70 Joy Quotes to Fill Your Day With Positivity & Hope

These top 70 joy quotes will bring happiness to your heart and make you focus on the good things you have in life!

Joy is different for each individual, just like how everyone has their favorite food, song, or place. But, whatever your method is for finding happiness, the important thing is to find joy in your own life and your own self.

However, it will not be easy. We all have those moments in our lives when we are just not happy, no matter what we do, even if we try to make ourselves feel better. In these moments, all we need to do is find the joy already inside us.

You may not notice it, but your joy is within you, and all you have to do is turn your focus inward to find it.

To help you with that, consider reading our complete list below so you can bring back the happiness you are looking for!

Let’s begin!

And don’t forget to check out these positive quotes and happiness quotes.

Best Joy Quotes

1. “Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.” – Henri Nouwen

2. “Joy blooms where minds and hearts are open.” – Jonathan Lockwood Huie 

3. “If you carry joy in your heart, you can heal any moment.” – Carlos Santana

4. “Find a place inside where there’s joy, and the joy will burn out the pain.” – Joseph Campbell

5. “Joy is to fun what the deep sea is to a puddle. It’s a feeling inside that can hardly be contained.” – Terry Pratchett 

6. “Joy—the kind of happiness that doesn’t depend on what happens.” – David Steindl-Rast

7. “To have joy in your heart, one must know how to appreciate the small things in life.” – Anonymous

8. “Joy has something very pure and innocent about it. It is a feeling that reminds us of the innocence of childhood and all its endless pleasures. A pure mind, open to the charm of the world, can find joy everywhere.” – Anonymous

9. “A thing of beauty is a joy forever: its loveliness increases; it will never pass into nothingness.” – John Keats

10. “The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.” – Christopher McCandless

Famous Quotes About Joy

11. “To get the full value of joy, you must have someone to divide it with.” – Mark Twain

12. “Joy is the serious business of Heaven.” – C.S. Lewis

13. “Find ecstasy in life; the mere sense of living is joy enough.” – Emily Dickinson

14. “Joy is not in things; it is in us.” – Richard Wagner

15. “Participate joyfully in the sorrows of the world. We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy.” – Joseph Campbell

16. “Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are.” – Marianne Williamson

Also read: Famous Quotes, Encouraging Quotes

Inspiring Joy Quotes That Will Change Your Life

17. “Own your joy so that you can be happier and bring more energy to the world. That ripple effect works on a quantum level. It brings about changes in the world.” – Gabrielle Bernstein 

18. “Life doesn’t have to be perfect to be filled with joy.” – Anonymous

19. “Joy is the realest reality, the fullest life, and joy is always given, never grasped. God gives gifts, and I give thanks, and I unwrap the gift given—joy.” – Ann Voskamp

20. “The essence of life is not in the great victories and grand failures but in the simple joys.” – Jonathan Lockwood 

21. “Joy must be developed from the inside. If we cannot find happiness within ourselves, we will not be able to find happiness anywhere.” – Allan Lokos

22. “Think joy, talk joy, practice joy, share joy, saturate your mind with joy, and you will have the time of your life today and every day all your life.” – Norman Vincent Peale

23. “Joy, rather than happiness, is the goal of life, for joy is the emotion which accompanies our fulfilling our natures as human beings. It is based on the experience of one’s identity as a being of worth and dignity.” – Rollo May

24. “Joy is the measure of a happy and healthy life. It is not only a measure of our happiness but also a measure of our empathy and selflessness because it is a value that loses its power when we isolate it from others. Joy is our gift from God and the gift that we can give to others.” – Anonymous

25. “The joy of life consists in the exercise of one’s energies, continual growth, constant change, the enjoyment of every new experience. To stop means simply to die. The eternal mistake of mankind is to set up an attainable ideal.” – Aleister Crowley

26. “Life gives us many reasons to be upset or sad, yet it is in our power to convert every negative moment into a beautiful memory simply by deciding to express our inner joy and to let our joy take over the world. Joy is the cure to the sickness of the soul.” – Anonymous

Also read: Perfect Life Quotes

Joy Quotes That You Must Not Forget

27. “I discovered that joy is not the negation of pain, but rather acknowledging the presence of pain and feeling happiness in spite of it.” – Lupita Nyong’o

28. “I define joy as a sustained sense of well-being and internal peace—a connection to what matters.” – Oprah Winfrey 

29. “Find joy in the journey.” – Anonymous

30. “When we are centered in joy, we attain our wisdom.” – Marianne Williamson

31. “The joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives.” – Russel M. Nelson

32. “Joy comes when we are in alignment with our values and goals and when we feel our lives are abundant.” – Yolanda V. Acree

33. “To be joyful is a principle. It doesn’t change with emotions. Joy is inner contentment despite all the circumstances.” – Richard Daly

34. “Joy can be real only if people look upon their lives as a service and have a definite object in life outside themselves and their personal happiness.” – Leo Tolstoy

35. “Joy is a choice based on being content regardless of circumstances. Understanding what encourages joy in your life can help you cultivate it and build up your resources for when circumstances are difficult.” – M. Ahlers

36. “The ability to feel joy is one of our greatest assets because it allows us to experience life as a marvelous adventure and the world as a friendly home. Joy refines our perception, making us receptive to the divine details of life.” – Anonymous

37. “We all experience joy differently and have our own unique barriers to attaining joy. Understanding what makes you tick helps you develop a plan that’s tailored specifically for you.” – Kaia Roman

