Give Yourself Joy For Christmas

In the Church calendar, this third week of Advent is Gaudete Sunday, the Sunday of Joy. In our Gospel for the week, John preaches "good news to the people." Joy is associated again and again in Christian teaching with good news--the most important of which is the Gospel. We receive joy, Pope Francis writes in his encyclical The Joy of the Gospel, when we are liberated "from our narrowness and self-absorption."

As we enter the third Sunday in Advent, it's time to make a transformative commitment to ourselves: to liberate our minds from "our narrowness and self-absorption" by intentionally cultivating joy.

Drawing from positive psychology research, we'd like to offer five concrete strategies to help you infuse your life with more joy and less stress this holiday season.

1. Eliminate Talking Heads. Media consumption can significantly impact our mental health. While factual news reporting aims to be balanced, commentary programs often thrive on negativity, anger, and divisiveness. Research by the American Psychological Association has consistently shown that excessive exposure to negative media can increase stress, anxiety, and feelings of helplessness.

Take control of your media diet. Eliminate your exposure to opinion-based programming and limit even factual, balanced news media. Consider:

• Setting strict time limits for news consumption

• Choosing reputable sources with minimal commentary

• Replacing news time with uplifting content or personal development activities

2. Reprogram Your Social Media. Social media algorithms are designed to capture and maintain your attention, often by amplifying content that triggers strong emotional responses. You can use this to intentionally reshape your digital experience to promote positivity and joy. By consciously curating your social media feeds, you can create a more nurturing online space.

Pick some things you like--funny cat pictures, West Coast swing dance, baking the perfect pie--and search for those. Whether Instagram, YouTube, TikTok or whatever else you follow, your social media will start feeding you more of what you love.

3. Practice Gratitude Journaling. Positive psychology pioneers like Dr. Martin Seligman have demonstrated the transformative power of gratitude. Spending just 5-10 minutes daily writing down three things you're grateful for can significantly improve mood and overall life satisfaction. Create a simple evening ritual where you reflect on positive experiences, no matter how small, and record them in a journal. This practice helps rewire your brain to focus on abundance rather than lack.

4. Engage in Random Acts of Kindness. Counterintuitively, one of the most effective ways to increase personal joy is to focus on others' happiness. Research by Dr. Elizabeth Dunn and others shows that spending money or time on others creates more sustained happiness than self-focused activities.

During this holiday season, challenge yourself to:

• Perform unexpected acts of kindness

• Volunteer for a local charity

• Send thoughtful, personalized messages to friends or colleagues

5. Cultivate Mindful Movement. Physical activity is a powerful joy generator. This week, instead of viewing exercise as a chore, approach movement as a celebration of what your body can do. Practices like yoga, dance, or nature walks can transform physical activity from a stress-inducing obligation to a source of genuine pleasure.

This holiday season, give yourself the most meaningful gift: permission to experience joy. By consciously reshaping your media consumption, digital environment, and daily practices, you can create a more positive, resilient mental landscape.

Remember, joy is not a luxury—it's an important part of a fulfilling Christian life.