Joy and Happiness

Greetings!

I want to start this post by asking one simple question...

Are you happy?

I know I said I wanted to ask one question, but that one question is just begging for a  couple of follow-up questions. First, if you answered no...why not? Second, if you answered yes, what are you doing to share that happiness?

  

As I was contemplating what "happy" really meant, it made me wonder why being happy is so important. We work really hard at finding happiness. We want the life that they show on television, right? The kind of life where the guy always gets the girl and all of our problems get worked out by the end of the show. That would be nice, but that's not reality. 

What I found is that happiness can be fleeting, because it's dependent on something external. Something has to happen for us to be happy. We have to get the promotion, the new job, the mate we have always wanted....something. On the other hand, joy is something different. You can be going through the toughest storm of your life and still have joy. I know that can be confusing. Being happy and joyful sound the same, right? The difference is that joy comes from the inside. It is what happens when we give our lives to Christ. The Bible says that in the Lord we have the "fullness of joy." It is not dependent on anyone doing anything. We get it by staying connected to the Father. This kind of joy is given to us through the Holy Spirit that dwells within all of God's people. It is part of our inheritance. When we gave our lives to Christ, we automatically received the joy of the Lord.

There is nothing wrong with being happy. If you want to be happy...do something about it. Life is too short and God has been too good to live miserably. But, if you want the kind of joy that the world cannot give...the kind that strengthens, the kind that transforms, the kind that comforts, the kind that is everlasting...only God can give you that. Just ask...

Until next time...

Be blessed