When Joy Came to Stay

by Karen Kingsbury

  When we are fully distracted, we no longer tap into the greatest resource given mankind—the Holy Spirit. Instead we walk by a compass of our own design, and in very little time end up lost and confused. This is when discouragement hits.

  Depression, then, is the combination of the two: distraction and discouragement, multiplied to whatever degree the enemy is seeking to destroy us.

  Although I have never personally dealt with clinical depression, I know what it is to be buried in discouragement. I remember driving to Northern California on a family vacation and taking in the beauty of the Lake Shasta area. The trip followed a lengthy period of warfare and spiritual attack—a season of discouragement. As my husband drove through the mountains that day, tears fell from my eyes as though a dam had broken in my heart.

  The Lord, in all His lovingkindness, reminded me of some basic truths as we made our way through the pines. First, He is bigger than any problem I have. Second, everything in this life—absolutely everything—is temporary. And God’s Word says we are to fix our eyes not on the temporary but the eternal. Finally He adjusted my perspective so that I no longer hurt for things that had taken place that past year. Instead, I knew that somehow they would work to the Lord’s glory My eternal perspective was back in place.

  Now I know that a season of discouragement pales in comparison to depression, but over the past year, God let me understand pain in this area. Pain that is being buried, masked by thousands, perhaps even millions of women today—both in and outside the church.

  If you are one who is suffering this way, please seek professional help without shame, and know that God loves you just as you are. He is beckoning you even now to come into the sunshine of His grace and truth. Come in honesty and never look back.

  Some of you have no idea what it means to have a relationship with the Lord. To you I pray that you please make a decision to accept God’s gift of salvation. Tell Him you can’t live any longer without Him. Buy a Bible, find a Bible-believing, Christ-centered church near your home, and get connected.

  If you’re already there and are silently suffering, it’s time to be honest with your church family. If news of your depression isn’t received well, continue to seek those who will listen with an open heart, and pray for your church. I believe the time has come for all of us to recognize the enemy’s hand in this pervasive illness and come together the way Christ would have us do.

  If you have never dealt with serious depression, thank God sincerely and ask Him to make you compassionate. Someone—probably someone closer than you think—may be hiding in the darkness even now. Ask Him to show you how you can help, how you can care for others and be a light in the darkness.

  Thank you for journeying these pages with me. I look forward to hearing from you, especially from those of you who have faithfully read each of my novels. You can still write me at my e-mail address: rtnbykk@aol.com.

  Blessings abundant to you and yours and grace as you seek to walk in His light.

  Sincerely

  NOVELS BY KAREN KINGSBURY

  Where Yesterday Lives

  When Joy Came to Stay

  On Every Side

  A Time to Dance

  A Time to Embrace

  One Tuesday Morning

  Beyond Tuesday Morning

  Oceans Apart

  THE FOREVER FAITHFUL SERIES

  Waiting for Morning

  A Moment of Weakness

  Halfway to Forever

  THE REDEMPTION SERIES

  (co-written with Gary Smalley)

  Redemption

  Remember

  Return

  Rejoice

  Reunion

  THE RED GLOVES CHRISTMAS SERIES

  Gideon’s Gift

  Maggie’s Miracle

  Sarah’s Song

  www.karenkingsbury.com

  OTHER NOVELS BY

  KAREN KINGSBURY

  WHERE YESTERDAY LIVES

  In the wake of her fathers sudden death, Ellen Barrett must journey back to the small town where she grew up and spend a week with antagonistic siblings. In the process, she must reckon with a man who once meant everything to her.

  WHEN JOY CAME TO STAY

  Maggie Stovall is trapped inside a person she’s spent years carefully crafting. Now the truth about who she is—and what she’s done—is revealed, sending Maggie into a spiral of despair. Will Maggie walk away from her marriage and her foster child in her desperation to escape the mantle of depression cloaking her? Or will she allow God to take her to a place of ultimate honesty before it’s too late?

  ON EVERY SIDE

  Jordan Riley, an embittered lawyer, sues his hometown to have a public statue of Jesus removed. The conflict causes him to cross paths with a spirited young newscaster named Faith, who opposes Jordan’s suit in surprising ways. Perhaps most amazing of all is how Faith begins to disassemble the walls around Jordan’s heart. Will love be enough when the battle rages on every side?

