The Secret to Happiness

My husband asked me the other day what makes people crazy. (We have weird conversations in our house). I thought about it and remembered crazy people from my past.

I remember these two brothers who played basketball for the boy’s team in high school. They were normal guys, just like all of us. Shoot ahead, a few years later and I go back to Dillingham, Alaska. I see these guys on the streets in Dillingham. Their minds have been blown by drugs. They spend their days walking up and down the streets of Dillingham. They are incoherent and completely lost.

I’ve written about the alcohol problem in Alaska. Alaska is a tough place to live because of the long hours of darkness during the winter. Drunks are temporarily crazy. People really need the sun and the Son.

I’ve talked about my time working at a psych hospital after college. A few times, I had to work for the I.C.U. (intensive care unit). This was the real life, “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.” Except Jack Nicholson and the big Indian guy weren’t there. These people were crazy. (That’s the professional term). One woman would take off all her clothes and dance around her room. We were warned to bring a sheet when she did that, so we can give her some dignity before we took her down. Another woman kept telling me how THEY were after her and I needed to call this certain number to get her out of there before THEY kill her.

There are stories upon stories of drug addicts, alcoholics, or sex addicts. All people looking for peace, happiness, joy. It’s not found at the bottom of a bottle, in the next fix, or the next sex partner. They all end up crazy to some degree.

I told my husband that people make themselves crazy. In their pursuit of happiness, they usually end up pursuing the wrong thing and end up crazy. There is only One key to happiness. Outside of Him, people won’t find happiness.

One of my favorite professors from Biola, walked into class one day with the secret to happiness. He made that announcement when he walked into class the day. “I’ve found the secret to happiness!” he said. And then proceeded to tell us young whippersnappers what it was.

He read from Psalms 15.

O LORD, who may abide in Your tent?
Who may dwell on Your holy hill?

2He who walks with integrity, and works righteousness,
And speaks truth in his heart.

3He does not slander with his tongue,
Nor does evil to his neighbor,
Nor takes up a reproach against his friend;

4In whose eyes a reprobate is despised,
But who honors those who fear the LORD;
He swears to his own hurt and does not change;

5He does not put out his money at interest,
Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things will never be shaken.

My professor had read Psalms 15 that morning and decided he HAD found the secret to happiness. He started off by explaining the first two sentences: “O Lord, who may abide in Your tent? Who may dwell on your holy hill?” He explained that if someone were to live in God’s tent or dwell on His holy hill, wouldn’t that be a great place to be? Wouldn’t you have peace and joy, being so close to God? How could you not? The passage goes on to explain what things this person does. And finally, David ends the passage with, “He who does these things will never be shaken.” Doesn’t that sound like a nice deal? If you are never shaken, the simplified version would be whoever does these things will not go crazy.

I don’t know about you, but I for one would love to “never be shaken.” I for one would love to “abide in” His tent and “dwell on” His Holy hill. That sounds like a great place to be. If you don’t think so, look at the other options. You can try to do other things to find peace and happiness, but you wouldn’t be the first person to do so. There’s nothing new under the sun. (That’s in the Bible too). Save yourself the trouble.

The enemy would love for you to pursue happiness through a bottle of booze. But that’s so overdone, and so far it hasn’t worked for anybody. You can try drugs, but how many stories have we heard of people on drugs and they either die or get smart enough to get off of them. And sex. Sex is only fulfilling when it’s between a man and woman who are married to each other. Anything outside of that, and it’s an empty, depressing endeavor.

God offers us peace and joy. He says to believe on His Son, Jesus Christ. This is guaranteed peace, as long as we follow God’s will. Everything else is a counterfeit that will leave you sadder and more depressed or crazy. God is the real deal. I’ve been a Christian for a long time and I have experienced the “peace that surpasses all understanding.” Believe on Him. Trust in Him so that you “will never be shaken.”