I recently had an excellent conversation with someone who posed the question to me, “Does God want me to be happy?” I had to think very carefully about my answer, and the more I pondered this question, the more I realized I had just been given my latest piece to write about. (Thank you, smart person!)
My first answer was naturally yes. There are numerous verses which support the fact that God loves you and wants good things for you (Psalm 84:11, James 1:17, Psalm 37:4, Matthew 7:11). Just this cursory sweep of scriptures tells me that God does indeed delight in seeing you happy. Nevertheless, I think we very often fall into the trap of thinking that “being happy” and “getting what I want” are exactly the same thing, when in fact they aren’t. We all want things which are very often contrary to our best interests. Like a loving parent who refuses to feed their child a steady diet of ice cream and candy, our heavenly Father is oftentimes forced to deny us the things we so earnestly desire, not because he’s vindictive or unhappy with our performance, but simply because he knows that’s not what’s actually best for you. Sometimes wanting what’s best for your child means saying “no” quite a bit.
My first answer was naturally yes. There are numerous verses which support the fact that God loves you and wants good things for you (Psalm 84:11, James 1:17, Psalm 37:4, Matthew 7:11). Just this cursory sweep of scriptures tells me that God does indeed delight in seeing you happy. Nevertheless, I think we very often fall into the trap of thinking that “being happy” and “getting what I want” are exactly the same thing, when in fact they aren’t. We all want things which are very often contrary to our best interests. Like a loving parent who refuses to feed their child a steady diet of ice cream and candy, our heavenly Father is oftentimes forced to deny us the things we so earnestly desire, not because he’s vindictive or unhappy with our performance, but simply because he knows that’s not what’s actually best for you. Sometimes wanting what’s best for your child means saying “no” quite a bit.
When God wants to teach us a lesson on a particular topic, he usually gives us an opportunity to show the exact opposite quality. If the lesson is Joy, he will allow you to experience sorrow. If the lesson is Peace, he will put you in a situation designed to drive your blood pressure beyond the boiling point. If the lesson is Patience, he will make you wait for something FOR...EV…ER. Patience is by far the most aggravating lesson I’ve had to learn over the years, precisely because the learning process has involved innumerable months of seeing absolutely no results in certain areas of my life. After years of sometimes-infuriating impatience, I can now look back over that time and suddenly see exactly what God was doing: He was teaching me to wait. Furthermore, had it not been for my grueling lesson in persistence, I wouldn’t have gained the dedication to hold on to the things I want with all the ferocity of a junkyard dog.
Sometimes your breakthrough is totally impossible without the preceding pain. Back when the aviation community was still relatively young, there was a prevailing theory that the sound barrier was in fact an impenetrable force that couldn’t be broken through by any man-made aircraft due to the incredible air pressures which buffeted the aircraft as they approached it. Many pilots had unsuccessfully tried throughout Word War II to get beyond Mach 1, but it was not until Chuck Yeager came along in 1947 that it was proved once and for all that once you breach the “barrier” of compressed air, you can soar at supersonic speed.
Many of you may remember that I started my writing spree with a post about being miserable. Misery and seemingly-meaningless toil are some of the greatest hallmarks of God’s refinement process for our souls. Just ask Moses, Joseph, Joshua and Caleb, and even Jesus himself as he wandered hungry in the wilderness for forty days. Your happiness is very often antithetical to your success in life. Happiness runs the great risk of breeding complacency. If you have everything that you want in life, then what motivation do you have to improve yourself or your situation?
Remember, walking in God’s favor doesn’t mean you’ll encounter no resistance, or even that you’ll get everything you ask for. The good news is, if you can just push through the weeks (or sometimes even years) of being slammed around the cockpit, eventually you will breach the barrier and begin to truly fly.
Sometimes your breakthrough is totally impossible without the preceding pain. Back when the aviation community was still relatively young, there was a prevailing theory that the sound barrier was in fact an impenetrable force that couldn’t be broken through by any man-made aircraft due to the incredible air pressures which buffeted the aircraft as they approached it. Many pilots had unsuccessfully tried throughout Word War II to get beyond Mach 1, but it was not until Chuck Yeager came along in 1947 that it was proved once and for all that once you breach the “barrier” of compressed air, you can soar at supersonic speed.
Many of you may remember that I started my writing spree with a post about being miserable. Misery and seemingly-meaningless toil are some of the greatest hallmarks of God’s refinement process for our souls. Just ask Moses, Joseph, Joshua and Caleb, and even Jesus himself as he wandered hungry in the wilderness for forty days. Your happiness is very often antithetical to your success in life. Happiness runs the great risk of breeding complacency. If you have everything that you want in life, then what motivation do you have to improve yourself or your situation?
Remember, walking in God’s favor doesn’t mean you’ll encounter no resistance, or even that you’ll get everything you ask for. The good news is, if you can just push through the weeks (or sometimes even years) of being slammed around the cockpit, eventually you will breach the barrier and begin to truly fly.
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