Daily Joy

  Day 3: Cultivate the Right Atmosphere Scripture : Philippians 4:8 (NIV) — "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. " Devotional : A few years ago, I had to take a hard look at the environment I was creating for myself. I was doing all the "right" things—reading my Bible, praying, going to church—but my atmosphere didn’t reflect what I was believing God for. My playlist didn’t sound like worship, my conversations didn’t speak life, and the people I surrounded myself with weren’t fueling my purpose. It was no wonder I felt stuck. God began to challenge me: What are you allowing to fill your space? I realized that purpose doesn’t just require clearing the room; it requires filling it with the right things. Like Jesus when He brought only the faith-filled people into Jairus’ house, I had to be i...

A Few Weeks Ago A few weeks ago, my husband and I decided to enjoy a date night at the Toyota Center. The Lakers were playing the Rockets, and anyone who knows my husband, you already know he was hyped. He’s a hardcore Lakers fan—hardcore, like “before LeBron, back in the Kobe and Shaq days” hardcore. Meanwhile, I love basketball, but I’m more of a spectator than a die-hard fan. Growing up in Illinois, I was all about MJ (because let’s face it, Michael Jordan was everything), but I haven’t had a team since then. Even though I don’t have a team, I do love a good theme, so we showed up in full Lakers gear. Purple and gold, head to toe. It was giving solidarity. It was giving fandom. And then, we walked into a sea of red. Toyota Center, home of the Houston Rockets, was packed with fans who had one mission: to let us know we didn’t belong. It was playful—comments here, side-eyes there—but after a while, you start to feel it. Like, okay, we get it. We’re the outsiders. And yet, it didn’t c...

Day 2: Surrender the Weight Scripture : Hebrews 12:1 (NIV) — "Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." Devotional : I once heard someone describe life as running a race with bags strapped to your back. Each bag represented something different—fear, shame, insecurity, and bitterness. Some were small and easy to carry, but others felt like stones. That image stuck with me because I know what it’s like to feel weighed down. If I’m honest, there have been seasons when I held onto things I knew God was asking me to release. A grudge I couldn’t let go of. The pressure to meet everyone’s expectations. The guilt of mistakes I couldn’t forgive myself for. I told myself I needed to carry these things, but deep down, I knew they were slowing me down. God doesn’t call us to run weighed down. He calls us to run free. The moment I decided to surrender those weights to Him, something shifted....

  Day 1: Identify the Noise Scripture : Mark 5:40 (NIV) — "But they laughed at him. After he put them all out, he took the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with him and went in where the child was." Devotional : When Jesus arrived to heal Jairus' daughter, He stepped into a room filled with people who laughed at Him. They didn’t just doubt His power—they mocked it. But Jesus didn’t waste His breath trying to explain Himself. He didn’t stop to convince them why their laughter was misplaced. Instead, He cleared the room. Because Jesus knew one thing for certain: the miracle couldn’t happen in that kind of atmosphere. Every year, I take a moment to clear my own space. It’s not a New Year’s resolution or a trendy detox—it’s a spiritual reset. I log off social media, stop scrolling, and start searching for God. I ask myself, “What am I holding onto that’s holding me back? What’s distracting me from the plan God has for me?” And then I start letting go. Thi...

I don’t know about you, but there’s something about the start of a new season that feels heavy with possibility. It’s like God is holding the blueprint to the next chapter of your life, waiting for you to make space for Him to move. But here’s the truth: stepping into what’s next often requires clearing out what’s now. I’ve learned this lesson the hard way. For years, I carried the weight of old habits and limiting beliefs, hoping God would show up and work miracles in a space that was already overcrowded. I prayed for clarity while clinging to distractions, asking God to bless me while still holding on to what He told me to release. One day, I found myself crying out to God, frustrated by the lack of a breakthrough, and I felt Him gently whisper: Make room for Me. It wasn’t loud or dramatic, but it was enough to stop me in my tracks. That whisper made me realize I’d been asking God to fill a space that was already too full. I started to do the hard work of clearing the room—not just ...

  Day 5: The Promise Fulfilled Scripture: Habakkuk 2:3 (NKJV) "For the vision is yet for an appointed time; but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry." Devotional: There’s something powerful about the word “appointed.” It’s not vague or undefined. It speaks to intention, to a moment already marked on God’s calendar. The promise God has spoken over your life isn’t up in the air—it has an appointed time. And though the waiting feels like forever, the truth is, it’s never indefinite. God’s promises come right on time—every single time. Let’s talk about the Israelites at Jericho. God had already promised them victory, but the process didn’t make sense. Can you imagine walking around a massive wall, day after day, seeing no cracks, no signs of progress? Seven days of waiting. Seven days of wondering, “Is this even working?” They had the promise, but they also had to trust the process. Here’s t...

  Day 4: The Beauty in God’s Timing Scripture: Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NKJV) "He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end." Devotional: God’s timing is a mystery. Sometimes, it feels like you’re standing still while the world moves forward, or like the answer to your prayers is always just out of reach. If you’re anything like me, waiting can leave you with questions. Why not now? Why the delay? I’ve wrestled with these questions as I’ve waited for the blessing of a child. Each month felt like another delay, another unanswered prayer. It’s in those quiet, tear-filled moments that God gently reminds me, “I’m still working. My timing is perfect.” He’s taught me that what feels like a delay isn’t a denial. It’s a part of the process, a brushstroke in the masterpiece He’s creating. Think about Sarah and Abraham. God promised them a child, but the years stretched o...

