Seems like a simple question right? The Webster’s Dictionary defines happiness as, “A state of well-being and contentment”. According to this definition, happiness is subjective to an individual and can look very different depending on who you are talking to. If your current situation makes you “well” or “content” then you must be happy, right? Well, what if your situation changes? What if what you thought was going to make you happy left you feeling worse than before? In today’s society, so many people are chasing after what is going to make them happy so let’s try and find some answers!
Before I speak to you about the Bible I would like to introduce 3 statistical studies that have been measuring satisfaction for many years. The results are in, is happiness on the rise?
According to the Gallup Poll, American satisfaction has dropped from 48% to 38% since 2020 which is the lowest score in over two decades of measurement. The General Social Survey has hit a record high on their numbers with 24% of their respondents indicating they were not happy, compared to 19% who said they were very happy. Finally, the Marist College Poll reported 51% of surveyors were not optimistic for the future which is the first time that the majority has swayed in that direction.
Well just reading some of those statistics makes me less happy! So where am I headed with all of this? I hear so often people say, “just do what makes you happy” but if we are being honest with ourselves, this is an aimless attempt at fixing a deeper issue.
The point that I am trying to make is that how you feel day to day is going to change but there is always going to be one thing that remains the same. His name is Jesus! I heard a pastor say one time that, “Happiness happens” and this simple saying has truly changed my life and I want it to change yours too! If we really want to be happy we don’t need to read another self-help book but rather we need Jesus in our life.
In the book of Matthew Jesus invites us into his loving arms by saying, “Come to me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest”. I don’t know about you, but I am weary and worn out from some of the struggles in my life and it has a tendency to affect my day-to-day happiness. But when we give to Jesus everything that weighs us down, we can finally get the recharge that so many of us are looking for.
So what makes finding happiness so difficult for so many? It is the that so many people are looking for happiness in all the wrong places. If you go to the store and look for fresh fruit in the frozen aisle, you will never find what you are looking for no matter how hard you try. But there will always be frozen fruit that tempts you into thinking the substitution is adequate yet will never be able to replicate the satisfaction of the real deal. We try so hard to find substitutes for Jesus when in reality he is the only place that we will find real lasting happiness.
John 4:14 says, “But those who drink the water that I give them will never be thirsty again”.
So where do I find happiness? I find it in Jesus. Not to say that your life will never endure hardships or difficulties ever again but when that time comes you won’t be chasing after empty pleasures that won’t ever truly satisfy. For life is full of frozen fruits that tempt you but nothing will ever beat the real deal.