Dear Friend,
You are brave. Crawling out of bed on a cold, dark morning when you’d rather cocoon yourself in the comfort of your covers takes bravery. Whether dark depression or mild dissatisfaction whispers in your ears that the solution lies under the guise of more sleep—you’ve ignored it and taken the first step. That takes courage.
But now what? How can you face the day when the weight of all the thoughts in your head press down and slows your steps, your thoughts, the beating of your heart?
The secret to happiness lies in three simple steps. I know. I’ve tried them and they work.
Step one: Do something for God. He promises to give us the desires of our heart IF we delight in him (Psalms 37:4).
The word ‘delight’, when used as a verb simply means ‘to give great pleasure, satisfaction or enjoyment to; to please highly.’ God takes great pleasure in our efforts to know him better.
He created us for our company. The mind-boggling truth remains no matter how we feel or what we’ve done—ME reaching out to HIM brings him satisfaction.
As you spend time with him, the promise comes true. He will give you the desires of your heart.
Step two: Do something for yourself. Yes. YOU! What recharges you? Play loud music and dance with abandon. Schedule a manicure. Read (guilt free). Go for a walk. Go for a run.
Treat yourself as if you love yourself—and while you may not FEEL like you love yourself right now, in this very moment, feelings follow actions. It might not happen overnight, but investing in you will pay giant dividends.
After all, we can’t love our neighbor as ourselves if we don’t love ourselves (Luke 10:27). If self-loathing haunts our hearts, disdain for others nips at our thoughts and actions.
Step three: Do something for others. Look for opportunities to serve others. Open a door for someone else. Bake cookies and give them away. Call a friend and listen more than your talk. Buy extra groceries and leave something in the collection box for a local food bank. Smile at a stranger.
What you do doesn’t have to cost money or take hours of your time. Often the simple acts of service or courtesy that others extend to us can make or break the mood of our day—so join the ranks of those who extend courteous words and acts to others.
After all, the Golden Rule urges us to “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Luke 6:31). And in doing, you will find that you delight God. Which takes us back to step one!
Start with step one, and you’ll have the courage to execute step two. Following step two will give you the energy to accomplish step three. Repeat daily. Keep a journal and write down what you’ve done at the end of each day (or what you plan to do at the beginning of each day).
Three simple steps to unlock the secret of happiness. They don’t cost money, but they can make you feel like a million dollars. (tweet this)
