Happiness for the believer and for the non-believer is very different. When someone is granted by God eyes to see and the faith to believe we are, at that point, redeemed. One thing that happens when you are redeemed, is your desires change. You shift from secular worldly desires that might have to do with money, sex, or some kind of altered state of self medication from drugs or alcohol, but I would contest that if you truly assessed these habits you would agree that they aren’t nearly as enjoyable as they may once have been. Truth is, they probably have the opposite effect.
Your happiness begins to be found in things that are lasting and selfless. Accomplishing things for others becomes attractive. You start to value people and have more of a desire to be productive with your time. There tends to be a conflict here because you have old habits and ways that you remember enjoying and people around you still enjoy, but you no longer enjoy. You’re basically trying to combat your mind telling you where to find happiness and your heart telling you where you’re really going to be happy.
The reason I write this, is because we can go back and forth on happiness between the two for our whole time on this earth! We can miss it! We can be infants in the faith for the remainder of our time here or we can GROW UP. There must be a point where, like Peter in John 21, we leave the fishing boat, where we feel comfortable, and jump in to what Jesus really has for us. There comes a time where we have to “forget what is behind and strain toward what is ahead. To win the prize to which God called us heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Phil 3:13-14)
Ultimately God holds your happiness and what this world holds is just a temporary imitation. Why would you continue to seek after the imitation? Don’t you want the real thing?
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