DAILY HOMILIES #happiness

Stop worrying about your problems. By worrying, we magnify our problems, and God appears lesser. Be like Paul and Silas; sing instead. Sing the praises of God as our Psalmist today prompts: “I will extol you, my God, and bless your name forever… the Lord is faithful in all his words… the Lord supports all who are bowed down.”

Be meek. It’s okay for people to take you for a ride. Do not fight anyone; you will be happy. Be hungry and thirst for righteousness, not just food and drink; you will be satisfied. Be quick to forgive people, and don’t carry any grudge in your mind. Think only positive things about others. Be merciful, and you will be happy.

One of the fruits of the Holy Spirit is joy. You cannot have the Holy Spirit in you and remain sad and miserable because the Holy Spirit must bear fruit in you. The joy the Holy Spirit gives us that which remains regardless of whatever trials or tribulations we may encounter in life.

Jesus tells us today: “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (John 15:10-12)

Why do I have loads of excuses for God when He has provided a shortcut for me to achieve all my desires? Jesus himself said: “seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you” (Matthew 6:33). Do you believe this? Why not give God a try today?

This is heaven – loving our neighbors as ourselves. This is heaven – forgiving one another without counting the cost. This is heaven – seeing the face of Jesus in the people who have offended you like Onesimus. This is heaven – welcoming the earth’s rejected, the sick, the imprisoned, the orphans, giving to these little ones as much as a cup of water without expecting anything in return. The joy we feel when we help others sincerely is a foretaste of the joy of heaven.

When we receive miracles, we are happy but when we repent from sin, God is happy. If after receiving miracles, we fail to repent from our sinfulness, God is not happy with us. God would never stop loving us but if we seek happiness from God, let us also behave in a way that would make God happy with us.

Unlike this man who went home sorrowful, the seventy who had gone out to evangelize carrying no purse, no bag, no sandal came back bursting with joy and excitement. When they were going out, it was like an adventure to them, they must have asked themselves, “How am I going to survive? No purse, no bag, no sandals, no nothing! They must have concluded that Jesus was sending them out to commit suicide. But they obeyed. They followed the warnings. And they came back shocked that even the demons obeyed them. Their great power was in their ability to detach themselves.

When you seek first God’s Kingdom and prioritize righteousness, you may not become rich and famous in the eyes of the world but Jesus says you will find true inner satisfaction and peace. When you mourn over the sinfulness and evil pervading our world and refuse to be indifferent, Jesus says you will find true comfort.

Happiness on earth may be limited but the happiness above is totally unlimited. If we do not experience happiness as we so desire, let us not give up on God or attempt to seek happiness in sin. The devil cannot give what he does not have; it may seem as if we are enjoying for a while but soon it dawns on us that we have been deceived. Child of God, sorrow may last in the night but joy comes in the morning. Never Give up on God!

Jesus tells us today: “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (John 15:10-12)

The honest truth is that riches bring a lot of happiness and security but there is a certain extent to which the continuous increase in riches no longer affects one’s state of happiness.