Happiness

Is happiness different than joy? I have always heard people say that the two are different. Happiness is positive emotions that may flow from some recent circumstance. You know, the Brewers won again, the Custard Stand is serving my favorite as their "Flavor of the Day," you got a promotion at work and Grandma's cancer is in remission. That's happiness.

But joy, they say, is that positive mindset that you keep even when things go bad. This all used to make sense to me. Maybe, in general, it still does.

But the older I get, the happier I become. I'm not talking about an internal mindset, I am thinking about the gladness of heart that comes all the time because of my relationship with Jesus Christ and the certainty of my position in Him. I am forgiven. Let that sink in. And God has given me the privilege of knowing the most incredible woman in this world. I can hear from God through His Word and by His Spirit. God has opened my eyes to His fame and made me see how pitiful my attempts to get fame for myself have become. When I fail this afternoon or next week, God will hold me in His hands.

Let me include a list of things that I am happy about that I wrote in my journal about a year ago. They all come because of His resurrection. Happiness is:

• God created me from nothing. He saw my "unformed substance" and knit me together.
• God allowed me to experience an upbringing that centered on Him.
• God has forgiven my sin and helped me place my faith in Him. What if I died today? God is still good. He owes me nothing except death--he gave me life in His Son.
  
• God uses my little light to tell this world that He is reigning on His throne.
• God has chosen ME for good works (and he prepared them for me "in advance" of me even being here).
• God is granting an increasing measure of grace to constantly put to death the "flesh," and walk with Him in obedience.
• God has granted me the ability to see and comprehend literature and inspires me with the literary works of His servants through the ages.
• God has blessed me with an amazing wife and family. Though I often choose selfishly, He also empowers me to prefer their needs over my own and serve them.
• God has blessed me with the incredible privilege of embracing things that this world calls foolishness. Creation? I believe it. Miracles? I serve the God of them. Heaven? My hope is there with the Promise-Giver Himself.
• God matured my faith along the way from a timid "hope so," to a tenacious mature belief in His Son. I know that I utterly need the Body of Christ.
• God has opened my eyes to the joy of giving stuff (money) away.
• My life has purpose and meaning.
• Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, when I die I am guaranteed a place in heaven with Him forever. One day I will posses a new body(as Christ was raised from the dead, I will be too!) and be physically present with Jesus Christ. What will that be like? This is reason to celebrate!
• God will use the life of the obedient believer (even mine) to bring more and more people into His family.

I have actually had people say to me that they "don't know what God ever did for" them. What!? Start with the above list and then add your own! How has God shown His love for you? The list is never-ending.

So we can haggle about joy and happiness. I can't imagine the two are very far apart. If the Brewers lose; if my job contains things I don't like, if my childhood was painful, if the tumor is malignant--blessed be the name of the Lord. I choose gladness.

So today, I remind myself again . . .