We took a cruise over the holidays. Our wedding anniversary is in December. So husband Dan and I booked a short, budget-agreeable getaway and hit the seas.

What did we find? The sun is still shining. The breeze is still blowing. Fish are still jumping. Flowers are still blooming. God is still gracing. Life is still good. Still worth fighting for. Still worth believing in. Still worth living.

We all know this. But some years we need a reminder. And 2015 was one of those years.

No need to recap it. We all know what nasty turns got twisted during that old calendar.

So as 2015 drew to a close, Dan and I pooled our pennies and went to a place where a phone can’t get a signal and the news seemed far, far away.

Now back home, it seems prudent to try to live this way all the time. To take a break everyday. Intentionally.

To turn off the news. And wait to turn it on again. To stop striving and look for blue sky and sunshine. To talk to people and laugh. To go for long walks. To come back home and sit down and just be.

Jesus spent a lot of time on the sea. In the clear bright light of the Mediterranean and on the Sea of Galilee, he taught, prayed, cooked, rested, changed the world.

What did he show us? That Paradise is a place, but first it’s a choice.

Sure, we pick our battles when we must. In this life, there’s always something to take on and rumble. So our cruise trip wasn’t perfect. Journeys never are.

Yet as we go, we still can find joy. That’s my New Year’s prayer for all of us in 2016. To find the joy again. No matter the cost, no matter the time, joy is worth the trip. In 2016, let’s dive in and grab it.

Patricia Raybon is an award-winning author of books and essays on mountain-moving faith. 

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