Life Repurposed

Life Repurposed


The 'Grin Gal' Talks About Joy

February 19, 2020

In this episode:

In this episode, author and speaker Kathy Carlton Willis returns to talk about how she became God's Grin Gal and how she has discovered joy, even in the midst of difficult circumstances. Learn how to grow your "JQ"—joy quotient.

Inspired Life
This week, I was joined on the podcast by Kathy Carlton Willis, God's Grin Gal. Kathy talked about how she came to be known by this title when others pointed out to her that God has given her the ability to keep on grinning even though life has brought more than the average number of difficulties to her.
We talked about how "fake it until you make it" isn't the same as learning how to experience true joy. The joy that Kathy talks about comes from a deep sense of peace that can't be explained. It's real joy! It also isn't as simple as happiness. Kathy says, "Happiness runs and hides, but joy remains when trials show up."
The very same week that Kathy's book launched in January, her husband came home early one day to report that his company had cut his position due to downsizing of staff hours. She said as they go through this—and it isn't their first time experiencine unemployment or even their second—they are seeing how much more at peace they are in the middle of it.
I have found that too. My joy grows with each experience, both good and bad, as I see God work and  my  fears turn to peace.
 

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Life, Repurposed
Kathy shared about a wardrobe malfunction that became a central issue at her 25th anniversary celebration with her husband, but it brought them both grins on their date. You'll have to listen in to hear Kathy tell that story.
In our discussion, we talked about how we all have difficult people in our lives who push our buttons. Kathy calls them sandpaper people who rub us the wrong way. Sometimes their abbrasiveness is intentional and other times it's just a personality difference. Sometimes the very person who is a sandpaper person to us will click with someone else and become besties. We might think difficult people can steal our joy, but there is nothing to steal. We make the choice of whether we will give it away or not. We don't have to let difficult people change our attitude.
Kathy also talked about how serving is a big part of joy. "Serving it forward with joy," as she calls it, goes beyond paying it forward to not only do a random act of kindness, but to truly serve  another person. We also talked about how forgiveness and gratitude are a big part of growing our joy quotient.
Like IQ (intelligence quotient), we have a capacity for joy. That "JQ" can grow as God works in us. Kathy says she has had some experiences where looking for a lesson in the midst of a difficult situation isn't what she needed. There isn't always a lesson we need to learn.