This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

Jesus said, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. Luke 19:5-6

There was a boy, whose family was very wealthy. One day his father took him on a trip to the country, where he aimed to show his son, how poor people live. So they arrived at a farm of a very poor family. They spent several days on the farm. On their way home, the father asked his son, did he like the trip.

“Oh, it was great, dad”, the boy replied. “Did you notice how poor people live?” “Yeah, I did“, said the boy. The father asked his son to tell in more details about his impressions from their trip.

“Well, we have only one dog, and they have four of them. In our garden there is a pool, while they have a river that has no end. We‘ve got expensive lanterns, but they have stars above their heads at night. We have the patio, and they have the whole horizon. We have only a small piece of land, while they have the endless fields. We buy food, but they grow it. We have high fence for protection of our property, and they don‘t need it, as their friends protect them.”

The father was stunned. He could not say a word.

Then the boy added: “Thank you, dad, for letting me see how poor we are.”

True wealth as well as happiness are not measured by materials things. Love, friendship and freedom are far more valuable.

Joy doesn’t come to us out of the blue. Most of us have to work for it. Hard work. It has to be tended to. Like a delicate flower. Too much of one thing, water, sun and it withers and dies. Joy is also a choice. You have to decide to be joyful, happy. Again, hard work.

“You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life.” Albert Camus.

This means happiness and the meaning of life are things you must experience. It is like trying to understand humor. Understanding why a joke is funny will not make you laugh. You build your own joy and happiness and discover what makes you happy. Maybe, a way to your own joy and happiness is by saying yes or no to God. He can give you strength to make it though the days that are hard and awful. Days that don’t end, full of sadness and grief. That doesn’t mean we are happy every second of every day. Generally, happy is a state of mind we can choose. I choose joy and happiness.......and God.

Lord, thank you for waking me to the dawn of a glorious new day. I am glad. This day may bring hardship and sorrow. With your strength I will carry on. Amen.   

Susan Hanson

Ministries
Teaching Mission Party