Musick-al Note # 141
The world seeks happiness as the thirsty person seeks water or the hungry man seeks food. The wild craze of satisfying of the passions, the vain pursuit of emotional thrills and an ever-increasing following of sports give ample indications that people are seeking happiness in any place and in any way that the world offers. Yet the psychiatrist couch, the emotionally disturbed criminal, the senseless murder with bomb or gun, the increasing suicide rate all declare that people are not finding happiness and contentment. Even in the church, we find very few who are finding happiness and contentment. Even in the church, we find very few who are really happy. We are frustrated, disappointed and fail to find the happiness, true joy and the peace we seek.
The world seeks pleasure in her ways and cannot find lasting pleasure because worldly pleasure is transitory. The church seemingly has failed also but only because her members seek joy and happiness in the wrong places. We have the idea that if we can GET and OBTAIN, we will have pleasure, happiness and peace. Jesus taught many things that seem to be contradictory. He said, “If we seek to save our life, we will lose it, and if we lose our life for His sake we would find it.” (Matthew 16:25-26). It is in the giving of self to Christ that you really obtain life. It is the same in joy, happiness, cheerfulness and peace, in giving these we find that we obtain them. In the pursuit of happiness we want to buy, to get, to have things, yet happiness eludes us.
Perhaps we could reverse things by giving, by seeking to enrich others. By making them happy we can thereby obtain that which is constantly eluding our grasp – real happiness for ourselves! How? By giving them the greatest gift of all – the message of the Savior. Never will we have a greater gift to give – by giving the knowledge of God’s great love for all mankind – that Jesus Christ gave himself to save everyone.
Share the joy of salvation with someone the message of freedom from sin in Christ Jesus, and greater happiness than you have ever known will belong to you.
Gordon Musick
Musick-al Notes 