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Feed Joy


I rarely make phone calls anymore.

So last week when I was stirred to call a girlfriend, I obeyed my nudge and called.

It was short and sweet and in the first 3 minutes she blurted out in sobs, "I don't feel joy anymore!"

Oh girl. How many times have I blurted out the exact same words!

I was able to return her cries with some wisdom I had JUST read that morning from one of my long-time favorite teachers, Beth Moore.

We're not meant to live stuck. Bored. Uninspired. Joyless.

We're called to abound, "more and more."

Human emotions have an inherent propensity to grow. 
We can hate more and more or we can love more and more.
Knowing the propensity of things to grow, which way do I want to go?
"More and more" one direction will force its antithesis into "less and less."
We get to decide which we want to feed and which we want to starve.

I just returned from four joyful days with my two younger children in New York City.

And I mean JOY FUL. Like every single second. Like there is nothing that makes me happier in the whole wide world than being around these people.

Pre-show brunch at Blue Dog Kitchen Bar, NY
Thanks to the magic of that city, the excitement of Broadway cancellation lines, and the added bonus of Luke now living a 36-minute train ride away, this trip was truly special. (Johnny, you must join us next trip.)

Hello Dolly cancellation line. Yes, we got in! Front row & Bette touched my hand!

I sat on my bed this morning and cried, thanking God for the love I feel for them... and for the gift of being a mother.

For the opportunity to hold Nicole's throw-up pan at 2am in a White Plains, NY hospital.

For grocery shopping, cooking (at least trying to), and the joy of witnessing my son fall in love with Broadway the way his sister and I have.

Our Elphaba was AWESOME! 

Then I sat on my bed and cried even more, thinking my love for them doesn't even compare to how much God loves us. (And how grateful I am to have known this fact my whole life. Thank you, mom and Grandma Motz.)

The threats of nuclear war from North Korea. Our internal political climate. 24-7 news coverage. It all sparks and enflames so much fear these days.

If something is going to grow, I want to feed the love--and starve the fear.

I want to feed joy.

One of the reasons I got into television in the first place was the to use the platform as a way to spread good in the world...and to be a "companion" to people (transplants, new moms, elderly) who might be watching tv alone at home.

Since news is news and that's my job, I can at least spread joy by writing about it, right?

Feed it. And it will grow.




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