Crazy Happy, Part 4 - A Deeper Dive
message recap
In our final message of the Crazy Happy series, we looked back at the themes of the last three weeks. Here’s what we’ve learned:
True happiness is not found in “things,” despite what the world tells us.
The constant pursuit of the latest and greatest, the newest and fanciest, only leads to a perpetual cycle of moving from one thing to the next.
God wants us to be happy and often leads us to unusual places to find that happiness.
When we replace the phrase “blessed are” with “happy are,” the Beatitudes provide a roadmap to true happiness.
This week we added one final element to finding happiness: choice. Ultimately happiness comes from the choices we make. Every day we are faced with choices. Some come easy, while the temptations associated with others make them difficult. In his first epistle, John teaches that, first and foremost, we are to choose to love God and love one another.
“15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.”
The love of worldly things and possessions does not lead us to joy and contentment. John continues by reminding us that the things of the world are temporary and unsustainable.
“17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”
Truly happy people, who choose to center their lives on loving God and loving others, bear the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (see Galatians 5:22-23). The Beatitudes promise those who choose humility over arrogance, kindness over hate, and peace over conflict will find lasting happiness.
God’s willingness to allow us to choose our own path is central to finding happiness But if an all-knowing and all-powerful God desires us to be obedient and make good choices, why would we be given the ability to choose our own destiny? If God is so interested in us always doing the right thing, then why wouldn’t he control every decision we make? That’s the subject of this week’s Deeper Dive.
The Freedom to Choose
Beginning with Adam and Eve in the Garden, mankind has always had the freedom to choose its own path. In the wake of tragedy caused by someone’s poor choices, we often hear, “Why would a loving God allow this to happen?” That same loving God is willing to allow his creation to make their own choices. We are made in God’s image, which means we have the ability to think and reason. Where animals act purely on instinct, we rely on understanding and analyzing a situation. We apply logic and consider the consequences. God trusts us to make a rational decision and choose to do the right thing. Yet, that same freedom to evaluate our options also allows us to make the wrong choice. Obviously the wrong choices have repercussions. Consider these words found in the book of Deuteronomy:
“16 For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.
17 But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, 18 I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.”
Throughout scripture we are promised the rewards that come from choosing to follow God and placing our trust in the path laid before us. But scripture also warns us of the dire consequences that come with disobedience and trusting the promises of the world over God.
As we close out our series Crazy Happy, consider the choices you are faced with. You have the choice to put your full faith and trust in God, or you can choose worldly gods like wealth, power, and prestige. You have the choice to live with humility, satisfied with what God provides, or you can choose to constantly pursue “things.” You can choose to extend love and kindness to others, or you can choose to treat them with disdain and contempt. God gives us everything we need to make the right choices. It’s up to us to follow the path of righteousness.
By giving his love and sacrificing himself for all of us, Jesus became the model for those who find themselves in situations where there appears to be no way out. We can still choose how we will live through difficult situations. Will it be with resentment, self-pity, and anger? Or will it be with dignity, happiness, and gratitude? What a crazy notion! That our God, who wants nothing more than to be in relationship with his people, gives us the freedom to choose even at the risk of us turning away.