This is how much God really cares about your HAPPINESS

These days, people are only concerned about their happiness.  They base their lives and actions upon the idea of achieving happiness.  However, there are some major flaws in living life this way, namely that happiness is a mere emotion. When we live our lives based on emotions, our lives become unstable.  Emotions can come as fast as they go and they are constantly changing. That is because our emotions are based on our circumstances.  Yesterday, I was happy that I got a good night's rest. However, today I am unhappy because I do not want to go to work tomorrow.  Regardless of my negative emotions, I still have to go to work. If I didn't go to work tomorrow what would the consequences be? Well, I would lose one day of work to prepare for my upcoming break.  I could potentially be fired for not showing up if I chose not to call in first with a valid excuse.  I could leave my co-worker to fend for herself tomorrow at our presentation session--the session with the largest attendance all summer. Just because we feel a certain way does not mean we can act upon those feelings.  

People are convinced that God "just wants us to be happy."  Well do you think God wants those people who are happy when they're doing drugs that are destroying their bodies to continue doing drugs in order to maintain their happiness? Of course not.  So why do we believe that our happiness is God's priority? The truth of the matter is that it's not.  God's priority is His will and His plans for our lives.  Jeremiah 29:11 (KJV) clearly states " For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end."  God, our creator, knows what is best for us. He has plans that far surpass in greatness any plans that we could have for ourselves.  Even though we may not understand or agree with the plans He has for our lives, understand that God operates out of pure, true love for us because He IS love.  He wants us to be happy, but He wants us to be happy within His will.  More importantly, He wants us to have and experience the peace, joy, and love that comes through being in right relationship with Him (by accepting His Son, Jesus Christ, as our Lord and Savior) and being obedient to His Word.  We all have a choice as to whether or not we will be led by our emotions and be unhappy with the plans God has laid out for us, or be happy with plans of our own.  Just like we have a choice of whether or not we will accept God's free gift of salvation or reject it.  Do not follow this world and its ways. Do not follow the movement towards "happiness."  Happiness comes and goes, but joy is everlasting (Isaiah 51:11) because it comes from the Lord (Psalm 28:7).  

Please do not take this post to mean that you should ignore your emotions or that your emotions are not important. God cares about how you feel. He cares about those times when you look in the mirror and you don't like what you see. He cares about those times when you are angry because of something that went down at work.  You should always take time to address your emotions with the help of God. Tell Him how you feel and ask Him to help you process your emotions.  You may receive comfort, revelation, or both.  Just understand that your emotions should not lead your behavior.  

God's love is here, is present, is real.  I can't wait for you to experience it and to work towards experiencing it regularly by meditating on His word and spending time in prayer with Him. God's love for us is EXCEEDINGLY GREAT.  He is anxious to hear from you, even right now as you read this blog. If you feel Him tugging on your heart, just let go and talk to Him! He longs to heal you, to comfort you, to love you, to whisper His word into your heart. He loves you, He truly loves you. More than your boyfriend, girlfriend, parents, siblings, or anyone else on this Earth could. I long for everyone to feel what I feel, even right now as I write, but you must accept Jesus Christ into your life in order to fully experience the Love of God.  Regardless of whether you believe in God or not He is real.  It is just fact. Won't you step out and risk experiencing His unconditional love today? His love is waiting on you. It's literally on the other side of your prayer: Lord, I accept your Son Jesus Christ as my  Lord and Savior. Thank you for saving me, thank you for loving me first.  Please send your Spirit into my life in order to guide me in love.  Fill me up with your love so that I too can love. In Jesus'  Holy name, amen. 

True Love