Happiness is Fleeting

For everyone here, including the whole palace guard, knows that I am in chains because of Christ. And because of my imprisonment, most of the believers here have gained confidence and boldly speak God’s message without fear (Philippians 1:13-14, NLT).

I walked out of my house early this morning. As I glanced toward the sky, I snapped this beautiful photo! I walked back in the house to grab my stuff, and as I came to a stop at the end of my street a few minutes later, the beautiful colors in the sky had already changed.

Doesn’t happiness feel like that sometime? It’s here one moment, and gone the next.

Emotions can be like a pendulum, and several years ago, this was true for me. They were dependent on those around me, often swinging back and forth from one extreme to the other. I used to live each day from the perspective of if you’re okay, I’m okay.

Whew. That was exhausting. And the enemy used that to steal so much from me. But God.

This is exactly why I am so thankful for Jesus. After a lot of counseling, prayer, learning more about myself, and most of all, the character of God, I began to understand true joy. And I can assure you, it is not dependent upon our circumstances.

Paul, the great scholar and author of the Epistles, wrote about true joy while he was in prison. In Philippians 1:13-14, Paul wrote: “For everyone here, including the whole palace guard, knows that I am in chains because of Christ. And because of my imprisonment, most of the believers here have gained confidence and boldly speak God’s message without fear.”

Paul was certainly not happy about his situation. He was in chains for preaching the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus, and surrounded by folks who were intending to make his chains more painful.

Where is the joy in that? There is none. However, true joy is independent of circumstances. Paul is a perfect example of that. He recognized his purpose, trusted God’s plan, and his joy was found in the Lord.

As I have walked in step with the Holy Spirit over the last six to seven years, I have begun to understand that true joy is a condition of the heart. That does not mean we won’t experience stress, struggles, or sadness. In fact, the Bible assures us that we will.

However, when we lean into Jesus, and allow our emotions to rest there, we begin to understand the difference between happiness and joy.

Happiness is fleeting, but joy, found only in a personal relationship with Jesus, is eternal. And because of Jesus, I can say, with confidence, that my heart has never been healthier.

#christ #thenarrowpath #faith #eternal #joy #hope #jesus #healing