Happiness, Or Joy

The word 'happy' appears in the Bible 26 times; happier appears 1 time. The words joy, joyful, and joyous are recorded more than 200 times. A Master Card Ad from the late 90s comes to mind with regards to things that are really important and tend toward happiness and joy. "Two baseball game tickets, $28; 2 hot dogs, 2 pop corns, 2 sodas, $18; autographed baseball, $45; a real conversation with your son, priceless." We mortals spend a life time searching for happiness as we know it, and although the pursuit is endless, in reality, such happiness is over rated. But we do not realize its rating until we arrive at the 'gate of happiness'. When we ascertain its worth, we continue our pursuit of 'endless futility'. Animals seem content with the ability to feed, to shelter, and to breed. The Jeremiah passage is most inspiring, reminding us that satisfying ourselves is fruitless unless, "...we send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared..."* The happiness we seek evades us because we roam in wrong places, searching for self-perceived happiness outside of ourselves and apart from our creator. Seeking self-defined happiness or joy outside of and apart from our creator is tantamount to attempting to plant and grow seed in a steel beam which is lifeless and thus void of productive abilities. Such places and things are incapable of delivering the happiness we seek, but the real happiness to which we give little pursuit is priceless. If the joy of the Lord is our strength, falsified joy/happiness is our weakness. 082720PSCtest, Joy Of The Lord, Regina McIntosh *Poem inspired by Nehemiah 8:10: Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.