There are some voices you trust immediately—and Julie Barclay is one of them. I’ve had the privilege of knowing Julie personally from our time serving together at The Chapel in New Jersey, and I can tell you firsthand: what she shares comes from a place of deep authenticity, hard-won faith, and lived experience.
Julie has walked through seasons that would shake anyone—depression, infertility, miscarriage, chronic illness—and yet her life is a powerful reflection of something we all long for: real joy in the middle of real life.
As a speaker, author, and leader in women’s ministry, she has a unique way of meeting you right where you are and gently pointing you back to truth. I’m so excited for you to hear from her—you’re going to feel both seen and strengthened.
When Life Is Hard, Joy Feels Out of Reach
Joy. Abundance. Life to the full.
Something we all crave, yet always feels just out of reach, especially when life is hard.
And when you live with a chronic illness like I do, that seems to be more frequent than not. Eight years ago, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), and my journey since then has been a challenging one.
And yet, despite the pain and struggle, God has provided real, authentic joy. In fact, I would even dare to say that not only do I experience joy in spite of it but because of it. Maybe you don’t struggle with a significant health challenge, but we all have our hard things. Those things that “if only” they were different, joy might be possible.
The “If Only” Trap That Steals Your Joy
If only…
- I could stop these intrusive thoughts
- I made just a little more money
- I lost twenty pounds
- That hadn’t happened to me
- That relationship would be restored
- They hadn’t died
- God would show up
But what if real, tangible, lasting joy was available right in the midst of your everyday life?
Even if all the “if only’s” never happened?
It is.
Unconditional joy is available every single day, in every single circumstance.
Even when your eyes are filled with tears or your mind is filled with worry, your soul can be filled with joy.
What Psalm 16 Teaches Us About Real Joy
King David has some great insights on this in Psalm 16. Let’s take a look…
“I say to the LORD , ‘You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.’” — Psalm 16:2
David isn’t saying nothing else in his life is good. He is saying nothing is good without God being part of it.
It can be easy to get caught up in the “good life” according to the world’s standards – money, fame, material stuff, a significant other, friends – but David is calling attention to the fact that none of that matters if we don’t have Jesus.
In fact, he goes on to say …
“The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply” — Psalm 16:4
We often fall into the trap of pursuing things other than God for fulfillment. Actually, it’s our default setting.
In the words of John Piper, “The human heart is an idol factory.”
According to David, that’s a big problem. Chasing after other gods multiplies our sorrow—it compounds it, increases it, and has no limit.
Idols can give us a false sense of joy for a period of time but it never lasts and it’s never deeply fulfilling. At the end of the day, it will always let us down and cause us pain.
Why Your Circumstances Aren’t the Problem
Ironically, one of the hardest seasons of my MS journey is where I experienced Jesus and His joy in a way I never had before.
I came to the realization that my health, my plans, my comfort had all become idols in my life. They were what was standing in the way of me experiencing joy—not my circumstances.
“You make known to me the path of life; in Your (God’s) presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” — Psalm 16:11
Not just any joy… fullness of joy.
Fullness is defined in the dictionary as “the state of being filled to capacity”. David is talking about the kind of joy that is complete, overflowing, leaving us fully satisfied.
And where is this kind of joy found?
Jesus.
In order to experience joy, we simply need to be in His presence.
If you’re not sure where to start, or your prayer life feels a little stuck right now, this simple 5-Day Prayer Reset can help you reconnect and get back to what matters most.
His presence is the closest we can get to the source of true joy.
- Reading His Word
- Talking to Him through prayer
- Worshipping Him
These are all ways we can fill our joy tank, because they connect us to where it originates.
And when your joy is based on that which can’t be taken away, it doesn’t matter what else is.
“The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.” — Psalm 16:6
Joy Is an Act of Defiance
I once heard it said that joy is an act of defiance.
It’s an act of resistance against sin and the brokenness of this world.
It’s choosing praise in a world of pain.
It’s a focus on the eternal in a temporal world.
See, the opposite of joy isn’t sadness; it’s hopelessness.
When we fail to experience fullness of life, it’s because we have lost sight of hope.
We hope in so many things in this world, but only one hope will never disappoint – the hope found in Christ (Romans 5:5).
Biblical hope is a certainty, something we can count on. And when we live with a clear view of that hope found in eternity, it changes things.
We become less focused on what is fading away and more focused on what will last.
We view hard things in the world as opportunities for good in God’s Kingdom.
We embrace, even rejoice, in suffering because it brings us closer to the One we will spend all of eternity with.
In the words of C.S. Lewis, “Joy is the serious business of Heaven.”
Let’s Be People Who Pursue Joy Anyway
Sometimes I long for that day when I won’t have to fight for joy any longer. Yet, praise God that we don’t have to wait until then to experience it.
Let’s be people who relentlessly pursue joy.
In the good, in the hard, and everywhere in between.
Want more from Julie? Visit thejuliebarclay.com, explore her book Meaning in the Mess (and others), or reach out about having her speak at your next church event or women’s retreat.
Joy might not look like what you expected—but it’s available. Even here. Even now.