| For the despondent, every day brings trouble; But for the happy heart, life is a continual feast. –Proverbs 15:15 (NLT)I love the song, “Happy,” which is so popular lately. It actually makes me feel better.
A few years ago, a study was published reporting that emotions can be passed along much like a case of the flu. Meaning: if you know someone who is happy–especially if it is a mutual friendship–you are more likely to “let happy rub off on you.” In fact, not only you, but others you know will benefit because of this happy person in your life. One part of the study’s conclusion was simply that a person’s well-being is not only dependent on his or her own behaviors and emotions, but also as a direct result of the people in one’s social network. We often do not have control of what happens to us, but we do have control of our attitude and how we respond. So how do you get a happy heart? First, the people you surround yourself with matter! Are you in relationship with joyful followers of Christ? Or do you constantly surround yourself with naysayers? Make sure you have people in your life who have happy hearts and encourage the same in you. However, if you really want some guidance in having a happy heart in the midst of adversity, ask God for grace to follow Paul’s example when he was in prison. He left a blueprint for the way to a happy heart in Philippians 4:8. He encouraged us to fill our minds and hearts with what is true, right and noble and to think on godly and good things. May God give us grace, no matter what we are faced with, to choose to let joy find its way into our souls by focusing on godly things. Blessings, Thora |
