THE SECRET TO HAPPINESS -
"Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let
him sing songs of praise." James 5:13
What would it take to make you really happy? What would make you
that kind of person, who awakens each morning saying, "Thank you,
Lord! Another new day! I am so happy to be alive!" Instead, too
many people wake up thinking, "Why am I even here?" Today let’s
explore what it would take to make you a happy and content person.
Right now, you are saying, "He already knows what would make me
really happy–the return of my spouse." Before you give that answer,
let’s look at what seems to make people happy.
Maybe it’s money. If you are struggling to pay the bills, money
would certainly seem to be the key to your happiness. I once heard a
Christian multi-millionaire speak on, "It’s Lousy to be Rich." He
said that he had six homes around the world, but he still could only
sleep in one bed at a time. He had few real friends, because people
he wanted to be close to were either after his money, or were
intimidated by his vast wealth. This large man said that he could
only eat about four times a day, even though he could travel to and
eat anywhere he desired. He could only wear one of his fine suits at
a time. He had nothing to wish for, to save money for, or to dream
about. Hearing that man’s sincerity, I suspected he would gladly
trade places with any of that congregation.
Do you think fame would make you happy? Imagine not being able to go
out to a restaurant without being mobbed by fans, or having to have
bodyguards everywhere you went. Your every move would be reported by
some publication. Everything you did was under constant scrutiny.
(The church has even made celebrities of some called-out men and
women of God.) Being famous might bring you more hindrances that
happiness.
Good looks? That might be it! Would being a beautiful person make
you happy? Be warned that you would have to be so careful not to
damage your beautiful body, even restricting what you ate and the
activities you participated in. Your happiness would be so fragile
that an accident could take it away.
Would good health make you happy? If an individual were healed
today, they could still count their time remaining on earth in years,
as opposed to all of eternity. To someone depending on good health
for their happiness, a different affliction could strike them down at
any time.
Since none of these worldly secrets to happiness can make an
individual happy, how about a bit from each? Maybe if you had just a
little more money, just a few more people appreciated you, you looked
just a little better, and had health that was somewhat improved.
Would you then be happy? You have only increased your risk of losing
your happiness four-fold, just as Job did.
I forgot, your spouse coming home would make you happy, correct? It
would thrill us also, but if your entire happiness depends on another
individual, their being called home by the Lord would some day take
away your happiness.
How, then, can you experience real happiness consistently, day after
day, for the rest of your life. Here comes the key to finding real
happiness:
Discovering The Will of God For Your Life And Doing It.
Happiness is that simple. Once you discover what the Lord wants you
to do, and start doing it, your will achieve happiness.
"This is what the LORD says- your Redeemer, the Holy One of
Israel: "I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for
you, who directs you in the way you should go. If only you had paid
attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river,
your righteousness like the waves of the sea." Isaiah 48:17-18
Each day Charlyne and I hear over and over how miserable prodigal
spouses appear. We read what they have told their standing spouse,
and about their actions, as well as their appearance. Your prodigal
is miserable because they are outside of the will of God.
Before someone sends an email about how "happy" their prodigal seems
to be, you are viewing only one side of their life, a camera shot of
their life. No one can bear guilt and shame, living in a life of
sin, often built upon lies, for any extended period of time and know
the happiness that brings lasting peace. The Bible says that sin is
pleasant for a period.
"As smoke is blown away by the wind, may you blow them away; as wax
melts before the fire, may the wicked perish before God. But may
the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and
joyful." Psalm 68:2-3
Here is the bottom line: If you are serious about seeking real
happiness, get alone with God and discover His will for your life–and
then go about doing it with everything you have. Then tomorrow, get
alone with God and discover His will for your life–and they go about
doing it with everything you have. The following day, do the same
thing. Doing this every day for the rest of your life will bring you
happiness.
The Lord may not be calling you to be a missionary to a distant
country, but He may be calling you to be a missionary to a friend or
co-worker who needs to know about Jesus. He may be calling you to
change diapers in your church’s nursery. If He is, even that
assignment will bring you happiness.
Some of the most miserable people we have met are men and women who
God has told to stand for their marriage, and they have walked away
from that assignment. Some of the happiest people we know are
standers, who have none of the happiness traits the world envisions,
but they have discovered the will of God for their marriage, and are
standing in His strength, not their own, for the duration, until
Jesus brings their prodigal home.
We do not have to wonder, "How is so-and-so doing this week?" Yes,
certainly they will have their ups and downs, but they have allowed
Jesus to watch over them, and we don’t have to.
The standers we know best are the men and women who come to Rejoice
Pompano Beach each Monday night for Bible study. Many of those people
have horrible circumstances, yet you should hear that room when we
sing praises to God. We do not hear from most of them from one week
to the next. You would think they would be calling us or showing up
at the door every day. How did these people become so mature in
standing and so happy? Be hearing Charlyne teach one hour each week,
having biblical truths drilled into them, over and over. (That’s why
we suggest tapes or CD's to you). If you want to see examples of
true happiness in standers, come visit us any Monday evening.
If God has told you to stand for marriage restoration, you will not
be happy doing anything else.
If God has told your prodigal spouse to repent and to go home, I can
assure you from experience, they will never be happy until they do.
The one you love may not follow God’s will the first time they are
told, but His voice to the prodigal only gets louder with time.
Charlyne and I pray that today both you and your spouse may find the
will of God and do it. That’s when marriages are restored!
"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to
be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in
need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the
secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well
fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do
everything through him who gives me strength."
