Joy and Gladness

"O Flower of Jesse's stem,
 you have been raised up as a sign for all peoples;
 kings stand silent in your presence,
 the nations bow down in worship before you. 
 Come, let nothing keep you from coming to our aid."
When the angel announces to Zechariah that he and his wife Elizabeth will have a child (Luke 1:5-25) he says, "You will name him John.  You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth." 
The name John means "Yahweh has given grace," or we might say "Gift of God."  A gift is undeserved.  It comes from the sheer goodness of the giver.  It brings delight.  Already in verse 14 of his first chapter Luke is proclaiming "joy and gladness, and many will rejoice," a theme that will run through his Gospel, especially in these first two chapters.
Just a few verses on the angel says that he has come  "to announce this good news."  The Greek verb is the source of our word "evangelization."  Gospel means "good news."  Our Holy Father Francis titled his recent writing The Joy of the Gospel to point out that spreading the Good News is the main work of the Church and to encourage us to do it with joy and gladness.