Dr. Norm Wakefield: "The Joyful Dad"

Check Your Joy Quotient

No matter the circumstance, no matter your feelings, you can experience joy today—and share that joy with your children. To help you do that, I’ve created a little “Joy Quotient” quiz to help you assess your ability to spot the joys in everyday life. Take a moment right now to answer each question below with either a “true” or “false” and find your “joy quotient” rating.

1.     Something made me smile today.

2.   I have at least one hobby or activity I enjoy

     pursuing.

3.   I have at least one good memory from my

     growing-up years.

4.   I can see that God is present in my life (for

     example, by observing the beauty of creation,

     the faithfulness of a friend, or answers to

     prayer).

5.     There is at least one thing I like about my

     work.

6.   I sometimes dream of good things that could

     happen in my future.

7.   I have at least one good memory from the

     past year.

8.   I can think of at least one thing I like about

     each member of my family.

9.   I feel proud about at least one thing I’ve

     accomplished in my lifetime.

10. I am confident that God loves me.

If you responded “true” as few as three times, you are probably feeling a bit burned out on life and wishing for more joy. Still, you have identified at least one reason to celebrate—so you can focus on that. Ask yourself how each positive response to these statements brings joy. How can you share that joy with your children? You also have an opportunity to include your kids as you search for new reasons to celebrate in life.

If you responded “true” four to seven times, you’re about average. God didn’t promise joy only to “above-average” people. You have plenty of reasons to celebrate and more reasons to include your children in the celebration.

If you responded “true” more than eight times, you’ve probably already begun sharing a bit of joy with those around you. One great thing about giving joy away is that you get joy in return. Read on to discover how we can do more of that.

Finally (though I hate to say it), if you answered “false” to all ten questions, you are lying to yourself and to us. Take a moment to ask God to show you joyful spots in your life. Then take the test again!

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Dr. Norm Wakefield is a popular author, speaker, seminary professor, and joyful dad to five happy, adult children. A few of his sought-after books are Legacy of Joy (written with his son-in-law), Men are from Israel, Women are from Moab(written with his daughter), and The Dad Difference (written with Josh McDowell).

"It is not selfish to be joyful"

--George MacDonald