Where do you go looking for joy? In this heartfelt devotional, Whitney Hopler shares a personal story of travel disappointment that led to a powerful revelation: true joy isn’t found in plans or places—it’s found in God’s presence. Based on Psalm 16:11, this episode dives into how joy differs from happiness and why the world can never offer the kind of lasting joy our souls crave.

💡 Key Takeaways:

• Happiness fades. Joy is rooted in relationship, not circumstance.

• Psalm 16:11 reveals three truths: God guides your path, His presence fills you with joy, and His pleasures last forever.

• When everything else disappoints, God remains the source of deep, soul-anchoring joy.

Join The Conversation:
What’s one place you’ve looked for joy that didn’t deliver? How might your week change if you prioritized simply being in God’s presence? Share your reflections and tag @LifeaudioNetwork with #FindingJoy

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Full Transcript Below:

Where to Find Joy

By: Whitney Hopler

“You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” – Psalm 16:11, NIV 

I love to travel, and it’s a blessing whenever I have an opportunity to take a new trip. But I’ll always remember the time when I discovered that I couldn’t count on finding joy from a trip. I’d planned lots of fun activities for my family in Amsterdam that didn’t work out. For many months, I’d imagined us enjoying those activities together, only to have some of them fall through. We couldn’t even enjoy the activity we had looked forward to the most – riding bikes together along Amsterdam’s famous canals – because we hadn’t made advance reservations for bikes and they were all rented out from nearby bike shops. On top of that, my phone was stolen on a busy tram. I was so upset that I left my family in our rented townhouse and wandered the streets by myself to cry and pray. As I poured out my disappointment to God, I sensed God leading me to sit down on a bench and just focus on his presence with me. It only took a short time of paying attention to God’s presence to start feeling better. Soon, my sadness evaporated and an incredible amount of joy washed over me. It was just being in God’s presence – not anything else – that brought me the joy I was searching for.

Everyone I know wants to enjoy their lives. But some haven’t found joy yet, because they’re looking for it in the wrong places, like I did when I thought I could find joy by planning a dream vacation. We can chase after achievements, relationships, vacations, and more while hoping that they’ll finally give us the joy we long for. They might make us happy temporarily. But after those happy feelings fade, we’re back to chasing something else. 

That’s because happiness and joy are not the same. Happiness happens when our circumstances are good. Joy, however, comes from a deeper source than temporarily good circumstances. Joy is a gift that comes from being connected to God. It’s a deep sense of gladness that comes from knowing God loves us completely and unconditionally. We can experience joy in any kind of circumstances, no matter what. 

Psalm 16:11 describes where to find joy. It starts by reminding us that God shows us the path we should walk. Even when we feel uncertain, God promises to lead us on a path that’s full of life – not just existence, but real life, where we live to the fullest. Then it points out that God will fill us with joy in his presence. God himself is the source of our joy! When we draw near to God by communicating with him in prayer and meditation, God meets us with his joy. That joy is strong enough for us to experience in any situation. Finally, Psalm 16:11 says that God gives us “eternal pleasures at your right hand.” The joy God gives us lasts for eternity! It never runs out. We can enjoy pleasures from God forever, because they’re the pleasures of being loved by our eternally loving God. 

Looking for joy in this fallen world is bound to disappoint us. But searching for joy in God’s presence will reliably lead us to experiencing it. God gives us real joy, which is something that the world can’t offer and can’t take away. Even in suffering, we can rejoice, because God’s presence is with us in all circumstances. So, we don’t need to worry when we don’t find joy in other places. We can always find joy when we look for it in God’s presence! 

Intersecting Faith and Life

As you consider where to find joy, reflect on these questions: 

• When have you recently felt happy in good circumstances, but lost that happiness when your circumstances changed? 
• Where do you sometimes find yourself looking for joy, instead of through your relationship with God? 
• How can you spend more time in God’s presence this week? 
• What does it mean to you that God promises “eternal pleasures” at his right hand? 

Further Reading

Nehemiah 8:10

John 15:11

Romans 15:13

Philippians 4:4

Isaiah 61:10

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