The Family Disciple Me Podcast // Discipleship Starts With a Conversation

ADVENTure | Convo #4: Do You See the Joy?

• Tosha Williams for FDM • Season 6 • Episode 22

Share episode

The holidays overflow with noise, lists, and glitter - - - yet the angels teach a different kind of celebration. We trace the arc of joy from a dark field in Bethlehem to the moments right now where God meets us in kitchens, carpools, and crowded living rooms. Instead of chasing perfect scenes, we look for the signs of God’s presence that made heaven erupt: rescue, reconciliation, answered prayer, and worship rooted in a Savior who came near.

We open Luke 2 and hear the angel’s words as more than memory: good news that causes great joy for all people. Then we widen the lens with Job 38 and Revelation to spot a pattern:  joy rises wherever God’s goodness is revealed and His work unfolds. That shift frees us from performative cheer. If joy is tied to God’s nearness, it can surface in the most ordinary places. We share simple prompts that help families discern those God-at-work moments, and we name the small but eternal scenes where heaven still celebrates: a brave apology, a whispered prayer, a quiet act of service that heals a heart.

To make this real, we offer an easy practice: start a Joy Tracker. Create a family thread or around-the-table rhythm where everyone shares one “joy sighting” each day, focusing on where they saw God at work. No big project, no heavy lift—just honest attention and a few words that turn awareness into testimony. As these stories accumulate, homes begin to echo the fields of Bethlehem. Joy becomes less about wrapping paper and more about presence, less about perfection and more about praise. And because it’s grounded in who Jesus is, this joy carries beyond December, anchoring hope for the weeks ahead.

Find the coordinating devotion-driven discipleship guide, for your personal devotions as well as meaningful discipleship, HERE.

If this episode encourages you, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs a gentler path to joy, and leave a review with your own “joy sighting” from today. Your story might prompt someone else to see God’s nearness too.

______________________

The Family Disciple Me ministry exists to catalyze devotion driven discipleship in our homes and around the world. We believe that discipleship starts with a conversation, and FDM provides free, easily-accessible, biblical resources to encourage these meaningful conversations along life's way. Sign up through our website to be "the first to know" about upcoming releases and resources (including the FDM App - coming soon!!!) You can also follow Family Disciple Me on social media.

Family Disciple Me is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit ministry, and all donations are tax deductible. More information, blogs, statement of faith and contact info can be found at familydiscipleme.org

SPEAKER_00:

