There’s this one thing that I think we’ve all thought of at one point. I want to follow God, but hopefully, He doesn’t call me to be a missionary in Africa, New Guinea or New Jersey.
Because for most of us that sounds like it would suck. We hear from all over that we need to chase our dreams. And dreams are really our fantasy of what will make us truly happy. When we fear that God will ask us to do something that we don’t want, like minister to the homeless, to the sick, or especially to children – we find out the core of the problem.
We also find the core of the problem when we catch ourselves thinking that winning the lottery will solve our problems and make us happy.
And that problem is… What God wants is different than what makes us happy.
Now before you call me a heretic, you have to realize that there is one element that causes this to happen. Our sin. With sin, our happiness is no longer in line with what God wants. Sin tells us that happiness is having tons of money, being famous, having a record deal, having a ton of girlfriends, mocking old people, punching people in the face, and having healthy, manageable hair.
However, we should love God so much that what makes Him happy is what makes us happy. That is why the Bible says…
PS 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.
If your will is God’s will then He will bring is to pass. God is a God of love, who loves us so much that He wants us to be happy as well. The problem is, in our infinite wisdom, we think we know what will make us happy.
But God is the only one who truly understands our soul. He created it. He is the one that understands what will truly bring true happiness. He created our soul to find happiness in fellowship with Him. In his
In his family we find both value and purpose.
Sure, winning the lottery might bring ‘happiness’ for a season, but it doesn’t bring true happiness to your soul. Sure, being famous is great, but it doesn’t bring lasting happiness to your soul. If you don’t believe me, just look at celebrities. These people have it all, money, fame, power – yet they still go through the same fundamental lack of happiness we all go through. They just have better hair.
It’s all because God has designed us a certain way. And that design is to be in his family. When we don’t have that fellowship with Him, we don’t have inherent value, a higher purpose, so then we become unhappy. And you can’t replace that with anything else. It would be like taking your child and replacing him or her with other kids from down the street. You could try all the different kids from your neighborhood, but they could never truly take the place of your child.
When we don’t have that fellowship with Him, we don’t have that inherent value, a higher purpose, so then we become unhappy.
And you can’t replace that with anything else. It would be like taking your child and replacing him or her with other kids from down the street. You could try all the different kids from your neighborhood, but they could never truly take the place of your child. The relationship, value and purpose just aren’t there.
And that’s how we try to live our lives. There is only one thing that can truly fill the hole in our soul, that can truly make us happy, but we try to find it in all the wrong places. And when we hope that God doesn’t ask us to do something that might make us uncomfortable or unhappy – our heart hasn’t quite gotten to the point where it understands what makes us truly happy. The same thing goes for when we think having winning the lottery will solve our problems and make us happy.
And what makes us truly happy is living out His will for our lives. That and good hair.
PS 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Take Time To Pray: Ask God to help you figure out where you are trying to find happiness apart from Him. Today’s Fruit of the Spirit: Love. A love where His delight (fellowship with Him and His will) is the desire of your heart.