This is how quick we want to be happy.
If only it was this easy, right?
We live in an instant world with instant Wi-Fi.
Hi, Mom!
Instant food.
Instant approval. Nice work, Ailee!
And that's not to mention this hunger for faster and quicker results.
Woo!
Woo!
Having to wait is so frustrating.
Would you like to be truly happy?
Well, like and share this video to win a— Ah, I'm only kidding.
But are we so focused on the quick fix, being happy for a moment,
that we're losing sight of what it means to have real and lasting satisfaction
that only God can give us?
I believe that whenever we find God, we find what we've been looking for.
The Bible tells us that in God's presence is fullness of joy.
It's almost as if we have a God-shaped hole inside or
a hardwiring to want happiness.
But in order to truly experience it, we need to be looking in the right place,
or more appropriately, seeking the right person.
In our pursuit for happiness, what we've found is that it's worth pursuing Jesus.
In our experience, we haven't found lasting happiness
in pursuing anything or anyone else.
Ultimately, we don't want something that comes and goes.
We want something that lasts forever.
The hard part though can be giving up something in order to get it.
Jesus said that if any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own
way, take up your cross, 'And follow me.
If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it.
But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the good news,
you will save it.' And after he said this was when he said those famous words,
'And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world
but lose your soul?' Is there anything worth more than your soul?
There was one man from the Gospel accounts who really felt the weight of these words.
Zacchaeus was someone who believed happiness was found in money.
So much so, he was prepared to betray family and friends to get his hands on it.
His job was to collect taxes, but he added on a bit extra so
he could keep it for himself.
Until one day when Jesus came to his town.
In the bustle of Zac climbed a tree to get a good view.
But it was Jesus that went out of his way to meet with him.
In one encounter, he could now see that he was gaining everything in terms of stuff,
but he was losing everything on the inside.
So he turned his life around, paying back everything he had taken and more.
Because what he had now gained was something of far greater value.
Here we see this idea again.
To search for happiness in anything but Jesus will mean disappointment eventually.
But in finding Jesus, you get happiness and ultimate
satisfaction through relationship with him.
But I wonder what you think about all this?
Let's find out.
Do you think having a faith in God could make you happy?
I think that it brings many people fulfillment in their
life to search after religion and things like that,
and I think faith is definitely a part of that that brings fulfillment.
You know, he desires that my joy may— sorry, his joy may remain in me,
and that my joy will be full.
So In that right, yeah, I do believe that God wants me to be happy.
I think a lot of people hold on to it because, you know,
let's say if you're sad or anything, depressed, I think faith
in a sort of way does make you happy because you believe in something
at the end of the day.
Well, I think God sends us little messages along the way that help us,
but we don't realize that.
I don't personally really believe in God.
But I definitely see the logic in believing in a God
or another higher power.
If you have nothing to hold on to, that's the last thing you can hold on to.
It's like your hope and your faith.
For sure, I think like having faith can make you like really happy because you
have like a goal in life, you know, like to be
a better version of yourself and the best you can be with other people also.
Jesus was very honest that following him is not easy.
Choosing a life with Jesus 'Godliness' means listening
to God about the best way to live.
And he should know, he made everything.
But this means allowing God to show us what will make us happy in the long term
versus what we think
will make us happy now.
Christians aren't people who are constantly smiley and who
never suffer in any way.
Just like everyone else, we struggle with illness, sadness,
anxiety, and loss, and it hurts.
Nobody's happy all the time, and it's a big relief to admit that
and not to feel the pressure to be happy when we're not.
When we know Jesus, we're free to be honest about how we feel,
because even when we're not happy, we're still loved and accepted.
Last year, I got the news that my mom had cancer.
It was hard to process, and I kept asking myself why it was happening.
I didn't know what to do, and so I bottled things up a bit.
Eventually, one day in my car, all my emotions about the situation came
out, and I talked to Jesus about it.
I was honest with God about how I was feeling.
I realized that I couldn't deal with the situation on my own.
I still didn't know why it was happening, but I felt calmer and I knew that God
was in control of the future.
We went through a difficult time as a family,
but we told everyone in our church who supported us, and we were really aware
of God's love for us through how they supported us.
My belief in Jesus doesn't mean that I'll never struggle, but knowing that I can
come to God as I am means so much to me.
What if life with Jesus is the best, most fulfilling life you could have?
We can be so busy trying to make ourselves happy that we don't take the time to think
about Jesus's offer to us, but by not exploring this further,
we could be missing out.
Imagine being really thirsty.
And the first water you come across is a toilet.
If you stop searching there, you could be drinking toilet water
instead of the fresh, beautiful spring around the corner.
God shows us that he is the one that not only quenches our thirst
but satisfies our hunger.
Without him, it's as if we are starving.
Our hope is that you might find your happiness in Jesus.
So yes, enjoy Netflix, Enjoy gaming with your friends,
enjoy sport, and all the good things God gives us to experience in this world.
But remember that these things point towards a greater enjoyment,
one that doesn't finish after binge-watching the latest TV series
or once that sport competition is over.
One that isn't just a glimpse, but the real thing.
Yes.