Christmas week is here, which probably means that everything about your life is full. The schedule is full, your house may be full, your emotions may be full, and quite honestly, there are so many meaningful, amazing moments where our joy is full. But let's be honest, sometimes during the holidays, our lives are full of chaos as well. And joy can be hard to find. That's why today's conversation, I believe, is so important. We're continuing in our collection of conversations to ask, do you see what I see? And this week we're going to specifically ask, do you see the joy? I'm not talking about joy like the world advertises. I'm not talking about joy that's tied to perfect moments or perfect gifts. So you can take that off your list. I'm talking about joy the way that heaven sees it. Joy the way that the angels saw it and expressed it that night in Bethlehem. Because scripture tells us exactly what makes heaven erupt with joy. So we want to look through the angels' eyes, or at least through the angel's perspective. And as we see joy through their eyes, I believe that we're going to discover a joy that is deeper and steadier and far more lasting than any joy that can be wrapped in paper or hung up as decor. So this week, let's take a moment and talk about that. Welcome to the Family Disciple Me Ministry. I'm so glad that you're here with me in this particular conversation. My name is Tasha, and I'm grateful that you are joining me for just a few moments during this beautiful busy week of Christmas. And I promise I'm going to keep it brief because you have a lot to do, just like I do. Now, in our adventure series, we're talking about do you see what I see? And well, in the prior conversations, we've talked about do you see the promise? Do you see the king? Do you see the mystery? And now we turn our eyes to do you see the joy? Let's step into scripture for just a moment and see what the angels saw. Luke tells us that an angel appeared to the shepherds in the dark fields and said, Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today, a savior has been born to you. We talked about this some in our last episode. Well, before the shepherds could even process that amazing announcement, Luke writes, Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared, praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth, peace to those on whom his favor rests. You see, that night, that holy night, as much as we love to paint it as hushed and serene, it was anything but that night the heaven exploded with joy because God came near. The heavens exploded with joy because the angels saw what he was doing. They saw God step into the world he had made. It rises up whenever God comes down. Joy erupts whenever God is at work. We see this all throughout scripture. Job chapter 38 tells us that the angels shouted for joy when God laid the foundations of the earth, because they saw his goodness filling creation. Luke chapter 15 tells us that the angels rejoice when one sinner repents, because they see God rescuing a heart. The book of Revelation tells us that the angels rejoice forever around the throne because Jesus is worthy of all worship. So when you put all this together and you see joy through the angel's perspective, well, you see the pattern very clearly. The angels rejoice wherever God's presence is real. The angels rejoice wherever his goodness is revealed, wherever his hope and salvation are unfolding. And here's something really important to notice. The angels, they aren't getting excited over Christmas trees. They're not getting excited over fancy cookies or beautifully wrapped gifts or dazzling light displays or picture perfect moments. Those things make us smile, they make us happy, but they don't make the heavens erupt. What makes the heavens erupt with joy is something far greater. And that's God's presence. It's his goodness, it's his working in and amongst us, humanity. That's what brings the heavens joy. And that's exactly the joy that we're invited to look for this week. You see, joy isn't something that we have to chase or have a perfect setting for. Joy is something that we can notice and observe and enter into when we look through heaven's eyes. So here's what I want you to hear me say very clearly. I know that this week is packed. I am not asking you to take on one more assignment. I'm not giving you another project. I know that we're going through our adventure collection of conversations, but this week's adventure, well, it's not printable. It's not a complicated plan. It's just a simple challenge that I want to invite you into. And it's this just notice joy. Not joy like the world calls joy, but joy that is God's joy. Joy that is the kind of joy that makes the angels celebrate. And here's how we're going to do this. First of all, I believe it's really important for us to wrap our minds around what brings the angels joy, what makes them celebrate, what makes them rejoice. There's a devotion-driven discipleship guide that goes along with this episode. Spend a moment in it. Maybe just reflect on the scriptures in that conversation guide. And then somewhere along the way, have a conversation about that with those that God has entrusted to you. It may be that you get to have a conversation around the dinner table or you talk with the kids as you're driving them to whatever Christmas activity you have going on. It could be that you talk to your kids about it through a text thread. How, whatever that looks like, we want to focus specifically on the things that make the heavens erupt with joy. And then with that, I think that it's amazing for us to set up the simplest joy tracker ever. Because you see, here's the reality. This week, the whole world is tracking Santa's movement, right? Well, this week, let's be Christ followers who track God's movement through joy sightings. We can simply set up a family text thread that says joy tracker, where did you spot God's joy today? And invite your family members to just drop in a sentence or a phrase of where they spotted God doing what only God can do, the things that bring the angels joy, the things that give us joy. If you have littles at home who don't have devices to be able to text, even better, you can talk to them and guide them through this conversation. Do you see the joy? Where did you spot God's joy today? That's it. It's not a burden, it's a blessing. It's not a task, it's not something on your to-do list. It's simply an awareness of looking for God's joy along the way this holiday week. Imagine how this can impact your family if you lead them in looking for the kind of things that make the angels shout for joy. Imagine seeing your kids say, I saw joy when you shared this, or I saw joy when we prayed, or I saw joy when that person forgave someone else, or I saw joy when God answered prayer, or I experienced joy when we worship the Lord. There's so many moments like this that heaven celebrates. That's the kind of joy that lasts longer than just a holiday celebration or even Christmas Day. That's the kind of joy that echoes into eternity. So this week, seek him. Look for joy wherever God is moving in and through and around your life and your family and your friendships. And then as you seek him and you see him, turn around and speak him. Call that joy out. Share it in your family or your friend or your small group text thread. Speak it in your home. Talk about it. Look when you see God's presence, when you see his work, point it out, and then let your home echo with the praise, just like the skies were filled with in Luke chapter 2. Oh, friend, as you walk through these precious, meaningful days leading up to Christmas, may your eyes be open to joy, real joy, lasting joy, God's joy, joy like you've never seen before. Do you see the joy? I believe that you will. I believe that I will. I want to see more joy because when we look through the eyes, the perspective of the angels, joy becomes impossible to miss. So Merry Christmas, my friends. Be encouraged, be challenged, be blessed. May your life be filled with the presence of Jesus and his joy today. I'll see you soon.