just how much Abba Father loves you
• Watching lightning bugs just as it begins to get dark outside
• Taking a nap

Each day is a gift, and God wants you to enjoy it. Life might not be all that you want it to be right now, but then it all changes when you stop and realize just how blessed you are in those things that money can’t buy. Those things, my friend, are what bring true joy. So get out there and enjoy all of the little things in your life that really aren’t that little. You soon realize that they are the big things. Never take anything in your life for granted because it can change at a moment’s notice.

So make your list and…watch God surprise you! He’s pretty good at that!