Happiness or Joy ?

As of March 2019, Finland was ranked the happiest country in the world twice in a row.

So what is happiness to you?

Happiness is when your life fulfills your needs.  In other words, happiness comes when you feel satisfied and fulfilled.  Happiness is a feeling of contentment, that life is just as it should be.  Perfect happiness, enlightenment, comes when you have all of your needs satisfied.

Happiness usually depend on happening and circumstances and can change at times.

Happiness is a choice.  You can choose to be happy.  There's going to be stress in life, but it's your choice whether you let it affect you or not.

It is important to know the difference between being happy and having joy. ... That is because happiness is an emotion in which we "experience feelings ranging from contentment and satisfaction to bliss and intense pleasure," whereas joy "is a stronger, less common feeling than happiness and is based on internal well-being or the anticipation of well-being.

What is HAPPINESS

Happiness is a choice

We were blessed to a dinner by a Christian couple from Singapore at Nyonya Baba Cuisine at Nagore Road.

God is good to bring people along our path to share and encourage, and strengthen our walk with Him.

Happiness is not material goods or high achievement, but it boils down to our outlook in life and the quality of our relationships with the people around us.

To be happy - be part of something you believe in - like play an active role in community work and share time with friends and family.

Nobody is happy all of the time, but some people are definitely more fulfilled than others.

Happiness is a choice

Are You Happy ?

Are you happy?  Everybody wants to be happy but how many of us are truly happy?

Happiness is a natural occurring feeling, yet we relate to happiness as something special and rare.  Some of us are afraid to show our happiness for fear of being though of as arrogant, selfish or juvenile.  We fear that too much happiness will defile our professional status or ruin our chance of being promoted at work.  We think that being overly happy will upset others, draw envy or invite rejection.

Real happiness is overcoming our negativity and beginning to count our blessings so we can experience the mysterious beauty of life.  It is about learning to surrender, release the need to control and allow our lives to unfold in its own unique and organic way.  It is about becoming fully human.

There is no fear, no doubt and no anxiety where there's true happiness.

Happiness is a choice, we can alter our life by altering our attitude.

Martin Seligman, one of the leading researchers in positive psychology and author of Authentic Happiness, describes happiness as having three parts: pleasure, engagement, and meaning. It involves both daily positive emotions and a global sense that life is worthwhile.

What makes you happy?

On Monday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak made an announcement that the Government needs to work at not only increasing the people's earning capacity, but also on making sure that they are happy.

So, what is happiness to you???

To a hawker selling 'keropok' - happiness is being able to sell all his produce daily while to an ant - happiness is having enough sugar for a lifetime and not getting squashed by a shoe.

Happiness does not have much to do with material goods or high achievement, but it boils down to our outlook in life, and the quality of our relationship with the people around us.

Real happiness is overcoming our negativity and beginning to count our blessing so we can experience the mysterious beauty of life.  It is about learning to surrender, release the need to control and allow our lives to unfold in its own unique and organic way.  It is about becoming fully human.  Solomon tells us that God grants happiness to us as a privilege (Ecclesiastes. 3:12, 7:14; 11:9)

God's Word tells us that true happiness comes by keeping God's law.

Proverbs 16:20 tells us "Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is the one who trust in the Lord".

Pleasure or happiness is dependent on circumstances, but joy is inward and is not disturbed by one's environment.

Pleasure is built on self-seeking, but joy is based on self-sacrifice.

The world offers "passing pleasures" (Hebrews 11:25), but the Lord Jesus offers to give us full and lasting joy (John 15:11).

HAPPINESS  DEPENDS  ON  HAPPENINGS;  JOY  DEPENDS  ON  JESUS!

HAPPINESS  IS  SOMETHING  YOU  CHOOSE.

What is HAPPINESS....

What is Happiness (幸福)?, you might ask in the first place.

Wikipedia puts it that way: "Happiness is a mental state of well-being characterized by positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy."

Happiness is to know the Savior,
Living a life within His favor,
Having a change in my behavior,
Happiness is the Lord. - Stanphill


Solomon tells us that God grants happiness to us as a priviledge (Eccl. 3:12, 7:14; 11:9)

And true happiness comes by keeping God's law.
Proverbs 16:20 tells us 'Those who listen to instruction will prosper; those who trust the Lord will be joyful.' (NLT)

The foundation for happiness is a proper relationship with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.


HAPPINESS DEPENDS ON HAPPENINGS, BUT JOY DEPENDS ON JESUS.

The Pursuit Of Happiness

Everyone is looking for happiness, and people follow many avenues trying to find it. They look for it in money, fancy cars, self-improvement programs, parties, luxurious homes, or promoting a cause.

That's a wrong list. The right one is found in Matthew 5. Jesus taught us that deep and lasting happiness comes from being right with God. He said we are blessed, or happy, when we are :
Poor in spirit - recognizing our desperate need for God.
Mourning - realizing the awfulness of sin and being genuinely sorry for it.
Meek - demonstrating self-control, even when we are mistreated.
Hungry and thirsty for righteousness - longing to be holy and pure.
Merciful - showing mercy to others, just as God shows mercy to us.
Pure in heart - being single minded and sincere in our devotion to Christ.
Peacemakers - sharing the peace Christ offers, and promoting peace with one another.
Persecuted - being willing to suffer for Jesus' sake.

Looking for happiness? Follow Jesus' way.
[Extracted from Our Daily Bread written by Dave Branon]

HAPPINESS DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU ARE, NOT ON WHAT YOU HAVE.

Happiness key to longer life

Everyone wants to be happy. But many fail in their quest to find that elusive prize because they are looking in the wrong places.
Proverbs 16 : 20 tells us, "Whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he." And Psalm 146 : 5 indicates that happiness comes to those who find their help and hope in God.

Happiness does not heal, but happiness protects against falling ills, says Ruut Veenhoven of Rotterdam's Erasmus University in a study in 2008.
Happiness can be bolstered by friendship and human community, as well as larger social factors such as freedom, democracy, effective government institutions and rule of law. Happy people were more inclined to watch their weight, were more perceptive of symptoms of illness, tended to be more moderate with smoking and drinking and generally lived healthier lives. They were also more active, more open to the world, more self-confident, made better choices and built more social networks.

Richard De Haan, a writer of Our Daily Bread list Ten Rules for Happier Living :
1) Give something away
2) Do a kindness
3) Give thanks always
4) Work with vim and vigor
5) Visit the elderly and learn from their experience
6) Look intently into the face of a baby and marvel
7) Laugh often - it's life lubricant
8) Pray to know God's way
9) Plan as though you will live forever - you will
10) Live as though today is your last day on earth

Psalm 112 : 1 Praise the LORD. Blessed [Happy] is the man who fears the LORD, who finds great delight in his commands.

Proverbs 17 : 22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.