38. “Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.” – Thích Nhất Hạnh

39. “Joy lies in the fight, in the attempt, in the suffering involved, not in the victory itself.” – Mahatma Gandhi

Joy Quotes to Soothe Your Soul

40. “When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy.” – Rumi

41. “Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls.” – Mother Teresa

42. “Without pain, how could we know joy?” – Anonymous

43. “There are souls in this world who have the gift of finding joy everywhere and leaving it behind them when they go.” – Frederick William Faber

44. “Joy is prayer; joy is strength: joy is love.” – Mother Teresa

45. “Joy, feeling one’s own value, being appreciated and loved by others, feeling useful and capable of production are all factors of enormous value for the human soul.” – Maria Montessori

46. “Man cannot live without joy; therefore, when he is deprived of true spiritual joys, it is necessary that he become addicted to carnal pleasures.” – Thomas Aquinas

Meaningful Joy Quotes That’ll Help You Find Happiness

47. “Find joy in everything you choose to do. Every job, relationship, home. It’s your responsibility to love it or change it.” – Chuck Palahniuk

48. “If you’re not having a good time, find something else that gives you some joy in life.” – Penny Marshall 

49. “Go find your joy. Whatever that is, go find your joy. Are you going to have a good day, or are you going to have a great day? Because it’s completely up to you.” – Sandra Bullock

50. “If you can’t find joy in the path you are on and what you are working toward now, how do you expect to find joy once you get there?” – Anonymous

51. “The secret to life is finding joy in ordinary things. I’m interested in happiness.” – Ruth Reichl

52. “Joy is the path that leads to both love and happiness. Once we devote ourselves to cultivating joy, we discover that we are surrounded by love.” – Anonymous

Joy Quotes to Relieve Your Sadness

53. “You have to sniff out joy. Keep your nose to the joy trail.” – Buffy Sainte-Marie

54. “Let joy keep you. Reach out your hands and take it when it runs by.” – Carl Sandburg

55. “Joy is the infallible sign of the presence of God.” – Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

56. “You need to sow seeds of thought if you want to reap joy.” – Bill Powell

57. “He who has not looked on sorrow will never see joy.” – Kahlil Gibran

58. “Let your joy spring forth from within.” – Anonymous

59. “Joy is untouched by circumstance.” – Anonymous

60. “Joy descends gently upon us like the evening dew and does not patter down like a hailstorm.” – Jean Paul Gaultier

61. “We seek joy as if it would be a magic potion, and sometimes we connect it to different goals or achievements. The truth is that joy does not belong to the material, pragmatic world. It is the inner territory of our hearts, which we can visit whenever we want.” – Anonymous

Joy Quotes for People Who Love to Spread Good Vibes

62. “There are those who give with joy, and that joy is their reward.” – Kahlil Gibran

63. “A joy that’s shared is a joy made double.” – John Roy

64. “Joy multiplies when it is shared among friends, but grief diminishes with every division. That is life.” – R.A. Salvatore 

65. “A joyful life is made up of joyful moments gracefully strung together.” – Brené Brown

66. “There’s a great joy in my giving. It’s thrilling. It’s exhilarating. It’s important to be a part of sharing.” – W. Clement Stone

67. “A joyful heart is the normal result of a heart burning with love. She gives most who gives with joy.” – Mother Teresa

Also read: Good Vibes Quotes

More Joy Quotes From the Bible

68. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” – Romans 15:13

69. “Until now, you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” – John 16:24

70. “I tell you, there will be more joy in Heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous persons who need no repentance.” – Luke 15:7

Also read: Bible Quotes

Are You Aware of Where Your Joy Comes From?

It’s easy to feel down and uninspired. Many of us have those moments when we’re just in a slump and can’t lift our spirits no matter what we do. We feel like there’s something that’s blocking our source of happiness.

It’s pretty normal, and we believe you’ve felt it, too, at some point in your life. However, you must understand that your joy lies within you. Your loved ones, work, and possessions can contribute to your happiness, but it’s innately inside of you as well.

If you believe you’ll find happiness elsewhere or rely on someone else to make you happy, your joy will always be fleeting. So, focus on how wonderful it is to be alive and in the present moment; reflect on what is positive and matters most to you. In this way, even when your life seems less than ideal, you can still find reasons to be happy.

Hopefully, this list of quotes was able to bring back the joy in your life. We all know that finding true happiness is often easier said than done. But, once you find it, it will be all worth it!

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Karen Danao

Hi, I’m Karen, a content curator and writer for Quote Ambition; I’m also a marketing and advertising professional. Beyond the keyboard and the screen, I’m someone who’s out to enjoy every bit that life has to offer!

Poetry, philosophy, history, and movies are all topics I love writing about! However, my true passion is in traveling, photography, and finding common ground to which everyone from different cultures can relate.

With the many places I’ve been to, I found that love, inspiration, and happiness are some things that bring people together. No matter how different we are on the outside, I’m a true believer that our emotions don’t lie; if you dig deep into our psyche, we’re all the same inside.

This belief was further amplified when I joined Quote Ambition. Through the quotes I’ve read, collected, organized, and written about, I found that humans are resilient, creative, and compassionate.

We take from each others’ hearts and courage, and it’s through our individual experiences that we learn how to rise above our challenges and pain. In so many ways, Quote Ambition is a platform that allows people from all over the world to gain the inspiration they need anytime, anywhere!

You can find me on MuckRack and LinkedIn.