The concept for happiness differs. To the surprise of many who live in Finland, the Gallop Poll designated Finland as the happiest country in the world two years straight. The Gallup Poll looks at six key factors to determine happiness: GDP per capita, social support, life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and corruption levels. Well, those things would certainly make life easier, but do they necessarily guarantee true individual happiness? It is doubtful that genuine happiness is determined by a Gallop Poll.

Some depend on circumstances or happenstance for their happiness. If your happiness and wellbeing is contingent on circumstances, special events, such as vacations, Christmas, birthdays, etc, you will be unhappy only about 90% of the time.

What makes you happy in life? What if you won the lottery? Would that make you happy? The reason billions of dollars are spent on lottery tickets is because people think if they won the lottery it would make them happy. According to research, after one year, lottery winners go back to their original state, and some are even less happy than before. Also, the majority of lottery winners wind up broke and in debt in a few years. They spend it on luxury items which add nothing to their state of happiness once they are used to them. This phenomenon is called hedonic adaptation, which refers to people’s tendency to return to a set level of happiness which is independent of life’s ups and downs. Here’s the point, if you can’t be happy now, you are not likely to be happy in the future regardless of the circumstances.

Where is happiness found according to the Bible?

Happiness is found in God and Him alone: Happiness cannot be delegated: The United Nations has appointed each March 20 to be “International Day of Happiness.” Does having a day set aside for happiness make a difference? Thomas Jefferson penned in Declaration of Independence that all men are “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” It is reassuring that the founding fathers recognized that God is the author of unalienable human rights, but again that alone does not assure us of happiness.

The Austin Institute for the Study of Family and Culture surveyed over 15,000 Americans and found, “People attending religious services on a weekly basis are nearly twice as likely to say they’re ‘very happy’ than those who don’t attend at all.”

What is true happiness?  In Psalm 144:15, King David nailed it, “Joyful indeed are those whose God is the Lord.” According to David, ultimate happiness includes more than the earthly things that man commonly considers happiness.  True happiness is a result of knowing the one true God, in a personal way.

The world’s concept of happiness is kicking your heels up and joining your friends for happy hour at the local pub. Whatever this is, it is not true happiness. Humans are determined to find a way to be happy on their own. C. S. Lewis, in his book “Mere Christianity,” outlines what happens when we attempt to find happiness outside of God: “The moment you have a self at all, there is a possibility of putting yourself first—wanting to be the centre—wanting to be God, in fact … What Satan put into the heads of our remote ancestors was the idea that they could … invent some sort of happiness for themselves outside God, apart from God. And out of that hopeless attempt has come nearly all that we call human history—money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery—the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy. God made us … He Himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. There is no other. That is why it is just no good asking God to make us happy in our own way without bothering about [a relationship with Him] religion. God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.”

Lewis states in the very last paragraph of “Mere Christianity:” “Give up yourself and you will find your real self. Lose your life and you will save it. Submit to death, death of your ambitions and favorite wishes every day and death of your whole body in the end submit with every fiber of your being, and you will find eternal life. Keep back nothing. Nothing that you have not given away will be really yours. Nothing in you that has not died will ever be raised from the dead. Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay. But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in.”

Where is happiness found? Jesus Christ is the foundation of our happiness. The first thing to do is to seek Him and His kingdom: “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matt. 6:33). The “all things” is everything we need for a life of happiness and wellbeing.

Hannah Whitall Smith, wrote in her book “The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life:” “Offer each moment of thy living and each act of thy doing to God, and say to Him continually, Lord, I am doing this in Thee and for Thy glory. Thou art my strength, and my wisdom, and my all-sufficient supply for every need. I depend only upon Thee. Refuse utterly to live for a single moment or to perform a single act apart from Him. Persist in this until it becomes the established habit of thy soul. And sooner or later thou shalt surely know the longings of thy soul satisfied in the abiding presence of Christ, thy indwelling Life.”

