“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls.”
~ Joseph Campbell
I knew a person, a long time ago, who used to employ the phrase “that face is so sour it could curdle fresh milk” when encountering a Gloomy Gus. He always did things and said things that would not only make people think but would also make them laugh. He felt that there was enough sorrow and gloominess in the world and that we should not contribute any more to what was already there. Instead, he felt we were called to dispel the sorrow and gloom with our own brand of peace, love, and joy.
Happy, cheerful people always seem to do something to us, don’t they? They make us smile. They make us think that all is well with the world. They make us recognize the good and the bright that is all around us. I saw this on a regular occasion watching the show Dirty Jobs. Mike Rowe would go from place to place, attempting to do the filthiest jobs. Hey, “someone’s got to do them”, right?
He would learn how they performed their jobs and then he would set out to accomplish their job. The results were oftentimes very humorous. There were some times when the viewer felt like retching, the job was so filthy. And yet, Mike Rowe would be laboring away, trying to get it done.
However, did you ever notice the people teaching Mike how to do the job? Very few of them were morose individuals. They relished getting the job done, no matter how dirty it was. They came to work and accomplished their duty day in and day out and found a way to laugh through it and about it. Their job, while dirty, did not appear to be dull. They had marked it with their own personalities.
The job of a Christian might be described as dirty. Pope Francis, when he was first selected to guide the Church, reminded his clergy that they were to eschew riches and fame and, rather, “smell like the sheep” that they served. In other words, get dirty and do the work presented to us. And, do it with joy because those sheep were God’s children and we were called to serve them.
Yes, the people around us are God’s children. So are we. We are called to mingle with one another and show one another, by word and deed, that God is present and that God loves us. Sometimes the message is ignored if not outright rejected. That is up to the listener. We are called, nonetheless, to deliver the message. If we do so, God will put a joy in our heart that will help us to be effective messengers. Let God’s joy lead you.
FAITH ACTION: Ask the Lord to fill you with joy today as you attempt to do His will.