{"id":40653,"date":"2025-03-04T10:00:16","date_gmt":"2025-03-04T18:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=40653"},"modified":"2025-03-07T09:54:51","modified_gmt":"2025-03-07T17:54:51","slug":"ive-got-the-joy-joy-joy-joy-down-in-my-heart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/ive-got-the-joy-joy-joy-joy-down-in-my-heart\/","title":{"rendered":"I\u2019ve got the Joy, Joy, Joy, Joy Down in My Heart."},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/strong>Back in the 1920s, minister and Methodist camp leader George William Cooke had something to teach us about joy through a catchy little song called Joy in My Heart.[1]<\/a> Years later, contemporary neuroscience would confirm his findings about the healing power of joy. Joy is not only a feeling but, in fact, a mechanism for coping and the antidote to fear.<\/p>\n

In the book Rare Leadership<\/em>, seminarians Marcus Warner and Jim Wilder utilize a theological perspective rooted in Christian principles and neuroscience to describe how the human brain responds to stress and fear.<\/p>\n

This book will help readers \u201cIn two ways: 1) We want you to understand the fast-track brain mechanism that learns and distributes leadership skills, and 2) we want to help you train the leadership system in your brain using four core habits of effective leaders. These four habits will cause your emotional intelligence to soar.\u201d[2]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Thinking Fast and Slow<\/strong><\/p>\n

The fast-track system in Rare Leadership<\/em> is centered on emotional and intuitive responses, particularly in moments of fear or perceived danger. It bypasses rational, reflective thinking in favor of quick survival responses, much like Daniel Kahneman describes System 1 thinking in his book Thinking Fast and Slow<\/em>.[3]<\/a> However, Warner and Wilder go a step further to emphasize how joy can help regulate emotional safety in this fast-track system, allowing a person to move beyond survival responses and into engaged, rational thinking.<\/p>\n

They go on to define joy as an emotional experience that involves a deep sense of safety, connection, and relational warmth. It is more than a fleeting feeling of happiness. Instead, it is a relational and physiological state closely tied to emotional and brain health. Based on this definition, it is easy to see how George William Cooke fondly captured the sentiment of the era, which faced the dictatorship of Benito Mussolini in Italy, the imprisonment of civil rights leader Marcus Garvey, and the formation of the paramilitary SS in Germany.[4]<\/a><\/p>\n

While the world around us may seem to zip by at a fast clip, our daily lives play out mainly in the slow-track system, which uses conscious thoughts to manage the routine tasks of life. \u201cIts primary job is to monitor results and provide explanations and solutions to our problems.\u201d[5]<\/a> The authors say that slow-track thinking automatically follows fast-track, where emotional intelligence and personal relationships are situated.<\/p>\n

Another source related to this topic is Hope Rising<\/em> by Casey Gwinn and Chann Hellman. The authors believe that hope is a core element of reaching joy. Hope is not seen simply as wishful thinking but involves setting goals, taking action, and recognizing progress. As people take steps toward achieving their goals, they often experience moments of joy in the process. In this way, hope and joy are intertwined because hope drives action, and action can lead to positive, joyful outcomes.[6]<\/a><\/p>\n

The Four Core Habits<\/strong><\/p>\n

The primary thesis of Rare Leadership<\/em> is found in the four habits of rare leaders utilizing the acronym RARE. The first habit is to remain Relational, which means focusing on the people and the value of the relationships over the weight of the problems. Relationships will carry you much further along. Next is the habit of Authenticity. A leader consistently rooted in a positive core identity allows others to feel safe. They know what behaviors to expect, and an optimistic one is far more appealing. The third habit is Returning to joy, which is \u201cThe single biggest factor in producing sustainable motivation.\u201d[7]<\/a> This is the value of resilience leadership, allowing you to bounce back after facing difficult circumstances. The final habit is Enduring hardship well. Emotionally mature leaders can handle more stress and tension than most, which shows health and maturity.[8]<\/a><\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n

Just as hope can be recognized as the twinkle in a close friend’s or loved one’s eye, joy can also be recognized as a source of inspiration. Quieting our hearts to seek joy during stress allows us to find scriptural peace beyond understanding. It is the shalom when everything works seamlessly and harmoniously to please God. Joy is a relational experience fueled by emotional intelligence, especially hope. Combining hope with action leads to joy, which is the pinnacle of what we strive for when we seek that life-giving essence of joy, joy, joy, joy down in our hearts, down in our hearts to stay!<\/p>\n

\n

[1]<\/a> \u201cGeorge William Cooke.\u201d Accessed February 14, 2025. http:\/\/www.hymntime.com\/tch\/bio\/c\/o\/o\/k\/cooke_gw.htm.<\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> Warner, Marcus, and E. James Wilder. Rare Leadership: 4 Uncommon Habits for Increasing Trust, Joy, and Engagement in the People You Lead<\/em>. Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2016. P.19.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> Kahneman, Daniel. Thinking, Fast and Slow<\/em>. 1st pbk. ed. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2013.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> \u201cComplete Timeline of 1925 Events.\u201d Historic Newspapers<\/em>. Accessed February 14, 2025. https:\/\/www.historic-newspapers.com\/blogs\/blog\/1925-events.<\/p>\n

[5]<\/a> Warner, Marcus, and E. James Wilder. Rare Leadership: 4 Uncommon Habits for Increasing Trust, Joy, and Engagement in the People You Lead<\/em>. Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2016. P.26.<\/p>\n

[6]<\/a> Gwinn, Casey. Hope Rising: How the Science of Hope Can Change Your Life<\/em>. Newburyport: Morgan James Publishing, 2018.<\/p>\n

[7]<\/a> Ibid. P.26.<\/p>\n

[8]<\/a> Ibid. P.212<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Back in the 1920s, minister and Methodist camp leader George William Cooke had something to teach us about joy through a catchy little song called Joy in My Heart.[1] Years later, contemporary neuroscience would confirm his findings about the healing power of joy. Joy is not only a feeling but, in fact, a mechanism for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":193,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3432],"class_list":["post-40653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-warner-wilder-dlgp03","cohort-dlgp03"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40653","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/193"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40653"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40653\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41095,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40653\/revisions\/41095"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}