  THE

  FOREVER FAITHFUL SERIES

  WAITING FOR MORNING—Book One

  A drunk driver…a deadly accident…a dream destroyed. When Hannah Ryan loses her husband and oldest daughter to a drunk driver, she is consumed with hate and revenge. Ultimately, it is a kind prosecutor, a wise widow, and her husband’s dying words that bring her the peace that will set her free and let her live again.

  A MOMENT OF WEAKNESS—Book Two

  When childhood friends Jade and Tanner reunite as adults, they share their hearts, souls, and dreams of forever—until a fateful decision tears them apart. Now, nearly a decade later, Jades unfaithful husband wants to destroy her in a custody battle that is about to send shock waves across the United States. Only one man can help Jade in her darkest hour. And only one old woman knows the truth that can set them all free.

  HALFWAY TO FOREVER—Book Three

  Matt and Hannah…Jade and Tanner—after already surviving much, these couples now face the greatest struggles of their lives: Parental losses and life-threatening illness threaten to derail their faith and sideline their futures. Can Hannah survive the loss of an adopted daughter? Will Tanner come through decades of loneliness only to face losing Jade one final time?

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR…

  Karen Kingsbury is an award-winning author and former reporter for the Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles Daily News. She is also a recognized author with the Women of Faith Fiction Club. Kingsbury lives with her husband and six children in Washington.

  KAREN KINGSBURY

  AND PRISM COFOUNDER TONI VOGT

  THE PRISM WEIGHT LOSS PROGRAM

  The PRISM® Weight Loss Program, founded in 1990, has helped more than 60,000 people transform their eating behaviors with a sensible, lifestyle-change approach. Now available in The Prism Weight Loss Program by bestselling author Karen Kingsbury and PRISM cofounder Toni Vogt, the book shows readers how to not just “tame the monster” of food addiction, but destroy it through simple eating strategies and biblical principles. It includes testimonials, descriptions of the authors’ personal struggles with food addiction, details of the program, and a fabulous recipe section that will help readers become the fit people God created them to be.

  From Bestselling Author

  KAREN BALL

  Her daughter Faith is the answer to Ann’s lifelong prayer to be a mother. But her dream is shattered when the teenager rejects Ann’s love and the love of God. After years pass, and God heals their relationship, Ann falls seriously ill. Faith watches her mother weaken, struggling with role reversals and leaning on God as never before. Through all the intricacies of their relationship, all the joys and trials, they are reminded that God is with them. He brings them peace in the darkness, joy in the midst of sorrow, and hope in the face of death.

  “Karen Ball has penned a modern classic and given us two unforgettable characters to root for. This is an author to watch!”

  —ROBIN LEE HATCHER, bestselling author of

  Firstborn and Prom
ised to Me

  Gabe and Renee Roman are on the edge—relationally and spiritually. But after years of struggling in their marriage, their greatest test comes in the most unexpected of forms: a blizzard in the Oregon wilderness. Their truck hurtles down the side of a mountain, and suddenly they are forced to fight for survival by relying on each other. But both must surrender their last defenses if they are to come home at last—to God and to each other. Only then will they learn the most important truths of all: God is sufficient, and only through obedience to His call can we find true joy. Can the Romans overcome their greatest obstacle—themselves—in time?

  www.multnomahbooks.com

  This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  WHEN JOY CAME TO STAY

  published by Multnomah Books

  A division of Random House, Inc.

  Published in association with the literary agency of Alive Communications, Inc.

  7680 Goddard St., Suite 200, Colorado Springs, CO 80920

  © 2000 by Karen Kingsbury

  All Scripture quotations are taken from

  The Holy Bible, New International Version © 1973, 1984 by International Bible

  Society, used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House

  The Holy Bible, New King James Version © 1984 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

  Excerpts from the hymn GREAT IS THEY FAITHFULNESS by Thomas O. Chisholm

  © 1923, Ren. 1951 Hope Publishing Company, Carol Stream, IL 60188.

  All rights reserved. International copyright secured. Used by permission.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or

  by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying,

  recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission.

  For information:

  Multnomah Books

  12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200

  Colorado Springs, CO 80921

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Kingsbury, Karen.

  When Joy came to stay/by Karen Kingsbury.

  p. cm.

  eISBN: 978-0-307-56862-5

  1. Women—Fiction. 2. Identity (Psychology)—Fiction. I. Title.

  PS3561.I483 W48 2000

  813′.54—dc21 00-009451

  v3.0_r2