Happiness?

Now what about happiness? This is such an overused word and we don't even know what it is, because if we know what it is, we'd recognize it when it comes and be happy. Kant said something along this line: "Give a man everything he wants, and everything then will not be everything."

I understand we all have "days off" "down days" or whatever term you come up with to describe your inner ramblings. The other day, I was listening to this economist guy talk about happiness and he was coming from a secular viewpoint, not from a biblical perspective. Yet, he hammered a very good point. He said that people are "happiest" when they are virtuous. When we are more giving, when we're nicer to others and when we do the right thing and we don't have to look over our shoulder -afraid of being caught, we're happiest. Therefore, happiness should not be our goal, but doing the moral thing is.

There was a point in my life when I was so unhappy, almost unbearable even, but I got up every morning and accepted that it was my lot in life. I struggled through and God knew when I had enough, so He picked me up and carried me the rest of the way. And just as the unhappiness ended, so did the happy ones.

When daily life gets harder to discern or sort through, always remember what Solomon said:

"This is the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man's all. For God will bring every work into judgement, including every secret thing, whether good or evil."