Stephen Anderson
Faith Baptist Church, Fowler
It has been said that it is the little things in life that make us happy. In a large way this is true, we often find the most pleasure in the small things in life. I have a fourteen month old daughter that brings a smile to her mother’s and my face every day. Maybe for you that moment of pleasure is in seeing something that makes you smile, if only for a moment. Maybe it is in hearing a familiar voice call to you as you walk down Main Street. Even in familiar smells, like grandma’s house at Christmas, we find moments of happiness.
These moments for me have been plentiful over the last year. They have been the result of watching our daughter learn to climb her first stair. I remember well the feeling of elation at hearing her say her first word, dad. I feel happy every time our daughter tries her hardest to pick up her new puppy.
Since we arrived in Fowler I have become keenly aware of these moments as they happen. Two weeks ago, after replacing our Iowa plates with new Colorado license plates, a smile came to my face as I thought about how long those plates will be on the car. It came the first time I referred to our house as our home. A tear of joy came to my eye as I read my mother’s Christmas letter wherein she spoke so proudly of her three kids who are all in the ministry.
These moments though are fleeting. The age old existential question is; What is happiness, and how do I find it? Happiness is a feeling of fulfillment. We say we are happy when we feel joy, vindication, love, or familiarity. The fact that man seeks happiness is an indication that something is missing in us. If we are constantly seeking fulfillment it is an indication that we have a void in our lives that needs filled.
Some try to fill this void with vices, others by doing something that gives them a sense of accomplishment. Many even develop habits and tendencies as a result of seeking happiness that appear healthy and welcomed. The reality of our need to be happy is that when we seek fulfillment in anything but God we are looking in the wrong place. True happiness and fulfillment are found in a relationship with Christ or Creator and Savior. Sure, walking into grandma’s kitchen on Christmas day or watching your daughter struggle to pick up a sleeping puppy may bring a smile to your face and a warmth to your hearts that was lacking a moment before, but they, like everything but Christ, are not lasting nor are they truly fulfilling. The void we seek to fill in our lives by looking for momentary happiness is accomplished eternally in a relationship with the One who’s birth we recently celebrated, Jesus Christ.
