True Happiness

Then the Lord your God will make you most prosperous in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your land.  The Lord will again delight in you and make you prosperous, just as he delighted in your ancestors, if you obey the Lord your God and keep his commands and decrees that are written in this Book of the Law and turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

–Deut 30:9-10

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

–1 Tim 6:17

Saint Augustine of Hippo (354–430 AD), a Christian theologian and philosopher wrote, “Every man, whatsoever his condition, desires to be happy.”  But from where does this happiness come?  How can we find such happiness?  Charles Spurgeon (1834–1892), an English Baptist preacher explained, “Those who are ‘beloved of the Lord’ must be the most happy and joyful people to be found anywhere upon the face of the earth.”

Desire of Happiness

Thomas Boston (1676–1732), a Scottish theologian and philosopher remarked, “Consider what man is.  He is a creature that desires happiness, and cannot but desire it.  The desire of happiness is woven into his nature, and cannot be eradicated.  It is natural for him to desire as it is to breathe.”  In Jeremiah 15:16 it’s written that to be called by your name, O Lord God of hosts gives joy and delight to our hearts.

George Whitefield (1714–1770), an English Anglican cleric questioned, “Does [Jesus] want your heart only for the same end as the devil does, to make you miserable?  No, he only wants you to believe in him, that you might be saved.  This, this, is all the dear Savior desires, to make you happy, that you may leave your sins, to sit down eternally with him.”  

C. S. Lewis (1898–1963), a British theologian said, “It is a Christian duty … for everyone to be happy as he can.”  Lewis further explained, “We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday by the sea.  We are far too pleased.”

Believe in Jesus

James 5:11 tells us that we should count those blessed as the ones who endure like Job.  We have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings because he is full of compassion and is merciful.  Johnathan Edwards (1703–1758), a preacher and theologian wrote, “There is no man upon the earth who isn’t earnestly seeking after happiness, and it appears abundantly by the variety of ways they so vigorously seek it; they will twist and turn every way, ply all instruments, to make themselves happy men” For Christians the answer lies with knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.