Joy to the world

"Joy is strength"
-Mother Teresa

I almost just looked past this quote today... but when I looked again, it really made me think. It is seemingly so simple. Joy is strength. But that is such an interesting thought. It is not easy to be joyful all the time. It takes strength. There are so many hardships, worries, fears in this world, that it is easy to let our joy be extinguished by these externalities. It is only a truly strong person who can look past all of that, and find true joy. Joy is not a temporary feeling of happiness because you had a good day or a good experience... rather I think it is something more. I read something recently that said we can be joyful even in the darkest of times... even as there are tears streaming down our faith, there can be joy in that moment. Because joy is the deep-down, never-fleeing sense that God is always with us, and he has saved us. Joy is the belief that everything will be all right in the end. Joy is the understanding that God is praying for us, even when we cannot pray ourselves. And that kind of joy takes strength.