Inside: A scripture that guided me through the hardships of 2025 pointed the way to my word for this year. And an unexpected Christmas gift confirmed that I had made the right choice. ~
After my bike accident last year, I noticed that my right eye didn’t water when my eyes would normally well up with tears.
In the past, this type of eye watering often happened when music stirred my emotions. After my parents died, for example, the tears flowed in church whenever we sang an old hymn I remembered from my childhood. I’m not a person who cries much, so this was a healing process during that season of deep grief.
I eventually learned that humans have three kinds of tears—emotional tears, which my right eye stopped producing after the accident; reflex tears that wash away irritants; and basal tears, which keep our eyes lubricated. (Fortunately for me, the latter were not affected so I can still wear contacts comfortably.)
The doctors I consulted about my lack of emotional tears had no answers or solutions for me. I didn’t like it much, but I gradually just accepted it as the new normal.
My Christmas Miracle
Fast forward to Christmas Eve. I was at church with my family, and the praise team was leading the congregation in a variation of “O Come All Ye Faithful” that includes a bridge from Isaiah 9:6.
My heart warmed within me as we got to the part about God’s name—”Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” At the same time, tears started streaming out of both of my eyes.
This had not happened since before my accident. It was a gift, maybe even Christmas miracle.
My tears made my heart rejoice.
Rejoice Always
If I had to point to a single scripture passage that guided me through my recovery last year, it would be Philippians 4:4-7:
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (ESV).
Praying with thanksgiving helped ease my anxious thoughts, and God’s indescribable peace sustained my heart and mind. But somewhere along the way, the repeated instruction to rejoice—not just when everything is going well but always—settled in my soul.
Here’s how a note in my ESV Study Bible explains it: “The joy that Paul calls for is not a happiness that depends on circumstances but a deep contentment that is in the Lord, based on trust in the sovereign, living God, and that therefore is available always, even in difficult times.”
Early Indicator
Several months before 2025 ended, I knew rejoice would be my word for this new year. Philippians 4:4 lit the flame for me, but I also love how it’s used in the Old Testament. Verse after verse speaks about rejoicing in the Lord, not just by singing songs of praise, but with our hearts and “whole being[s]” (1 Chronicles 16:9-11, Psalm 16:9).
I experienced this on Christmas Eve, and I’m so grateful.
After what 2025 held for me and my loved ones, I especially appreciate the prayer expressed in Psalm 90:14-15: “Satisfy us in the morning with your faithful love so that we may shout with joy and be glad all our days. Make us rejoice for as many days as you have humbled us, for as many years as we have seen adversity.”
The Source of True Joy
In addition to being an “integral part of worship and gratitude,” Biblehub.com describes rejoicing as “a reflection of the believer’s trust and confidence in God” and an “expression of faith that transcends temporal situations.”
In other words, our joy doesn’t come and go based on how we feel at any given time or in any given church service. Instead, it flows from our hope in the eternal glory of God (Romans 5:1-2).
It’s not optional either, as the Apostle Paul makes clear in 1 Thessalonians:16-18: “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (NIV, emphasis mine).
If I’m being honest, “rejoice always” seems like a tall order for any year, much less 2026. I don’t know what this is supposed to look like in my life. I’m sure I will miss the mark many times.
But I also believe that the One who is able to do abundantly more than we could ask or imagine (see Ephesians 3:20) will continue to strengthen me—and you too—just as He did throughout 2025. And because of that alone, I will be able to rejoice.
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Have you chosen a word—or perhaps a phrase or a Bible verse—to guide you this year? If so, please share in the comments.
♥ Lois
Somewhere along the way, the repeated instruction to rejoice—not just when everything is going well but ALWAYS—settled in my soul. Share on X Our joy doesn’t come and go based on how we feel at any given time or in any given church service. Instead, it flows from our hope in the eternal glory of God. Share on XP.S. I’m linking up this week with InstaEncouragements, Let’s Have Coffee and Grace & Truth.