 Day 3: Strength in Stillness Scripture: Isaiah 40:31 (NKJV) "But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." Devotional: As a kid, I struggled with being still. I remember my mom telling me, "Sit down somewhere and be still!" It felt like the hardest thing in the world because, as a child, stillness seemed like the opposite of what life was supposed to be. Life was about movement, doing, running, jumping—not sitting still. Funny how that same tension follows us into adulthood. Waiting on God often feels like that impossible stillness we resisted as kids. We think waiting means we’re stuck or losing time, but in God’s kingdom, waiting is where strength is born. Think about the Israelites at the Red Sea. Pharaoh’s army was behind them, the water stretched endlessly in front of them, and there was nowhere to go. In the face of panic, Moses told them...

 Day 2: The Weight of the Wait Scripture: Matthew 11:28-30 (NKJV) "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." Devotional: There’s a unique kind of heaviness that comes with waiting. It’s not the kind of weight you can put down or walk away from—it’s an invisible burden that follows you everywhere. It’s the longing for a prayer to be answered, the ache for a promise to be fulfilled, and the heaviness of carrying hope when the evidence around you says otherwise. I think of Hannah in the Bible, a woman whose waiting was defined by both hope and heartbreak. Year after year, she went to the temple, pouring her heart out to God for the child she longed for. The weight of waiting was so heavy that even her prayers came out like sobs. But what I love about Hannah’s story is that she didn’t t...

  Day 1: Waiting with Purpose Scripture: Genesis 1:1-3 (NIV) "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light." Devotional: There’s something profound about those opening words of the Bible. Before anything existed—before the beauty, the life, the purpose—there was a waiting. God’s Spirit hovered over the waters, moving but not rushing. He wasn’t in a hurry to create. Instead, He prepared. He shaped the chaos into order, brought light into darkness, and set the stage for His masterpiece. Friend, if creation itself began with a pause, why do we resist the pauses in our lives? Waiting feels like nothingness, doesn’t it? Like the formless void of Genesis. But just like in the beginning, God is hovering over your life. He’s moving in the unseen, preparing spaces, aligning opportunities...

Waiting is hard. It tests your patience, stretches your faith, and forces you to confront the parts of yourself that would rather take control than trust the process. It can feel like you’re standing in the middle of a storm, holding onto a promise that seems too far away, wondering if God even hears you. But let me remind you of something: the wait isn’t punishment. It’s preparation. I know what it’s like to carry the weight of waiting. There have been seasons in my life where the waiting felt unbearable. I’ve waited for healing, for breakthrough, for dreams to come to pass. I’ve wrestled with the questions: “Why not now?” and “How much longer, Lord?” But one thing I’ve learned—and I’m still learning—is that the wait isn’t meant to break us. It’s meant to build us. Waiting forces us to let go of our timelines and lean into God’s timing. And let me tell you, His timing is always better. It’s hard to see when you’re in the thick of it, but God is not withholding from you—He’s working fo...

  Scripture: "In Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore." — Psalm 16:11 Devotional: Joy and peace—two things we all crave, right? But if we’re honest, how often do we look for them in the wrong places? I know I’ve been guilty of chasing after joy in accomplishments, approval, or the next big plan. And peace? I’ve tried to find it by checking every box on my to-do list, hoping that maybe, once everything is done, I’ll finally feel at ease. But here’s the truth I’ve come to realize: The world can’t give you what only Jesus can. In His presence, there’s fullness of joy—not a temporary happiness that fades when circumstances change, but a joy that fills every corner of your heart. And His peace? It’s not the kind you have to hustle for. It’s the kind that wraps around you like a warm blanket on a cold day, quieting the chaos in your mind. Today, I want to invite you to unplug from the noise. That might mean turning off your phone, st...

  Scripture: "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." — Matthew 6:33 Devotional: Have you ever had one of those days where you’re running on fumes? The kind where you’ve said “yes” to everything and everyone, leaving nothing left for yourself? I’ve been there more times than I’d like to admit—serving, working, striving—thinking that if I just do enough, I’ll feel fulfilled. But let me tell you something I’ve learned: Fulfillment doesn’t come from doing. It comes from being. When I think about Matthew 6:33, I’m reminded of the simplicity of Jesus’ words: Seek first the kingdom of God. That’s it. He didn’t say, “Seek success first” or “Seek approval first.” He didn’t even say, “Seek doing more first.” Just, “Seek first the kingdom.” Mary understood this. While Martha was busy doing good things—things that seemed important—Mary chose the better thing. She chose to sit with Jesus, prioritize Him, and trust that everyt...

Scripture: "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." — Matthew 11:28-29 Devotional: Can we talk about how hard it is to just be still ? I don’t mean sitting in front of the TV with a blanket (although that’s a vibe). I mean that deep, soul-level stillness—the kind where you’re not trying to figure everything out, fix everything, or serve everything away. I’ve been there—drowning in busyness. Between working on my projects, making time for my husband, and battling the endless loop of “what ifs” and “whens” in my mind, I’ve caught myself believing that if I just do more, serve more, or try harder, then maybe—just maybe—I’ll feel at peace. But here’s the truth: You can’t serve your way out of anxiousness. You can’t outwork worry. And you can’t outrun the whispers of doubt by trying to do all the things. Then I think about Luke 10:...