Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:16 to "be joyful always." It's easy when Nils throws us his smile. It's the best; we're hoping it doesn't change once the teeth start coming in. It's actually somewhat frustrating in the middle of the night when he's been awake when he should be sleeping and he gives us that smile. We want to be frustrated with him--but that's quite hard when he smiles; the frustration kind of melts away. It sure makes obeying the joyful verse easier. If I could just carry that picture with me at all times, maybe I wouldn't get in those down moments. Hopefully it can bring a little joy to your day, too. I mean, we need to get some joy in our lives, people. God has given us great reason to be joyful (I mean with the whole total forgiveness of our sins, the abundant outpouring of grace, and the promise of life everlasting and all). It's sad though how often I'm in front of worship times and see unjoyful faces a(especially while singing joy-filled songs or reading joy-filled Scripture). I don't think God means that we can't live through moments of mourning, sadness, etc. But through it all we do need to be mindful of the joy (which is not the same as happiness, by the way--it's something deeper) that God has given us. I think Nils has a sense of that joy (we have this theory that the wee ones can see more into the spiritual realm than those of us who have lost our innocence can)--and he really lets it shine through at times.
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