Destination: Happy?

Destination: Happy?

"God just wants you/me/us to be happy"

Have you ever said this, or heard someone else say it? It's a nice concept, but is it really true according to God's word? Let's investigate...

When the world uses this expression, it is usually tied to someone who is living in sin. Oftentimes this is said because the person speaking doesn't want, or have the knowledge and/or guts, to call a spade a spade and admit the sin involved. When we use it in the right way then, yes, God wants us to be happy; however the method of attainment is very different than how the world views it.

Let's define the term, "happy"
1) favored by luck or fortune 
2) notably fitting, effective, or well adapted
3) enjoying or characterized by well-being and contentment 

The word "happy" is used 21 times in the NKJV. 18 of those times it is descriptive of one whose heart was glad as a result of the Lord's blessing and/or the keeping of His law. Twice it speaks of those who will exact God's judgment upon His enemies, upon those who oppress His people; the other time the prophet Jeremiah questions why the sinful's prosperity and happiness was present and allowed to carry on as they did (why they were "happy" in their treachery).

If we follow the word of God, we will know true happiness. If we want to know how to be happy, do a study on that word and note the things which bring happiness. It originates with God and His blessings, a knowledge of His truth, a keeping of His law, not man's whims and selfish indulgences.

Human emotion is an unreliable determinate to establish any truth. We can be "happy" over many things in this life, but that doesn't mean we're right with God. In essence, then, we can be happily lost...which, when we stop to honestly think about it, should bring us sorrow to the extent that we desire to change our offending actions.

God gives us the truth, our goal is not the emotion but rather doing that truth first; we either follow it or not, our emotions are a byproduct of what we decide to do with that truth. We can have a smile on our faces all the way to hell, but what good is that when we're lost for eternity? Being "happy" doesn't supercede being godly, the world's view of happiness being the goal is a misnomer. In fact, there are those in the world who appear to be very happy but lost in their sin (see Jeremiah 12), while there are Christians - who truly have every reason to be happy - who appear to be the most sour and pessimistic people you've ever met. This is upside down, isn't it? 

The world attempts to manufacture this emotion by any number of methods, but the bible truth is only God - through our relationship with Him - can produce true happiness. Here's the thing, as Christians we have the tools and ability to be happy even when everything in our life has fallen apart - the world thinks this is crazy and they marvel at this type of reaction to life. As Christians we can stare into the face of adversity and have confidence that whatever may happen, if we go through it with God then we will succeed. This realization allows us to be happy even when our earthly plans fall apart because we have our heavenly goal still in tact. Sure, we may not walk through life smiling when things fall apart, but we have an inner joy, and peace, and true happiness that shines through us in all our actions knowing all will work out - maybe not like we planned- if we'll just stick by our Lord.

If happiness is our goal, what we're pursuing, then we'll do whatever we have to in order to produce, and keep, this emotion at its height.

If truth, and responding to life by that truth, is our goal then we can have true happiness that is consistent and lasting for eternity.

Let godliness be our goal, not unstable and unreliable human emotion. This doesn't mean we go through life with no feeling or no emotional responses, rather it means that what guides and motivates our feelings and emotions is God's truth first, and that truth never fails. His truth will bring up honest emotion naturally, by doing His will we can be truly happy.

So yes, be happy! Please, by all means be happy, but let it be according to knowledge and application of the word of God and being in a saved state before Him. Let's get rid of the sin that plagues us and pursue heaven faithfully. Don't give up and don't give in to the world. Seek God's definition of what brings happiness and forsake the world's view. Heaven will surely be worth it all. Press on friends.

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