Happiness Is...

Scripture Reading: Psalm 1:1-6

Key Verses: Psalm 1:1-3
             Happy are those who don't listen to the wicked,
             who don't go where sinners go,
             who don't do what evil people do.
             They love the LORD's teachings,
             and they think about those teachings day and night.
             They are strong, like a tree planted by a river.
             The tree produces fruit in season,
             and its leaves don't die.
             Everything they do will succeed.

Eight men were once traveling together, and each related his experience in reply to the question "Are you fully happy?" A banker said he had acquired a fortune, which was invested securely; he had a lovely and devoted family, yet the thought that he must leave them all forever cast a funeral pall over the declining years of his life.

A military officer said he had known glory and the intoxication of triumph; but after the battle he passed over the field and found a brother officer dying. He tried to relieve him, but the dying man said, "Thank you, but it's too late. We must all die; think about it, think about it." This scene gripped the officer, and he could find no deliverance from it. So he confessed his unhappiness.

A diplomat spoke of the honors and gratitude showered upon him during a long and successful career, yet confessed an emptiness of the heart, a secret malady which all his honors could not cure.

A poet told of the pleasures he enjoyed with the muses; of the applause of the people; of his fame, which he was assured was immortal. But, dissatisfied, he cried out, "What is such an immortality?" and declared his unsatisfied longing for a higher immortality.

A man of the world said that his effort had been to laugh at everything-to look at the bright side of things and be happy; to find pleasure in the ballroom, theater, and other amusements; yet he confessed that he was sometimes sad, and was far from perfectly happy.

A lawyer said he had health, wealth, reputation, and a good marriage, and that during his career he longed for just what he now possessed; but he did not find the expected enjoyment in it, and contentment was not his heritage. His hours were long and his existence monotonous; he was not fully happy.

A religious professor, a ritualist, professed his strict adherence to the doctrines of the gospel and his punctual performance of religious duties, without being happy at all.

A Christian physician related his vain search for happiness in the world and in his profession; but then he had been led by Scripture to see himself a sinner and to look to Christ as his Savior. Since that time he found peace, contentment, and joy, and had no fear of the end, which to him was only the beginning.

One of the true quests of life is learning how to be happy. Everywhere we look, people are searching for their happiness by the job they have, the homes they live in, the toys they play with, the food they eat, and the vacations they take. At the end of each of these things we are supposed to find this magic thing called happiness. But to our amazement, when we finally arrive at this great destination we often find that happiness has moved and left no forwarding address. A poet once said, "Happiness is much more equally divided than some of us imagine. One man shall possess most of the materials but little of the thing; another man possesses much of the thing but very few of the materials." This tension is one of life's greatest struggles: How do we balance between things and happiness? In today's passage we concentrate on three areas of this profile:
* What to avoid
* What to concentrate on
* What a happy person is like

What to Avoid

David warns us not to take advice from the wrong people. Paul likewise in Romans 3:4 states, "No! God will continue to be true even when every person is false. As the Scriptures say: "So you will be shown to be right when you speak, and you will win your case." The world system is trying to whittle away at our value system and make us conform to the world's way of thinking. Be true to yourself and seek wise counsel. This passage also tells us not to go along with what sinners do or to hang around those who criticize and make fun of others. The bottom line is to have quality friends-friends that have good character qualities and can provide good wisdom in their speech.

What to Concentrate On

Psalm 1:2 says we are to delight in the law of the Lord and to meditate on His law day and night. Concentration is one area of life that we have difficulty accomplishing. We have become so brainwashed by our media that all episodes of life are narrowed to a 30-minute time slot. Our evening news readers give sound bites to the event, usually highlighting those bites to reinforce the political persuasion of the station. Two areas of emphasis are to delight and meditate. Do we find ourselves going to Scripture with delight, and are we able to chew on it all day long? If we would approach Scripture each day in this way we would see  wonderful changes take place in our lives. Our families would be changed, along with our churches, communities, and nation.

What a Happy Person is like

David writes in verse three that our lives can become like a tree that is firmly planted in a place where there is a lot of water and that has leaves which stay fresh and green even in the heat and fruit which grows abundantly.

What kind of tree are you today?

* I'm a young tree, growing but not really established.
* My leaves tend to dry up in times of heat and stress.
* I'm a tree with no leaves and no fruit.
* I thought my roots were pretty deep but a recent storm nearly blew me over.
* I'm seeing more and more good fruit appear in my life,
* I wish I had more leaves to protect people from the heat.
* I'm a tree that's just a little too far away from the water, feeling a little dry.

The Christian doctor in the opening story shared that he had been led by Scripture to see himself as a sinner and to look to Christ as his Savior, since that time he has found peace, contentment, and joy, and had no fear of the end, which to him was but the beginning.