Perfect happiness… what a concept…
To be honest, I don’t believe we can have perfect happiness. Apart from God, I’m sure there is no “perfect”…and I don’t think happiness is the answer either.
But isn’t that what we are often fooled into desiring? Our actions often seem to reflect that we are striving for perfect. And why wouldn’t we? The messages are everywhere… The magazines are all talking about it. Our friends on social media are all sharing their picture-perfect happy worlds. #Perfect (Gosh, don’t get me started on social media…). All the different twisted perspectives can be so convincing and attractive. They mislead us to believe that we should have perfect happiness too… right?! The problem is we live in a broken world, broken by sin and evil, where no one is spared from hardship and real trials (see the book of Genesis for the play-by-play of how this happened).
You see, most of us are chasing happiness whether we realize it or not. Many of us are making choices for momentary happiness that have negative long term effects.
Many of us are making choices for momentary happiness that have negative long term effects.
Of course, it is not wrong to want to be happy, and it is not wrong to make choices towards living a cheerful life.
For instance, God gave us the land filled with beauty and the ocean filled with wonder. Shouldn’t we utilize it responsibly, care for it, and enjoy it?! I find so much happiness surfing and playing with Adam, Tobias, and Wesley. The ocean is my family’s joy filled playground. We love to sneak away to the mountains too! The earth is our oyster!
…But should that be our focus?
Psalm 37:4 promises, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” A fulfilled heart? Yes, please! What can be better than a satisfied, filled and contented heart? The Psalm continues in verses 5-6, “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and He will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday sun.” A life that SHINES and sparkles out of the goodness of God — isn’t this what we truly long for!?!
Let’s abandon the “search for perfect happiness” and continue to dwell on how we can take joy in what Jesus has done for us! While I don’t believe we can have perfect happiness, I do believe we can live a life of deep joy, a life with a satisfied heart and an ever growing grasp of the beauty of who we are in God’s eyes.
So, next time you see the picture of perfect happiness on social media, or elsewhere, make a choice to fixate on God’s perfect love for you instead!
Being Unstoppable means, abandoning the focus on happiness and instead seeking God’s truth for your life.
