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The persuit of happiness

C

Chris

Guest
Something that has hindered me greatly in my pursuit of happiness and inner peace is living life agonizing mentally over how things "should be"

When I look at the world and it differs from Gods ideal how it "should be" it fills me with sadness if I let it.

If I look at my peers and see my life is less opportune than theirs think I "should be" like them in a high paid gob with a great house etc at the same age.

For me getting rid of that "should be" mental anguish and dissatisfaction with life has been a key to improving personal happiness.

Rejoicing at what is in the blessings in our life and in others lives rather than what I think its shortcomings are is one my keys to happiness.

What are your keys to unlock happiness and bring peace?
 
The key to the development of my personal happiness from my early years onward stem directly to the moment God told me through His words that I am an individual. Thereas, my life would continue a path meant for me as opposed to that of even my best friends.

When adversity strikes, I know I have the Word of God for comfort. When I try to open Door #1 that has been shut to me, I know God (and not Monty Hall) has a better door waiting for me.

Yes, the World seems to be speeding along a course towardslawlessness and the further promotion of sin. And yes, I agree with you, it's saddening and a reprehensible state of affairs. However, these woes should help to strengthen our walk; after all, you don't know when you'll be called upon to lend a shoulder to someone who hasn't found the Lord yet. (And there are many lost sheep out there.)

Still, God has a plan for you through all of this. And if your life doesn't seem to be on par with those of your friends or co-workers, then just believe, have faith in knowing that God NEVER lets go of you. He merely has a different path for you, because you are unique and therefore very special to Him.

Ecclesiastes 3 is a chapter that is dear to my heart. It uplifts me when I need a wee bit extra.

God bless you, Chris!

:wave
 
Chris

There is no key to happiness. One will find themselves sometimes happy and sometimes sad. But there is something more important than happiness. Joy from trusting in God rather than our own understanding and walking by the Spirit.

Nevertheless, if you really want more happiness than what you have, try meditating on,

Matthew 5:
3 ‘Happy the poor in spirit—because theirs is the reign of the heavens.
4 ‘Happy the mourning—because they shall be comforted.
5 ‘Happy the meek—because they shall inherit the land.
6 ‘Happy those hungering and thirsting for righteousness—because they shall be filled.
7 ‘Happy the kind—because they shall find kindness.
8 ‘Happy the clean in heart—because they shall see God.
9 ‘Happy the peacemakers—because they shall be called Sons of God.
10 ‘Happy those persecuted for righteousness’ sake—because theirs is the reign of the heavens.
11 ‘Happy are ye whenever they may reproach you, and may persecute, and may say any evil thing against you falsely for my sake—
(Young’s Literal Version)

Matthew 11:6 and happy is he who may not be stumbled in me.’
Matthew 13:16 ‘And happy are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear
(Young’s Literal Version)

Phil 4:
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable— if anything is excellent or praiseworthy— think about such things.
9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me— put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
(NIV)

And just in case you don’t think the Law has been abrogated,

Psalms 1:
1 O the happiness of that one, who Hath not walked in the counsel of the wicked. And in the way of sinners hath not stood, And in the seat of scorners hath not sat;
2 But—in the law of Jehovah is his delight, And in His law he doth meditate by day and by night:
3 And he hath been as a tree, Planted by rivulets of water, That giveth its fruit in its season, And its leaf doth not wither, And all that he doth he causeth to prosper.
4 Not so the wicked: But—as chaff that wind driveth away!
5 Therefore the wicked rise not in judgment, Nor sinners in the company of the righteous,
6 For Jehovah is knowing the way of the righteous, And the way of the wicked is lost!
(Young’s Literal Version)

FC
 
I don't mean to be a Bummer Bob, but a lot of Christianity involves facing reality as it is--tragic. Flawed. Tragically flawed, even. I just think that some of my own walk involves getting all the psychobabble junk I learned in therapy out of my head and replacing it with God's Word and insights, both my own and those of other Christians. Jesus said He came to give us life, and that more abundantly. To me, that means He's calling us to the fullness of human life, which means recognizing our fallen state and the fallen state of the world in which we live (for now...). It means realizing that this life is fleeting and tragicomically "out-of-whack."

