Good News or Fake News: Joy — Real News Worth Celebrating

By Drake Hunter | Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice

If hope helps us wait and peace helps us stand, then joy helps us move forward.

Joy can sometimes be misunderstood. People often mix it up with happiness, think it’s just an emotion, or even brush it off as silly. But joy has its own special meaning! At its core, true joy isn’t shallow or fragile; it’s strong and active. It shows up in our lives when things are real, and it deserves to be celebrated. As we reflect during this Advent season, let’s continue to think about this important question: “What’s shaping who you are—the Good News or the fake news?” The source you trust can really influence your peace and your joy in life.

We understand that fake news promotes self-sufficiency, cynicism, and entitlement. Conversely, Good News inspires gratitude, initiative, and celebration—JOY! This joy isn’t superficial but authentic and rooted in truth. It’s the type that nurtures these three straightforward, impactful behaviors.

Joy starts with gratitude. Gratitude is choosing to focus on what is good rather than dwelling on what isn’t. Fake news encourages us to concentrate on loss, outrage, and scarcity, while Good News helps us see gifts, grace, and presence. Gratitude doesn’t ignore pain; it simply refuses to let pain dominate our inner voice. During Christmas, gratitude reminds us of a fundamental truth: joy isn’t about getting everything we want. It’s about appreciating what we’ve already received. Thus, gratitude opens the door, and joy steps in.

Most people are unaware of my next point: joy requires action or initiative. Joy doesn’t wait to be invited; it arrives on its own. This is where common sense aligns with Divine wisdom: if you want joy, you must engage with it. Initiative means choosing joy even when conditions aren’t perfect. It means lighting a candle before the darkness lifts. It means singing before the outcome is clear. Fake news keeps us reactive. Good News encourages us to respond. Initiative shifts us from being spectators of life to active participants. Joy flourishes when people take responsibility for their attitude, actions, and reactions to life. In other words, joy isn’t passive; it moves!

Here’s my favorite point: joy leads to celebration (Yes—A party). Celebration is joy made visible. Christmas itself is a declaration that life is worth celebrating—even in a broken world. Even in uncertainty. Even when the story is still unfolding. Fake news drains celebration—it thrives on exhaustion. Good news restores celebration—it reminds us why life matters. Celebration doesn’t ignore reality; it defies despair. This is why joy always ends in a party, meaning a meal, a song, a gathering, or a shared moment that says: We’re still here—and life is still good. Joy multiplies when it’s shared.

Bringing it all together, we now see where joy and Christmas meet. Christmas joy is not sentimental fluff. It’s courage wrapped in wonder. It looks like gratitude in hard seasons, initiative in uncertain times, and a celebration that refuses to surrender hope. This is the joy that doesn’t depend on headlines, trends, or fleeting circumstances. The joy that stands firm because it’s rooted in Good News, not fake. So, friends, family, and fans of RMV, as Advent continues, here’s this week’s question: Is your joy being shaped by gratitude and truth — or drained by noise and fear? Because when joy is grounded in gratitude, activated by initiative, and expressed through celebration… it becomes real news worth sharing. Therefore…

“The joy of the Lord is your strength.” ~ Nehemiah 8:10

Pastor Drake

Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in commentary pieces are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the management of the Rocky Mountain Voice, but even so we support the constitutional right of the author to express those opinions.