Generating Joy: The Energy That Helps The World Become
Howard Thurman, the twentieth-century theologian and civil rights leader, famously advised people not to ask only what the world needs, but to discover what makes them come alive. The world, he said, needs people who have come alive. This does not mean simply doing whatever feels pleasurable. A deeper question is: What awakens the most genuine, generous, and purposeful part of me? What abilities has Hashem entrusted to me, and how might they become a blessing to others?
Chassidus teaches that each person’s avodah, or life’s work, should reflect that person’s particular character and abilities. HaYom Yom (the Rebbe’s daily calendar with Torah gems) gives the example of someone capable of polishing gems who spends all his time baking bread. Bread is necessary and honorable. The problem is not the bread. The problem is neglecting the pearls. We are responsible not only for working hard, but also for recognizing the particular gifts we have been given.
JOY AS ENERGY
Human beings are literally energetic creatures. Every heartbeat involves electrical activity. Every thought depends on chemical and electrical communication among brain cells. Every breath helps the body produce the energy required to move, heal, think, create, and connect.
Torah describes the human being in similarly dynamic language. Adam was formed from the earth, but he became alive only when Hashem breathed into him the breath of life. We are earth infused with Divine vitality. Energy, however, is morally neutral. Fire can warm a home or destroy it. Passion can become courage, creativity, jealousy, generosity, or chaos. Our task is to guide our vitality through conscience, wisdom, responsibility, and choice.
This may be why Torah connects joy with action: “Serve Hashem with joy.” Joy is not merely a reward we receive after meaningful work. It is part of the energy with which meaningful work is done. Psychologist Barbara Fredrickson found that positive emotions can broaden our attention and help us see more possibilities. Fear narrows the mind, which is useful during immediate danger. But when the nervous system remains trapped in threat, it becomes harder to imagine, experiment, connect, or hope.
Chassidus expresses a similar idea: “Simchah poretzes geder,” joy breaks through barriers. Joy does not magically remove every obstacle. Sometimes it helps us become larger, more flexible, and more capable of moving through the obstacle. This is not forced positivity. Judaism makes room for grief, tears, disappointment, and protest. Joy does not deny what is painful. It refuses to reduce all of reality to what is painful.
MOVEMENT CREATES MOTIVATION
We often assume that motivation must arrive before action. Frequently, the opposite is true. It is not the motivation that gets you moving; it is the moving that gets you motivated. One walk, one phone call, one apology, one nourishing meal, or one small act of generosity can change the internal climate. Purposeful movement tells the nervous system that we are no longer merely waiting or worrying. We are going somewhere.
Not all activity is meaningful. We can rush, scroll, compare, consume, and exhaust ourselves while accomplishing very little. That is motion without direction, energy leaking through a hundred open tabs in the brain. Purpose gathers our scattered energy and joins it to our values.
Each person generates something different: ideas, safety, laughter, music, order, hospitality, courage, comfort, or belonging. These qualities may be more than personality traits. They may be part of our contribution. A gift reaches its fullest purpose when it enters circulation. The teacher must teach, the singer must sing, the listener must listen, and the comforter must comfort. The world is not finished. Goodness is still growing. Each of us has been given some particular form of life with which to help it live.
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With Gratitude,
Rus Devorah
