Can I Really Be Happy?

Can you REALLY be happy in a world like we live in today? What would it take to make you happy? The popular idea of happiness is that you must have the right circumstances. God’s way to be happy involves something that is much more attainable than any of these arbitrary measures. He tells us in eight positive statements (we call them “The Beatitudes”) that the way to be happy is by having the right attitude.

The First Step To Happiness

Jesus talks about being “poor in spirit.” This IS NOT an admonition for low self-esteem. It simply means that I realize my dependence on Him! Happiness and humility go hand in hand. If I want to have lasting happiness, then I must learn to be humble.

Healing a Broken Heart

Don’t you wish all the heartbreaks in life were as easy to get over as they were in elementary school days? The fact is, as you grow older life gets tougher and we experience much worse heartaches. It’s Interesting that the Bible never tries to explain suffering. It does something much better than that. It teaches us how to handle it!

Controlling My Reactions

What do you think of when you hear the word meek?
It’s a “buzzword” isn’t it? You probably think of Popeye without spinach or Superman exposed to kryptonite. We have descriptions like – meek as a mouse.
What is meekness?
Well, possibly, it’s easier to define what it’s not. It is not weakness. There are only two men in the Bible described as meek. They are Jesus and Moses. I don’t think either of them was a wimp!

Satisfaction Guaranteed

Those unlikely Theologians, The Rolling Stones, gave us the theme song for my generation, the “Baby Boomers,” and it appears that the more things change the more they stay the same. They sang a song called “Satisfaction.” The first phrase of the chorus says, “I can’t get no satisfaction!”
Why are so many people so dissatisfied?
The Bible says it’s because they are looking in all the wrong places!

Mercy Shown is Mercy Gained

If you want to be happy you must treat people right.
What is right? In this case, Jesus is teaching us that treating people right means treating them with mercy.
What is Mercy? Webster defines mercy as: “compassion (pity) shown toward an offender or an enemy.” Mercy is one of the major attributes of God. It is God’s mercy that keeps me from getting what I deserve. Mercy is love in action. It’s so much more than just an attitude or a feeling. If I want to reflect God, I will be merciful.

Happy from the Inside Out

As Americans we are increasingly concerned with purity. We want to drink pure water, breathe pure air and eat pure foods. As important as these three (pure water, air, food) are, there is one sense of purity that Americans tend to overlook.
Matthew 5:8 Jesus says, “happiness is a heart condition!”
It’s not what goes in that makes the case, it’s what comes out that counts!
Happiness is from the inside out!

Give Peace a Chance

Jesus says that there is always one trait we can exhibit that testifies that we are just like our Heavenly Father. You’re just like your Heavenly Father when you are a Peacemaker.

Handling Harassment

In order to be happy, I must be approved by everyone! Sound familiar? This is a myth that must be “debunked” if you are to enjoy REAL happiness. Is it possible to please everyone? Of course not! Jesus was a realist. He’s very honest with us, sometimes painfully so, when He informs us that there are going to be lots of people who aren’t going to approve of our decision if we follow Him. It takes a strong, mature, realistic faith to handle this type of rejection. (v.11, John 15:24, II Timothy3:12)