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We are just about ready to head out on vacation. This is by far one of my wife’s happiest times of year. A time to get away from the endless hours spent staring at a computer and to enjoy time spent on the road with her family and eventually, in the sand looking out over calming blue water. She loves water!
Switching gears a bit, I watched the Stanley Cup Finals conclude the other night and Alex Pietrangelo and Ivan Barbashev raise the Cup over their heads, this time with the Vegas Golden Knights. It took me back to 2019, when they raised that same Cup for the Blues, and how happy I was. This is something I’d waited for my whole life, and it unexpectedly became a reality for the Blues a few years back.
I could go on about different times in my life or members of my family’s lives that were monumentally happy times. During these times we are often taking tons of photos so as my mother-in-law would say, “you’re making memories.” She is oh, so right; those happy moments need recorded, because all in all they fade away. Vacation ends and my wife goes back to work. 2019 is in the rearview mirror and the Blues even missed the playoffs this year. The simple fact is, happiness is fleeting.
Some of you are reading this thinking, “Well thanks for the downer, Noah.” I’m not writing this to bring you down; I’m writing this to tell you that Bobby McFerrin had it wrong. He sang a song in the late ’80s titled, Don’t Worry Be Happy. Great premise: forget your problems and be happy. The problem is, the problems don’t go away. So when happiness fades, what are you left with?
Recently the Oklahoma Sooners’ softball team won the National Championship, their third in a row. Every year I am vested in the Women’s College World Series as softball is the sport I have coached for 25 years and a sport that I love. I was surprised as I watched a press conference in which three major Sooners players, including their team captain, explained why joy was more important than happiness.
In fact, that team captain, Grace Lyons, said this: “Well, the only way that you can have a joy that doesn’t fade away is from the Lord. And any other type of joy is actually happiness that comes from circumstances and outcomes. I think Coach has said this before, but joy from the Lord is really the only thing that can keep you motivated, just in a good mindset, no matter the outcomes. Thankfully, we’ve had a lot of success this year. But if it was the other way around, joy from the Lord is the only thing that can keep you embracing those memories, moments, friendships, and all that.“
Her teammates echoed her response, with Jayda Coleman explaining how although she was happy they won a National Championship when she was a freshman, she didn’t have joy until she found Jesus. Alyssa Brito finished off the press conference explaining how you can’t find fulfillment in an outcome, in a win or loss…fulfillment comes from turning to Jesus and changing your whole outlook on life. Of course they also said they’ve worked their tails off to win the whole thing and that’s the plan, but they are not defined by winning or losing because they have their joy cemented in Christ.
Wow – 19-, 20-, 21-year old athletes on a mega stage not afraid to tell the world that happiness is but a moment, but joy, a deep-rooted fulfillment of your innermost soul, comes from the Lord. As I saw this press conference and read the words in several articles, I was taken aback. Not because I do not have that joy in the Lord – I do – but how often do I stifle His joy? How often do I fill myself with so much worldly crud that I find myself looking for that next bit of happiness because I’ve choked out the joy that is right there in me?
Another thing that came from the Sooners’ press conference was their team motto of “eyes up.” If you watched any games, you may have seen one of the girls get a good hit, touch just underneath their eyes, and then point to the sky. This is a reminder to keep your eyes on the Lord as it is for His glory, and with Him, you can deal with any outcome. As Nehemiah said in his Old Testament book, “The joy of the Lord is my strength.”
I think “eyes up” is a motto I need to adopt for myself. It’s a creed I need to pass on to my family and anyone else who wants joy over happiness. If joy is being stifled in my life, it is because I’m not living with my eyes up. I’m the one looking anywhere but up, burying the joy that should flow through me like spring water, sweet and refreshing.
So as summer really gets going and as my family and I head out on the road to make some memories, I’m going to remember to keep my eyes up. I’m going to pass this on to my family and make it our family mantra. We may not hit homers and touch below our eyes and then point to the heavens, but we can remember that no matter what happens, if our eyes are pointed to Jesus, His joy will permeate through us.
I hope even through the craziness of summer, you will join me in working on keeping ourselves pointed to Jesus and experiencing that everlasting joy only He can provide. Until next month, make some memories, but keep your eyes up.
