Is the following sentence acceptable? Is there a better phrase?
When he heard the good news, joy filled his heart.
Yes, it's acceptable. There may be a better phrase, but only the writer can really tell if there is a better phrase.
There is nothing grammatically correct with the sentence, the only way you could change the sentence in my opinion, would be changing the strength of the meaning.
An example.
euphoria filled his heart/body etc.
Joy is a fairly strong emotional word, however there are words that have a higher meaning.