Personally, my life became a lot more joyful when I gave up on happiness. I don't mean embrace tragedy in some overly-dramatic sort of way. I simply mean that, with Christ, you can face the obvious: life is rough.
 
Former Christian said:
Chris

There is no key to happiness. One will find themselves sometimes happy and sometimes sad. But there is something more important than happiness. Joy from trusting in God rather than our own understanding and walking by the Spirit.

Nevertheless, if you really want more happiness than what you have, try meditating on,

Matthew 5:
3 ‘Happy the poor in spirit—because theirs is the reign of the heavens.
4 ‘Happy the mourning—because they shall be comforted.
5 ‘Happy the meek—because they shall inherit the land.
6 ‘Happy those hungering and thirsting for righteousness—because they shall be filled.
7 ‘Happy the kind—because they shall find kindness.
8 ‘Happy the clean in heart—because they shall see God.
9 ‘Happy the peacemakers—because they shall be called Sons of God.
10 ‘Happy those persecuted for righteousness’ sake—because theirs is the reign of the heavens.
11 ‘Happy are ye whenever they may reproach you, and may persecute, and may say any evil thing against you falsely for my sake—
(Young’s Literal Version)

Matthew 11:6 and happy is he who may not be stumbled in me.’
Matthew 13:16 ‘And happy are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear
(Young’s Literal Version)

Phil 4:
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable— if anything is excellent or praiseworthy— think about such things.
9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me— put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
(NIV)

And just in case you don’t think the Law has been abrogated,

Psalms 1:
1 O the happiness of that one, who Hath not walked in the counsel of the wicked. And in the way of sinners hath not stood, And in the seat of scorners hath not sat;
2 But—in the law of Jehovah is his delight, And in His law he doth meditate by day and by night:
3 And he hath been as a tree, Planted by rivulets of water, That giveth its fruit in its season, And its leaf doth not wither, And all that he doth he causeth to prosper.
4 Not so the wicked: But—as chaff that wind driveth away!
5 Therefore the wicked rise not in judgment, Nor sinners in the company of the righteous,
6 For Jehovah is knowing the way of the righteous, And the way of the wicked is lost!
(Young’s Literal Version)

FC
Click to expand...
That is a good post, FC. :thumbsup
 
When you can learn to put the Spiritual above that which is material then and there will your happiness begin by trusting God in all things of your life that your joy may be fulfilled in Christ.
 
Probably not the answer you were expecting BUT the happiest years of my life were when I sold my house, gave away virtually all of my possessions and set off in my boat for three years to live frugally and to see whatever life threw at me.

I met dozens of lovely people but still had plenty of solitude in which to ponder and to enjoy nature. Quite wonderful!
 
Aardverk many of the happiest times in my life involved an existence without wealth or financial security. In those times I saw things I had not noticed before. Being penniless forced me to go camping and out into nature. There is a feeling almost beyond explanation when you have no busy agenda and are sitting on the edge of a forest cliff in conversation with God looking at a tree filled valley he created. Nothing centers your thinking like a few days of that and quiet reflection on life.

There is much happiness in what you said.


Do you know If I had millions of dollars to do anything I wanted with, that is the thing I would choose. The thing I already have that poverty let me discover as a 20 year old is one of the best things ever.
 
Concern yourself with other people and their burdens and God will concern Himself with you .... my pastor just preached this message in church earlier today.

Seek first His Kingdom and righteousness ... (Matthew 6:33). A generous person will prosper ; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed (Proverbs 11:25).

I also speak from personal experience that when I reach out and pray to or help other people instead of being self-absorbed, happiness supernaturally seems to follow me. God takes care of my own needs and desires... :thumbsup
 
Preach the kingdom, and if all else fails then use words! That means live life bringing joy to others by doing good works towards them as well as praying for them its the only way to get any satisfaction from life. Making our lives count in someones else's life
 
Chris said:
What are your keys to unlock happiness and bring peace?
Click to expand...

