Happy Happy Happy Thanksgiving!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!  Happy has become a popular word as of late...just think Duck Dynasty...HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY.... but what exactly is happiness.  In America, our view of happiness is very skewed.  Some would say happiness is a state of mind.  Others say that it is getting things they want that make them happy.  I believe happiness is a good attribute that God has given us that reveals His goodness and His image upon us as human beings.  But I also believe that Scripture teaches us that happiness is so much more.

If you want to find a happy individual, look no further than Psalms 1.  The very first word in the first verse, "blessed" has also been translated as "happy."  Happy is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.  Isaiah 26:3 puts it another way: You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you. 

Bible study, memorization, meditation, and application are not just spiritual exercises.  They are the pathway to happiness and peace.  Not only happiness and peace but also success.  God told Joshua to meditate on the book of the law both day and night so he would be careful to do everything written in it.  Then God says to Joshua that by doing so he would be both prosperous and successful.

So we can see what happiness is and what it is not.  Happiness is not seeing the external expectations you have in life come to be.  Simply put, you are not happy because you get what you want or what your heart desires.  In fact, I have noticed the opposite to be true.  Those who get often want more and are never satisfied.  The lust for more never brings contentment.  I have seen many unhappy marriages, unhappy customers, unhappy kids, unhappy employees, etc.  That is because idols never deliver.  People, families, jobs, things can never fill the happy void.

Happiness is an inner satisfaction in and a loving relationship with a Holy God.  Only God can bring fulfillment in one's life and this takes place in spite of outside circumstances one finds him or herself in.  Reread Psalms 1.  In today's case, you won't ultimately be forever happy because you ate to your heart's content.  At best, you will wonder why you can't eat like this every day.  At worse, you will wonder why you ate too much.  No, happiness is much more than a state of mind.  Happiness is a gift from God!