Blessed [Happy] are the poor in spirit for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:3
My husband and I enjoy watching the show Shark Tank where entrepreneurs pitch
their business ideas to the “sharks”, men and women who have the capital to
take their business to the next level. If Happiness were a product that someone
was selling, I believe this entrepreneur wouldn’t need the help of the Sharks
because their sales would go through the roof. In fact, I believe the Sharks
would be calling them up to get a piece of the action!
The promise of happiness is used in sales pitches for
anything being sold today, whether it’s a new car, house, job, exercise
equipment, food, clothes, and the list goes on. You’ve seen the commercials
with happy people dancing in their cars, dancing down the street, or fitting into
their skinny jeans. Just sit and watch HSN (Home Shopping Network) for 5 minutes.
All their sales pitches revolve around their product making you happy, after
all what else could you want out of life then that set of measuring spoons, that
is until the next item for sale comes up. Money too has been associated with
happiness.
Lottery tickets
sell in the millions every year because people want to win, so they can be happy.
People say things like, if only I were rich, all my problems would go away,
resulting in happiness.
But then there are those who are rich and all they have
is misery because they have so much debt from over spending to the point of
bankruptcy. Movies are another source that uses the theme of happy to lure
sales.
People like watching movies with happy endings or the word
“Happy” in the title in hopes of feeling…well happy. There’s Happy Feet, Pursuit of Happiness, The Happy Elf, Madea’s Big Happy Family, and so on. But in 2011, a documentary called
Happy came out. Looking at a world full
of depression and overworked and overstressed individuals, the number one answer
given to the question, “What do you want out of life”, was to be happy. This
documentary was based on a new cutting edge science called positive psychology.
In the end the documentary after following several stories of people around
the world that exemplified happy lives, the documentary concluded that exercise,
relationships, and positive thinking were at the core of what made people
happy.
The world seems to lack happiness and people search for
it in many different ways; some even believe that only being with someone else can
make them happy. Men and women around the world, in all cultures, believe that they
can only be truly happy in a relationship. This is evident by today’s multiple internet
dating sites. Many relationships are based and started on the premise that this
sole individual can make them happy for the rest of their lives. But when that
doesn’t work, they go on to believe that having a child can make them happy. So,
if all these things above don’t bring happiness, what does?
All the promises of happiness from the world are just smoke
and mirrors compared to the true source of happiness mentioned in Matthew. But
before we can attain that state of being, we need to be depleted of this world.
The truth of the matter is that happiness does not come by
way of things or people. They can add to our happiness, but they are not the source
of it. Jesus said that the poor in spirit are happy [blessed] because they will inherit the kingdom of
heaven. The assurance of God’s kingdom at the end of life is where true
happiness lies. But in order to attain it, one has to be poor in spirit; to
lose all in order to gain Christ.
For what
profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what
will a man exchange for his soul? Matthew 16:26 (also Mark 8:36)
I love the parable of the hidden treasure in Matthew
13:44.
Again the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden
in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells
all that he has and buys that field.
In the book of Isaiah 55:2, it says, “Why do you spend
money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen
carefully to me and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in
abundance. Incline your ear, and come to
Me. Hear, and your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting covenant
with you—The sure mercies of David.”
Everything we hold dear God wants, including us. Matthew
chapter 6 talks about storing your treasures in heaven (v.20). If our eyes are
only set on what we can accumulate in this world then our treasure is not in
heaven, it is on things that will burn, rust, mold, or be stolen. When we are
poor of spirit, we are free of worry. There is no anxiety about losing our
blessing. A person poor of spirit, has come to the end of themselves and has
exhausted all manner of seeking happiness in the things of this world; they realize
that they need something beyond what this
world has to offer. It is only then that they truly have need for God. God
seems to be that last thing people look for when seeking happiness but their search always ends with Him waiting.
When you have the promise of eternal life after living on
this earth 70+ years, there is no greater happiness then to know that you will
be in heaven for eternity.
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of
the unglodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the
scornful; But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he
meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of
water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not
wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.
Psalm 1:1-3
