Fight Back with Joy: Celebrate More. Regret Less. Stare Down Your Greatest Fears.- Margaret Feinberg (Click on the link to watch a video)
Fight Back With Joy
I
found myself laughing and crying my way through Margaret Feinberg’s
newest book, Fight Back with Joy. One of the things that I appreciate
the most about Margaret is how she opens up about her painful journey
through cancer. With her honesty it allows each of us as the reader to
be able to be honest with ourselves. Too often when we walk into a path
that is filled with darkness and loss, we sometimes can get lost within
the depths of those powerful emotions of sadness and hopelessness. What
Margaret so beautifully describes in this book is how there is always
hope, and that we can choose joy as our greatest weapon against the
darkness.
At the very beginning Margaret addresses the common
misconception about joy that I think most of us have believed. She
states, “For most of my life, I had thought of joy as a natural
byproduct of a life well lived. A complimentary add-on, a tacked-on
freebie.” I, too thought the same thing as Margaret. Although, I have
had moments in the past 5 years where I slowly but surely have had
different hints of what joy was really supposed to be, I have not fully
grasped the truth about joy until my Mom passed away. Sometimes, just
like with Margaret’s journey fighting cancer or like a life without my
Mom, we find that joy is right there for us to take up for ourselves
amidst the darkness, amidst the pain and sorrow. It is always our
choice.
You must read this book to understand Margaret’s
journey searching for joy is often much like our own. She tried a “yes
experiment”, which failed. Each of us search for more in life. We want
to be happy. We want fulfillment in life. We want things to go as we
plan them. I am in full agreement with her when she says, “Many people
live joyless lives because they don’t understand what joy is, what joy
does, how to discover joy, and what to do with it once they find it.” I
have lived joyless not because I did not want joy but because I did not
understand what it was. I thought that joy meant always feeling happy
and having my life circumstances just right.
“Practicing
defiant joy is the declaration that the darkness does not and will not
win. When we fight back with joy, we embrace a reality that is more real
than what we’re enduring and we awaken to the deepest reality of our
identity as beloved, joyful children of God.” Joy is a choice. It is as
basic as that. As Margaret so beautifully points out, “we are created
for joy”, and “we are destined for joy.” Jesus made it possible for us
to have joy. It is definitely a part of our heritage.
As
I live and let go, and choose Jesus, I realize just how much joy is a
choice for us. Too often people will play a blame game about their
lives. Too often we can remain angry. Too often we think that our
bitterness is because of how bad life has treated us. The reality is, is
that our life is a gift. God extends grace to us everyday. He chooses
to love us and pursue us even when we choose to ignore him. I can tell
you from experience that when we choose Him, there is no end to the
things that he wants to show us. Joy is one of those great gifts. It is a
fruit of the Spirit and as such, if we choose Jesus, it should be an
action in our daily lives.
When you choose joy, you will find
that life is great even amidst the pain, the sorrow, and the darkness.
Joy is powerful. Will you Fight Back With Joy? Margaret Feinberg has
written an exceptional study on joy by being very honest and raw about
her darkest journey so far. Through her testimony, we see how "life's
thorniest paths can lead to great joy."
To purchase the book today please follow this link:
http://mar.cta.gs/0bi
