Five Simple Rules To Happiness

Five Simple Rules To Happiness

Work cubicles can have interesting things on display.  Years ago, one of my former colleagues had a spray can of Pam on his shelf, I can tell you that was a conversation point until everyone got used to seeing it.

Some time ago I read an article called “Five Simple Rules to Be Happy.”  I liked it so much that I decided to write each of these 5 simple personal rules, which I believe are powerful principles for us as believers, and hang them on my office wall.  Here are the five simple principles:

1) Free Your Heart From Hatred

Hatred carries powerful emotions - it is a commitment much the same as love is, but it is the antithesis of love. Hatred and bitterness will keep you and the person on the other end of your feelings, in an emotional prison.  I have personally experienced that and I don't recommend harboring feelings that keep us in such a dark place. So what's the answer?

We must choose to forgive and choose to love!

1 Peter 4:8 reminds us that love covers wrong doing and frees us from the emotional prison of our own making. So yes, let's free our hearts from hatred by choosing to forgive and to love.  Love and forgiveness will keep us out of a spiritual prison.

2) Free Your Mind From Worry

Easier said than done, you might say. 2020 was one of the hardest years we have ever lived. Isolation, job loss, economic and financial pressures, marital struggles, kids not in school...you name it. Of course, none of these scenarios helped in any way to free our minds from worry.

We must learn to ask ourselves the tough and at times uncomfortable questions. So here, we go, "What good has ever come from worrying?"  I think it's fair to say worry has never and neither will it ever reverse our concerns.
In fact the proven adverse physical reactions that come from worry should concern us more. Things such as hypertension, depression and isolation, just to name a few, will only add to our already frail state of mind.

So, how do we free our mind from worry? It's not something that happens simply with a wish and a prayer. That's not to trivialize worry or prayer, but it takes time. We need to learn to continuously replace the voices of anxiety and worry with the choice to trust God and His Word instead.  If we believe that God has our lives in His hands, what will worry or trying to fix things in our own strength do? In Matthew 6:27 we read "Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” The answer is no of course not, so I choose to trust God instead!

3) Live Simply

This principle does not only apply to the size of our homes, type of cars we drive or the quality of our lifestyle. Living simply, includes taking an inventory of our lives.  For example, taking time for personal care, making wise choices in how we live, even eat and conduct our lives. In one sentence, it's really about simplifying our lives.

Living simply can be beneficial not only to us, but also to those around us. When we decide to simplify our lives and do our best to live joyfully, people around us will also feel the positive effect of our choices.

4) Give More

Giving or sharing our possessions, time and talents does not come naturally for everyone. A typical human response is to protect what we have, but in so doing, we often forget there are many who have less than we do.

God has not put us on earth just to fulfill our ambitions and desires. We must learn to be compassionate and sympathetic to the needs of others and be a blessing by looking for opportunities to be generous toward those in need.
Jesus said the harvest is ready but the laborers are few. Let's not live with clenched hands, rather let's release what we have, so God can be blessed in and through us.

5) Expect Less

Can you remember the last time you were disappointed because someone did not meet your expectations?  Was it yesterday, 6 hours ago, or perhaps 10 minutes ago?  We are often disappointed when we think we should not be treated or spoken to a certain way; after all we deserve better, right?

If we expect too much from people because we place their opinions of us on a pedestal or because we regard them higher than we should, we will live in constant disappointment. This has been a tough area for me, but I am learning that trusting God is safer. In the end, it's fine to expect less from people and choose to place more trust in God, simply because He can deliver on His promises.

These are not magic formulas for happiness but they may be good tips to apply. We are all on a journey and each one of us is a work in progress.

One thing I know for sure, I am not giving up and I hope you won’t either!

Davide Colletta

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Davide is the Senior Leader and blogger
at Mission Community Church