I don't care for the term "happy" or the idea that I am caused to unlock what makes me happy. I prefer Joy, peace, and contentment. I find this in trusting in Christ and not myself. What I do like about the world, and how things are, is that it test my faith in this way, and when I place my trust in Christ and not in myself, my faith is strengthened, with peace, joy and contentment; and because of that I can face anything this world dishes out. Count it all joy.
 
I am glad to have read your post, Danus, as it distinguishes happiness from other states of being. I would like to add that our understanding of the word is a recent evolution as the origin pertains to good fortune. Also, our bodies are not designed to be happy the way we talk about being happy. The feeling of 'happy' is a chemical outlier that requires an equalibrium. With its high, there is sure to be a low in the vicinity. Joy and contentment are a much valiant state to pursue and much more sustainable!
 
Fedusenko said:
The feeling of 'happy' is a chemical outlier that requires an equalibrium. With its high, there is sure to be a low in the vicinity. Joy and contentment are a much valiant state to pursue and much more sustainable!
Click to expand...
If we are going to segue into 'scientific' mode, we should also consider Maslow's hierarchy of needs. In short, he pointed out that the chances of happiness are low until your basic needs are satisfied.

I do agree that 'Joy and contentment' is a better aim.
 
It is important to understand that happy is not what it originally meant. Good fortune is what happy means. Luck. You can have a persuit of of good fortune and you may pave the road ahead of you to point luck your way, but the modern understanding of happy and that being happy all the time is a destructive one both physically and socially. Your body can not sustain continual happiness nor can society afford to manufacture perpetual happiness.

Joy and contentedness are a subtle yet significant alternative to the abused word.
 
Former Christian said:
Chris

There is no key to happiness. One will find themselves sometimes happy and sometimes sad. But there is something more important than happiness. Joy from trusting in God rather than our own understanding and walking by the Spirit.

Nevertheless, if you really want more happiness than what you have, try meditating on,

Matthew 5:
3 ‘Happy the poor in spirit—because theirs is the reign of the heavens.
4 ‘Happy the mourning—because they shall be comforted.
5 ‘Happy the meek—because they shall inherit the land.
6 ‘Happy those hungering and thirsting for righteousness—because they shall be filled.
7 ‘Happy the kind—because they shall find kindness.
8 ‘Happy the clean in heart—because they shall see God.
9 ‘Happy the peacemakers—because they shall be called Sons of God.
10 ‘Happy those persecuted for righteousness’ sake—because theirs is the reign of the heavens.
11 ‘Happy are ye whenever they may reproach you, and may persecute, and may say any evil thing against you falsely for my sake—
(Young’s Literal Version)

Matthew 11:6 and happy is he who may not be stumbled in me.’
Matthew 13:16 ‘And happy are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear
(Young’s Literal Version)

Phil 4:
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable— if anything is excellent or praiseworthy— think about such things.
9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me— put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
(NIV)

And just in case you don’t think the Law has been abrogated,

Psalms 1:
1 O the happiness of that one, who Hath not walked in the counsel of the wicked. And in the way of sinners hath not stood, And in the seat of scorners hath not sat;
2 But—in the law of Jehovah is his delight, And in His law he doth meditate by day and by night:
3 And he hath been as a tree, Planted by rivulets of water, That giveth its fruit in its season, And its leaf doth not wither, And all that he doth he causeth to prosper.
4 Not so the wicked: But—as chaff that wind driveth away!
5 Therefore the wicked rise not in judgment, Nor sinners in the company of the righteous,
6 For Jehovah is knowing the way of the righteous, And the way of the wicked is lost!
(Young’s Literal Version)

FC
Click to expand...
Good post thsnks mate. Actually your post reminded me of a couple of the happiest times of my life and a thing I still seek.



The first time I became a christian and the holy spirit came upon me brought a joy I had never known before that lasted for months in a really happy high.

Many years later I experienced that again in the form of a baptism of the holy spirit. I think it is the ultimate euphoric high. Thats when in return for the high God marces you around and uses you in ways you have never known before.

I wish every day could be that. It sort of is but is never again the same shift in preception and inner joy. Its more leveled out now.
 
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