Is joy an attitude?

I attended an Advent Luncheon today. The message concerned the idea of joy. The lay leader of the church where the luncheon was held delivered the message, and he did a great job. I wonder, though, about one of the thoughts he expressed. Is joy an attitude?

I think of joy as the emotion we feel when we are convinced of the presence of God. When we are close to God, we feel joy. It's not happiness -- it's not giddiness. If it were, then we would only experience joy during good times. We know, though, from watching people, that there are those who are joyful even in tragedy -- even when they are far from happy.

That seems to be an impossible task -- beyond our abilities. And perhaps it is. Perhaps joy is a gift of grace from God. Could it be that without God's help we would not experience joy? And if it takes God intervention, then can we say that joy is an attitude? Saying that it is an attitude implies for me that it is something that we can do on our own. If we just try hard enough, if we just keep watching for God hard enough, then we will bring about joy on our own.

Sometimes we can. But in those deepest, darkest moments, can we rely on our attitude for joy? Or must we rely on the grace of God?