HAPPINESS - Habits of Happiness (Part 2)

We learned today that statistically, the ranking of Alabamians on the "happy meter" is next to last out of all the states in America. The survey conducted by Wallet Hub looked at emotional and physical well-being, work environment, and community, environment & recreational activities. Actually, the states with the lowest ranking for happiness were clustered in the South while the most happy states were in the Midwest and North. If you want to dig into the details of the survey you can find it here: Happy Survey.

For those who are in Christ and seeking to walk in God's purpose and will, the most important variables that determine our happiness are: 1) our belief that God is sovereign in all circumstances --both good and bad-- and 2) to maintain an eternal perspective. These two attitudes are the foundation to our happiness. Every situation must be accepted as God's sovereignty. The moment we credit circumstance to chance, we are in affect saying God is not who He claims to be in His word. In our troubles, pains, and suffering God always has a divine purpose--to glorify Himself through our lives.

He wants us to come to Him in our suffering, but He also wants us to trust Him. As we do, the need for an eternal perspective is so very important. When we focus on our eternal home in Heaven and try to see the circumstances of our brief lives from God's perspective, we are rocketed to another level.

The results of our two poll questions from today's class are below:

1. When it comes to God being sovereign over EVERYTHING--Good and Bad--my level of belief is approximately...

A. 100% - I believe God controls every circumstance, without exception - 96%
B. Somewhere between 50% and 90%. Some things JUST HAPPEN. - 4%
C. Less than 50%. I think God only gets involved in important events. - 0%

2. In regard to happiness, how important is perspective?
A. It is everything! - 64%
B. It helps. - 36%
C. Happiness is based mostly on what we do, not how we think. - 0%

The results from our three poll questions from last week's class are below:

1. Do you know of habits in your life that, from time-to-time, hinder your happiness?
A. Yes. I know of one or more habits I would like to reverse. - 100%
B. No. None of my habits hinder my happiness.
C. I don't think habits, good or bad, affect a person's happiness.

2. If you know a habit (behavior) of yours might cause a fellow believer to stumble, what would you do?
A. Try to break the habit and change my behavior. - 78%
B. Try to hide the habit/behavior from those it might cause to stumble. - 22%
C. Do nothing. As long as I'm not doing anything wrong, I'm not responsible for other believers. - 0%

3. Is a Christian leader held to a higher standard than other Christians?
A. Yes. - 100%
B. No.
C. Yes, but only when serving in the leadership position.