Hannah Smith is talking about a complete and total commitment to God in order to find the Christian secret to happiness. Remember, it is possible to establish a relationship with God and still not be happy. It requires a follow through as Hannah Smith stated above. It requires us cooperating with God moment by moment, day by day.

Happiness is found in relationships: Happiness begins with a relationship with God and along with that come Christian attributes; the first is building meaningful relationships. The Bible is a book about relationships; the second commandment is to love thy neighbor as thyself. It is impossible to have the fullness of happiness without them. This is following through with our relationship with God.

Billy Graham, in his book “The Secret to Happiness” said, “Man is on a quest to fill the vacuum in his heart and only a relationship with God can fill that vacuum.” We might add also a complete dependence on him.

One of the most important things we do in life is developing deep and meaningful relationships. Developing a relationship first with God then with others we trust is essential to our overall well-being and happiness.

Relationships build a strong society: Former U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, wrote in a 2017 Harvard Business Review article: “The world is suffering from an epidemic of loneliness. If we cannot rebuild strong, authentic social connections, we will continue to splinter apart — in the workplace and in society.”

Is the lack of meaningful relationships the cause of loneliness? Elvis Presley performed his last concert in June of 1977. As he announced the last song he would ever sing publicly, “Are you lonesome tonight,” he said “I have been lonesome and I am lonesome.” I don’t know what Elvis’ relationship to God was, but I know it is possible to have relationships and still be lonely, because without God you are missing the foundation that makes other relationships meaningful.

Is the lack of success the cause of loneliness and unhappiness? Colonial Parker once observing Elvis in a depressed mood said, “What is the problem? You said you wanted to be a famous singer and now you are. You said you wanted to be a movie star and now you are. What do you want?” Elvis replied, “I don’t know.” It is easy to know that something is missing in life, but it is sometimes hard to understand what it is.

Loneliness is part of the vacuum man feels without God. Research indicates, “Loneliness and social isolation can be as damaging to health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, whereas friendships can reduce the risk of mortality or developing certain diseases and can speed recovery in those who fall ill.” That friendship begins with God.

Happiness is found in thankfulness or Gratitude: Gratitude is a Christian attribute. Someone said, “If you don’t know the language of gratitude, you’ll never be on speaking terms with happiness.” Listen to what Colossians 3:15-17 says about thankfulness: “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the LORD Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Notice how few people around you express gratitude. It is easy to major on the negatives in life and overlook the blessings. The world, contrary to the opinion of many, is not a bad place to live. It is a beautiful world in many respects. It certainly is a world full of opportunities to express our gratitude. Our lives are filled with many things to be thankful for.

The American Psychological Association found, “Showing gratitude can help people savor positive experiences, cope with stressful circumstances and strengthen relationships.” Test it. Take time today to show your gratitude at least one time, and then do it each day for the rest of the week and see the results. If you notice carefully, it will make the day for someone.

Happiness is found in forgiveness: Forgiveness is another Christian attribute. The Bible teaches us to be forgiving: Ephesians 4:32, “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”

I like what Nelson Mandela said when he emerged from 27 years in prison in 1990. Someone asked if he had any resentment toward his captors. His reply was, “I have no bitterness, I have no resentment. Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping it will kill your enemies,” Mandela responded.

Forgiveness is not based on whether a person deserves to be forgiven; it is based on a Biblical command to forgive others. Hate and bitterness can impact your happiness in a negatively way and ruin your health.

The effect of forgiveness is increased happiness. On the other hand, hate and bitterness increases anxiety, depression and stress, which is proven to raise the risk of heart attacks, cholesterol levels, and high blood pressure.

According to research, people who give of their time and money to help others are happier, have a higher self esteem, and a lower death rate.

The University of Chicago and Northwestern University conducted a study on giving which revealed, “Giving, rather than receiving, leads to long-term happiness.”  Modern day science and research often bear out what the Bible revealed hundreds of years ago: The Bible is where we find “The Blueprint to True Happiness.” To develop a relationship with God, CLICK HERE.

Written by Jimmie Burroughs