They can’t steal your Joy:

Lately, I hate to admit, I have had a bit of self-pity.  I will have one or two things that go wrong or one or two people that say something wrong, and then I can find myself impacted by these emotions.   As a teacher, I will often say that my job is not always rainbows and butterflies.  I would love to say that it is, but it is often incredibly difficult.  There are so many emotions that are involved when working with young people.  This is in all of elementary, middle, and high school.  In elementary, they are still very, very young and don’t always have a handle on their emotions.  Then in high school, which is where I work, they are going through a lot of changes, and they have a lot of hormones that accompany those emotions and changes. They may whine, complain, get angry quickly, etc.  This often gives me moments where I just don’t know how to best handle a situation.  It can be very hard and draining to range all those emotions all day.  For anyone reading this as a parent, nurse, cashier, etc, you will also completely understand what this is like.  Whenever we work with others, we are also working with their emotions and their behaviors/attitudes that are different from ours.  It is very hard to not let those emotions and their behaviors affect your own emotions.  

This brings me to a Bible verse in 1 Chronicles 16:27, “Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy are in his dwelling place.”  I had never looked at this verse too closely before, but I really enjoy it because this really showcases that joy and strength go together.  Strength by its very definition means that it is not something that is easy to come by.  It is not something that can be obtained by hardly working on it or by putting in zero time.  In order to achieve physical strength, for example, one needs to lift weights and work out on a regular basis.  You will not see growth in one workout session, similarly, you will not develop a patient joy after one day. This is something that needs to be done diligently.  Not choosing to be impacted by others’ emotions and letting those little frustrations and those complaints of others impact you on a daily basis has to be a decision.  After a lot of work, this can start to become more and more natural, but it will not be something that can just happen.  That has been a hard pill for me to swallow.  I want this to be something that comes naturally.  I want this to be something that I can just set my mind on at the beginning of the day, and it happens without any hard work on my end.  However, that is just not what this is.  

I know there are two things that I need to start doing in order to help me not be as impacted by others’ emotions, behaviors, and attitudes.  The first is the importance of listening to those around us.  When people are really angry, they are most likely really hurt.  I know the times that I am the angriest myself are the times that I have actually been hurt.  The phrase is very true when it says that “hurt people, hurt people.”  Since I do work with high and middle schoolers, I know that they are in the most hurt section of their life.  I need to remember to be the most empathetic with them as they may be the ones who need the most patience and grace.  Being willing to see them as hurt may remind me to actually care and love them, as opposed to getting angry with them.  

The second thing that I need to take into account is to have a calming presence.  This is the part that I struggle with.  It can be very easy, and I mean VERY easy to hype up a situation once it is starting to go in that direction.  This happens all the time, and we often even watch it happen on our television screens or on social media. If you ever enjoy watching a reality television show, then you know that the minute someone starts yelling, then another person yells, and a third, and maybe a fourth.  Then it can also easily be followed by swinging of arms or kicking of legs (depending on how violent and heated these particular fights get).  When a situation gets heated and heightened, it can be very, very hard to bring it down to a level that is workable.  I will say that being a teacher for three years has helped a lot, and I have definitely found moments to be more calming this past year as opposed to my first year.  Learning when to not fight a situation or to not yell has definitely been a game-changer while working with students.  However, praying for the Lord for peace in those moments is definitely the most impactful.  

The Lord is really the one in control of all these things, however,  The Lord is the one who will help you achieve the good and the growth in this area.  This can not be done by pure willpower.  The Lord wants to help us achieve this goal of having lifelong peace, compassion, and joy.  However, he wants us to achieve this in order to make himself look holy, not for us to look holy.  This is why it is more and more important that we depend on the Lord and then look to achieve that joy for a good inspiration for other believers and future followers of Christ.  Our calm, God-centered demeanor may just be the thing that sells a lot of people to the Christian lifestyle.