A glad heart makes a cheerful face, but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is crushed.

Proverbs 15:13

A friend and I sat at her mom’s bedside. “They will miss her here,” she told me. “Her smile lights up every room.” Although my friend’s mom could no longer speak, her bright eyes and welcoming grin had spread cheer to her nursing home companions.

Often our limitations rob us of our joy. When we cannot move like we once did or speak as before, we feel useless. Yet the heart of a believer, filled with the love and peace of Christ, can continue to reflect Christ’s light. Our smile becomes our witness to his unending love. When asked what brightens our countenance, we simply point to heaven, where God bestows his gift of joy to all who know him.

Gretchen Huesmann
Pensacola, FL

Lord, let your light shine in my heart, so that it radiates through my face to bring peace and joy to those around me. Amen.

Reflect: The celebration of Easter joy still permeates our hearts. Does it show?

Read: Proverbs 15 and Psalm 35:5