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30. The Light of Joy - Friday Evening · Family Prayer Podcast

• 0:00
  Good evening, Grace Harbor - it’s Dan.
• 0:03
  I hope you had a great Friday that capped off a joyful week.
• 0:07
  I want to first say that I’m so proud of you
• 0:10
  for hanging in there with me this morning
• 0:12
  as we talked about how sometimes people can be sad around Christmas.
• 0:15
  It’s good to talk about hard things.
• 0:18
  Now, I know you all are already really good at loving your friends.
• 0:23
  You give hugs or high fives when you see each other at school.
• 0:27
  You have fun playing together.
• 0:29
  And, when you see that one of your friends isn’t feeling great
• 0:32
  or is bummed out, you know how to make them feel better.
• 0:35
  You grown-ups do too.
• 0:37
  This is especially important around Christmas time,
• 0:40
  so thank you for being a great friend!
• 0:43
  Now, I have a question.
• 0:46
  Why do you think our friendship can help
• 0:48
  someone feel better when they’re sad or going through a tough time?
• 0:53
  I mean, none of us can time
• 0:54
  travel to the past and stop the sad thing from happening.
• 0:58
  We can’t wave a magic wand and give them everything they’ve always wanted.
• 1:03
  We might be able
• 1:04
  to give them a small gift, but most often what we give them is a hug
• 1:08
  or kind words or just telling them that you’re there for them.
• 1:12
  Why is this helpful?
• 1:15
  Because they know they aren’t alone.
• 1:19
  One of the things we all learn as we grow up is that hard
• 1:23
  things get easier when we don’t have to go through them alone.
• 1:27
  In fact, there are stories in the Bible where people feel sad,
• 1:31
  or mad, or scared—or they feel all of those things!
• 1:35
  And yet, because they know that God is with them,
• 1:39
  they can also experience joy.
• 1:42
  And that joy becomes like a bright star shining in the night.
• 1:47
  Have you ever gone outside while it’s dark?
• 1:49
  If there are no moon or stars because of clouds, it feels *really* dark.
• 1:54
  Like you might trip over something or bump into something you can’t see.
• 1:58
  But if the moon and stars are out - especially if it’s a full moon
• 2:02
  - it’s still dark but it actually feels kind of bright!
• 2:07
  You can see pretty well what’s around you, and you can take your next steps safely.
• 2:12
  That’s what the joy of our friendship
• 2:15
  and God’s love does when times are tough.
• 2:18
  We can’t make the darkness go completely away,
• 2:21
  but we can be a light that helps them find their way.
• 2:25
  Ok, as we do each Friday evening, let’s settle in and reflect on our week.
• 2:31
  I’m going to lead you through three reflection questions,
• 2:34
  and if it’s not too late, I encourage you to take your time.
• 2:37
  Plan on pausing the podcast, and if something someone shares
• 2:41
  leads to more questions or a deeper discussion, feel free to keep talking.
• 2:46
  I’ll be here when you get back.
• 2:48
  And if it’s getting late,
• 2:49
  you could always make a note and pick the conversation back up this weekend.
• 2:54
  As you think back over this
• 2:55
  week—the things you did, the places you went,
• 3:00
  the people you saw—what
• 3:02
  was something that brought you joy this week?
• 3:06
  For me, it was seeing the community supporting one another
• 3:09
  at the Christmas Market yesterday.
• 3:11
  How about you?
• 3:42
  This one might be a little harder,
• 3:44
  but I want you to at least think about it.
• 3:47
  We talked a couple times this week about choosing joy.
• 3:51
  We might be feeling negative emotions, but we chose to instead
• 3:54
  focus on what might bring us joy.
• 3:58
  Was there a time you did that this week?
• 4:00
  For me, it was for sure when I took that tumble downtown, and instead
• 4:05
  of staying mad and embarrassed, I ended up laughing with my neighbors.
• 4:09
  Can you think of an example from this week?
• 4:41
  Ok, last question.
• 4:44
  Who is someone you want to share joy with as Christmas gets closer?
• 4:49
  For me, it’s definitely my family.
• 4:52
  This is such a special time of year, and with school out,
• 4:55
  we have the chance to do some fun things we don’t normally get to do.
• 4:59
  Can you think of anyone?
• 5:30
  Now, as a reminder,
• 5:32
  the podcast will be off over the weekend, but I’ll be back on Monday morning.
• 5:36
  We’ll launch into the final week of Advent with the theme of love.
• 5:40
  And of course, next week we’ll get to celebrate Christmas together!
• 5:44
  Ok, let’s pray.
• 5:47
  “Dear God, we thank you for all the things that give us joy
• 5:51
  and for the ways we can be a source of joy for others.
• 5:55
  May our joy shine bright for all who need it.
• 5:58
  Watch over us this weekend as we rest and play.
• 6:02
  Amen.” Alright, Grace Harbor!
• 6:04
  Have a great weekend, and I’ll talk to you next week!