As we study the laws of a happy life, we would like to compare them with things that figuratively show how all these principles are connected to one another.
Let us consider several comparisons, and you may choose the one that speaks most deeply to your heart.
As a builder, I know that a house is not constructed by taking every kind of material and mixing them all together.
Concrete remains concrete, although it comes in different grades, and the strength of the finished product depends on the quality of the cement and its proper proportion to the water. And if mismatched bricks are used in a wall, it will crack and testify to the incompetence of its builders. But we are building the spiritual house of happiness from the strongest and most durable materials upon the strongest Foundation, and therefore it will withstand every assault without cracking.
Still, it may be better to compare our little house with a living organism—with my body. Then the interaction of all its vital organs, their care for one another, and the importance of their presence in the body become clearer.
If a surgeon approached you and asked which of your organs you would allow him to remove because he had no work to do and did not know how to occupy himself, what would you answer? I think you need all your organs. At most, I would allow him only to trim my fingernails and cut my hair. Why am I so reluctant to give up my organs for the sake of a good man? If some vital part of my body were removed, I might die or become disabled. Therefore, I understand how necessary it is to keep my entire body intact, carefully protecting all its parts from removal and destruction.
Suppose a strong basket were made, I were placed inside it, and it were attached to a long chain and suspended over an abyss. If I were then asked which link in that chain was unnecessary and could be removed to make the chain shorter and stronger, I think every link would suddenly seem magnificent, and I would not dare shorten it at all. That would probably be the wisest decision and would preserve my life.
Very well, let us consider a locomotive pulling passenger cars and intending to bring all of them to their destination. If there is a faulty coupling somewhere between the cars, how many of them will reach the final destination? Only those that remain securely connected to one another and to the locomotive. Would you want to be left behind in a detached and abandoned car? That would be very dangerous, for the next train could crash into it at full speed.
A passenger airliner has three hundred seats occupied by carefree tourists. In the cockpit are two special seats occupied by two trained pilots. If the people aboard the plane were divided equally between them, each pilot would be responsible for one hundred and fifty people. Here is the question: How many people will die if one pilot makes a fatal mistake while the other remains faithful to his principles? I think you know the correct answer.
As we study the science of happiness, it is very important to understand that all the laws of a happy life are interconnected and that every one of them is vital to practice. There are temporary materials that we will study a little later, and there are foundational truths which, like a golden chain, hold me above the abyss. It is extremely important that there be no defect or miscalculation in the construction of this chain.
I cannot reject any law of happiness without consequence and then enter Eternity without it. The problem with rejecting blessedness is that an automatic substitution takes place.
For example, if I do not need the brick called ‘I forgive,’ its place will be taken by resentment, anger, hatred, malice, revenge, the keeping of grudges, and other such materials. The same thing happens with every law. If Christ is not the Foundation of the house, Satan and demons will immediately take His place. Will Eternity accept me with such a burden?
And if any of you, my friends, think that building happiness is an occupation for naïve girls who have nothing else to do, I believe you will soon be greatly surprised and disappointed, because you will have missed something vitally important in life and failed to arrive where you wanted and dreamed of going.
When many come to Jesus and tell Him about their good works and deeds of faith, He will declare to them, ‘I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity’ (Matthew 7:23). After these words, the Lord tells the parable of the two builders, making it clear that we must build—and that we must build correctly—which is precisely what we are doing.
Those who work iniquity are people who do not live according to the law even though they know its requirements. Such people believe that virtue is more important than obedience and that works of faith are more necessary than faithfulness to God’s requirements.
Sin is destructive in its power, and it does not stand still; it develops. Satan did not know where his rebellion in Heaven would lead or how many innocent souls would be deceived and destroyed by sin. But time revealed the full ruinous nature of the evil spirit and showed what a high price God had to pay to stop this calamity.
My happiness is directly connected with my feelings, emotions, and experiences. It interacts closely with my inner world. And if someone looks at a lesson superficially, studying only its title, he may assume that everything here is based on feelings and merely floats on the surface.
Yes, we touch upon the feelings of the soul, and they cannot be separated from a person. I do not think that beings without emotions will inherit Eternity. Even seriousness, interest, attentiveness, and thoughtfulness are also kinds of feelings.
We were created to experience and to feel. This is a normal process. Happiness consists of positive experiences and is the culmination of completed processes in my mind that have given positive energy to my feelings and allowed my emotions to bring me into a state of absolute optimism.
Happiness has one problem: ignorance. Those who mount this particular hobbyhorse will travel very far in their search for the meaning of life without ever understanding what life is. Their only answer will be the conclusion, ‘I was born to die.’
But I was born to live—to live happily, eternally, always. And even if I die, I will live again. I believe this, and there is something very satisfying and nourishing in it. My taste for life differs from yours, but I can share it with you.
Agape love leads every person into the land of happiness. When I set out on this path, I activate God’s navigation system in my mind, and it shows me the best route to the final destination. If I change my route, the Lord does not argue with me but shows me how and where to proceed, providing the shortest way to my final destination. At the same time, He continues to communicate with me, filling my life with joyful experiences of His nearness, the awareness that I belong to God’s family, and confidence in salvation and in walking in the light.
And if the light of love, friendship, and happiness has been kindled in your life, my friends, you should not turn it off.
Have you ever seen a switch in a house labeled ‘darkness’? You press it, and darkness comes. There is no such switch, for darkness exists wherever there is no light. It does not need to be invited; it is enough simply to reject what Eternal love offers.
Happiness! How natural and simple it is in God—and how impossible it is apart from Him!
Bible verses for this chapter:
1 Corinthians 12:12–14, 18, 24–26; Ephesians 4:15–16; John 17:21–23; Colossians 3:12–17; Ephesians 4:3–7; Romans 7:4–6; 8:2; Galatians 6:8–10; Ephesians 3:16–19; Psalm 32:7–10; John 8:12