The Serenity Prayer – God grant me the serenity… To accept the things I cannot change; Courage to change the things I can; And wisdom to know the difference…. Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time; Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; Taking, as He did, this sinful world
As it is, not as I would have it; Trusting that He will make all things right… If I surrender to His Will; So that I may be reasonably happy in this life… And supremely happy with Him… Forever and ever in the next.
Amen.
Declaration of Independence – We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness… Is it even attainable…?
Henry David Thoreau: "Happiness is like a butterfly: the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder.”
Apostle Paul – “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice” (Phil. 4:4)
Are you happy…? Those close to me might describe me as… pensive… introverted… moody… contemplative… But probably not happy! But I want to be happy! And so do you….
Some versions of Xianity have said things like, “God doesn’t want you to be happy… He wants you to be holy!”
C. S. Lewis – “The Scotch catechism says that man’s chief end is ‘to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.’ But we shall then know that these are the same thing. Fully to enjoy is to glorify. In commanding us to glorify Him, God is inviting us to enjoy Him.”
Think of the person living in the 7th century in poverty… the African American slave in the 1700’s… the person struggling with a chronic disease… the person who has lost a loved one… The person in prison… The peasant farmer…
Let me define Happiness… A deep, abiding satisfaction and security from being in God’s favor.
- Deep – Not a surface that this easily lost, it’s not a fleeting emotion that comes and goes with your mood… or whether you have had your caffeine yet!
- Abiding – It’s got stickiness… it is not dependent on favorable circumstances (health… finances… your “team”. Raider fans would never be happy! ☺.
- Satisfaction – A contented spirit.
- Security – I’m okay with God…. I’m okay with me!
There is happiness IN life AND… there is happiness WITH life. They are two different things.
The Science of Happiness – An explosion of research on this over the last 20 years!
- 10% circumstances… If/when thinking ** Caffeine happiness…
50% genetics – Sanguine (happy, hopeful, optimistic people) Melancholy (sad, miserable, downhearted, unhappy, gloomy, pessimistic). We really don’t hate you happy people… you make life more fun! We are jealous ☺.
- 40% choices. Life practices… follow certain disciplines… certain behaviors… HABITS!
Enjoying life…. With Jesus… With others… and For Others! Everything you need to life a happy life is right there!
- With Jesus… You get a sense of significance, worth, value.
- With Others… You get a sense of belonging.
- For Others… Your life has purpose… meaning.
Let’s get really practical… Because some of you are actually undermining your own happiness!
- You’re impulsive… short view… caffeine happiness… pleasure over fulfillment
- You’re getting bad information… fear has captivated your heart…
- You allow toxic people in your life…
- Decisions… how you spend your time… your money… the amount of sleep you get… diet… exercise.
COVID-19 has made things really difficult! More suicides in Portland than COVID deaths… More overdoses in SF than COVID deaths… the average age of COVID death is 78. Before COVID…? 78. 94% of COVID deaths had other health issues. I’ve been a little obsessive with cleanliness since H1N1 in 2009… I take C, D and Zinc… I exercise… I hold my breath when I walk by people in the store ☺.
This is just me… I decided I was going to take precautions… but I’m not going to live in fear. Statistically, I have a 99% chance of living, even if I get it! Hebrews, “It’s appointed for a person to die once… and then the judgment.” I’m going to continue to live a life WITH JESUS… WITH OTHERS… & FOR OTHERS.
Luke 6:40 – A student is not above his teacher, but when he is fully trained, he will be like him.
