Are you living the right lifestyle to be truly Happy?

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“How can a person find true happiness?” Well, I think that depends on the definition of what you believe “true happiness” is. Recently, I’ve had passing conversations with people who tell me they are really very happy. A few of these folks don’t manifest any indications of a relationship with God, so I am suspicious of the sources of their perceived happiness. Some I clearly know to be Christians, and yet I wonder about their relationship with God that they would think they are happy in this world. Maybe I’m am a “happy-resistant” person. Frankly, I’m not sure right now. More about my attitude later.

In last week’s article, I established that the pursuit of happiness is in fact the pursuit of God. Pursuit of a personal intimate relationship with God. Not casual... but an intensely passionate pursuit. Living according to His will and His expectations for your life.

Jesus had a radically different answer to that age old question... “how can I find true happiness.” In fact, nothing is more contrary to what common sense would suggest than Jesus’ answer to that question.

His straightforward answer came during his last meal with his disciples. Jesus knows that he is about to be betrayed, forsaken, arrested, unjustly condemned, beaten and killed. The room they are using for their last meal together has no household slave to wash their feet. There’s tension among Jesus’ disciples, who are consumed with which one of them is the greatest, so none of them is about to admit he is lesser than the other by doing what Jesus is about to show them.

What does Jesus say and do? He dons the garb of the household slave and washes their feet. After explaining that his action is a picture of his way of life, he says in John 13:17... "Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them." Blessed? You must be joking. Wash the feel of others and you will be “blessed”? The greek word for “blessed” (makarios) as used in this verse means “happy” or “fulfilled.” “These things” refers to Jesus’ action of washing their feet and his instruction that this is an example for them to follow. So what can we expect... remember happiness is the goal of humans? If you serve others in love, putting others and their needs first as a way of life, you will be truly happy. Not so easy to digest is it? The capacity to be kind, thoughtful, caring, loving, pleasant toward a fellow human is really very hard work.

Making others happy, to make ourselves happy is not the normal instinct for humans. You might be disagreeing with me right about now. That’s okay. But I want you to stop and look at the chaotic world around us and how we react to the tragedies that cause pain and suffering of people we don’t know. For the most part... casually... from a distance... by proxy... detached. Christians just can’t act that way and call themselves followers of Christ.

If you have accepted and committed your life to God, being immersed in Christ, then you have the power of the Holy Spirit. The living God dwells within you. You should have a clear understanding of God’s love, and what it means to love and care for others. Those two things are the foundation for a truly happy life. But it is by no means automatic and it doesn’t happen casually. If God is in you, then the world is not... it’s that simple. If He is in you, then you are “other directed”. It’s simple––you are either an instrument of God in His purposes, or you are not. With God... it's "all in" or nothing.

We know the world can often be cruel and unpredictable, as we’ve seen in the horrible earthquake that has devastated Haiti. Christians must react to help those suffering people. In times of high stress and tragedy, it’s easy to think that some almighty power is standing between you and what you’re trying to create for yourself. That’s probably not the case, its just your conscience needling you to do the right thing. Your happiness doesn’t come from the new big flat screen TV you’ve been saving months to buy or the new car you’ve had your eye on. It comes from helping others. God wants you to take up a share of responsibility for the pain and suffering of the Haitian people. If you’re a Christian, that’s part of your mission. (James 1:27)

Many Christians are miserable because they’re not getting the happiness from being Christian they thought God was going to provide! Jesus made it very clear, not to expect happiness as we typically think of it... in fact He said following Him would be disruptive to your life, causing divisions among family and friends. (Matthew 10:34-39; Luke 12: 49-53)

The key to happiness in this life –– is to build a lifestyle around the things of God. Put Him and His Kingdom first. Be ready when He needs you to respond to the pain and suffering of others. Don’t think about it, just be ready to do whatever is needed when it is needed. The happiness you seek will come in the form of internal joy and contentment from serving others in obedience to Him. That’s right, “obedience” to God brings true happiness, even though it may not look or feel anything like the happiness we envision for ourselves.

The world's concept of happiness is getting what we want. All merchandising is based on this idea. To really be happy, we need a flashier car, a sexier cologne, or any number of items that are better, faster or easier to use than what we already have. We watch the commercials, read the ads, and pursue all the latest fashions, fads and fancy doodads. Christians buy into this shallow lifestyle just like the non-christian world does. We all too often believe the lie that we're not really happy until we get what we want.

God's concept of happiness is summed up in the simple proverb: "Happy is the man who wants what he has." As long as you are focusing on what you don't have, you'll be unhappy. But when you begin to appreciate what you already have, you'll begin to experience the joys of life. Paul wrote to Timothy: "Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that" (1 Timothy 6:6-8 NIV).

Actually, we already have everything we need to live a joyful life. You have Christ. You have the promise of eternal life. You are loved by a heavenly Father who has promised to supply all your needs. No wonder the Bible repeatedly admonishes us to be thankful for what we have (1 Thessalonians 5:18). If you really want to be happy, learn to be thankful for what you have and not covet what you don't have.

The Christian lifestyle revolves around two ongoing priorities: First... loving God with everything you have, your whole heart... nothing held back, nothing in reserve. You are “all in”. Second... loving others, serving others, responding to their needs no matter how large the challenge or daunting the task. Do it without being urged, prodded, cajoled or begged. Seek out the opportunities to “wash the feet” of others. (John 13:34-35)

You have to decide to wholeheartedly embrace this way of life if you want to reap the benefit of true happiness. It’s God’s way... not your way. If you just dabble around the edges of your commitment to Christ and insist on an immediate return, you’ll soon become disenchanted and give up altogether. You have to decide... “I am going to bank my life on this proposition”—and then stick with it.

I make no claim to live this way perfectly—but I have sold out to it and I do practice it as my way of life. Am I happy? Not all the time... but I am filled with joy. I have taken the time to understand what God is doing in the world today and how I fit into His grand plan. Therefore, I am a contented person, satisfied with what I have. And I can tell you that I am a blessed man because of it!