The Joy That Sneaks Up on Seasoned Hearts “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (Psalm 16:11) We know happiness—the fun of family game night, the warmth of grandbabies’ hugs, the relief of a good night’s sleep. But joy? Deep, lasting joy can feel like something elusive. Something in the past. The joy of young love, of first babies, of dreams still wide open. Yet the angels didn’t ann

Peace: The Quiet That Holds Everything Together “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27) We have been the keepers of peace for decades—wiping tears at 2 a.m., smoothing over arguments at Thanksgiving, swallowing our own hurts so the holidays could stay “nice.” We learned early that if Mama isn’t okay, nobody is okay. And so we carried the weight of everyone’s c

Hope: The Light That Finds Us Where We Are “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” (Isaiah 9:2) By the time we’re over fifty, we’ve lived long enough to know that darkness isn’t always dramatic. Sometimes it’s just the slow dimming of things we once counted on: energy that used to be boundless, a parent’s voice on the phone, the shape of a marriage we thought would stay the same forever, or the