Phillippians 4: 11-13
May God bless you,
Bob Steinkamp
Rejoice Marriage Ministries, Inc
him sing songs of praise." James 5:13
What would it take to make you really happy? What would make you
that kind of person, who awakens each morning saying, "Thank you,
Lord! Another new day! I am so happy to be alive!" Instead, too
many people wake up thinking, "Why am I even here?" Today let’s
explore what it would take to make you a happy and content person.
Right now, you are saying, "He already knows what would make me
really happy–the return of my spouse." Before you give that answer,
let’s look at what seems to make people happy.
Maybe it’s money. If you are struggling to pay the bills, money
would certainly seem to be the key to your happiness. I once heard a
Christian multi-millionaire speak on, "It’s Lousy to be Rich." He
said that he had six homes around the world, but he still could only
sleep in one bed at a time. He had few real friends, because people
he wanted to be close to were either after his money, or were
intimidated by his vast wealth. This large man said that he could
only eat about four times a day, even though he could travel to and
eat anywhere he desired. He could only wear one of his fine suits at
a time. He had nothing to wish for, to save money for, or to dream
about. Hearing that man’s sincerity, I suspected he would gladly
trade places with any of that congregation.
Do you think fame would make you happy? Imagine not being able to go
out to a restaurant without being mobbed by fans, or having to have
bodyguards everywhere you went. Your every move would be reported by
some publication. Everything you did was under constant scrutiny.
(The church has even made celebrities of some called-out men and
women of God.) Being famous might bring you more hindrances that
happiness.
Good looks? That might be it! Would being a beautiful person make
you happy? Be warned that you would have to be so careful not to
damage your beautiful body, even restricting what you ate and the
activities you participated in. Your happiness would be so fragile
that an accident could take it away.
Would good health make you happy? If an individual were healed
today, they could still count their time remaining on earth in years,
as opposed to all of eternity. To someone depending on good health
for their happiness, a different affliction could strike them down at
any time.
Since none of these worldly secrets to happiness can make an
individual happy, how about a bit from each? Maybe if you had just a
little more money, just a few more people appreciated you, you looked
just a little better, and had health that was somewhat improved.
Would you then be happy? You have only increased your risk of losing
your happiness four-fold, just as Job did.
I forgot, your spouse coming home would make you happy, correct? It
would thrill us also, but if your entire happiness depends on another
individual, their being called home by the Lord would some day take
away your happiness.
How, then, can you experience real happiness consistently, day after
day, for the rest of your life. Here comes the key to finding real
happiness:
Discovering The Will of God For Your Life And Doing It.
Happiness is that simple. Once you discover what the Lord wants you
to do, and start doing it, your will achieve happiness.
"This is what the LORD says- your Redeemer, the Holy One of
Israel: "I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for
you, who directs you in the way you should go. If only you had paid
attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river,
your righteousness like the waves of the sea." Isaiah 48:17-18
Each day Charlyne and I hear over and over how miserable prodigal
spouses appear. We read what they have told their standing spouse,
and about their actions, as well as their appearance. Your prodigal
is miserable because they are outside of the will of God.
Before someone sends an email about how "happy" their prodigal seems
to be, you are viewing only one side of their life, a camera shot of
their life. No one can bear guilt and shame, living in a life of
sin, often built upon lies, for any extended period of time and know
the happiness that brings lasting peace. The Bible says that sin is
pleasant for a period.
"As smoke is blown away by the wind, may you blow them away; as wax
melts before the fire, may the wicked perish before God. But may
the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and
joyful." Psalm 68:2-3
Here is the bottom line: If you are serious about seeking real
happiness, get alone with God and discover His will for your life–and
then go about doing it with everything you have. Then tomorrow, get
alone with God and discover His will for your life–and they go about
doing it with everything you have. The following day, do the same
thing. Doing this every day for the rest of your life will bring you
happiness.
The Lord may not be calling you to be a missionary to a distant
country, but He may be calling you to be a missionary to a friend or
co-worker who needs to know about Jesus. He may be calling you to
change diapers in your church’s nursery. If He is, even that
assignment will bring you happiness.
Some of the most miserable people we have met are men and women who
God has told to stand for their marriage, and they have walked away
from that assignment. Some of the happiest people we know are
standers, who have none of the happiness traits the world envisions,
but they have discovered the will of God for their marriage, and are
standing in His strength, not their own, for the duration, until
Jesus brings their prodigal home.
We do not have to wonder, "How is so-and-so doing this week?" Yes,
certainly they will have their ups and downs, but they have allowed
Jesus to watch over them, and we don’t have to.
The standers we know best are the men and women who come to Rejoice
Pompano Beach each Monday night for Bible study. Many of those people
have horrible circumstances, yet you should hear that room when we
sing praises to God. We do not hear from most of them from one week
to the next. You would think they would be calling us or showing up
at the door every day. How did these people become so mature in
standing and so happy? Be hearing Charlyne teach one hour each week,
having biblical truths drilled into them, over and over. (That’s why
we suggest tapes or CD's to you). If you want to see examples of
true happiness in standers, come visit us any Monday evening.
If God has told you to stand for marriage restoration, you will not
be happy doing anything else.
If God has told your prodigal spouse to repent and to go home, I can
assure you from experience, they will never be happy until they do.
The one you love may not follow God’s will the first time they are
told, but His voice to the prodigal only gets louder with time.
Charlyne and I pray that today both you and your spouse may find the
will of God and do it. That’s when marriages are restored!
"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to
be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in
need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the
secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well
fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do
everything through him who gives me strength."
Phillippians 4: 11-13
May God bless you,
Bob Steinkamp
Rejoice Marriage Ministries, Inc
posted by TIUranta at 10:28 AM
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