The Source of Joy

Whatever we might acquire in life, the novelty of it will diminish over time. Take a new car, for example. Don’t you love the new-car smell? You look for excuses to drive it. You vow to never eat in your car. And then a month goes by and you’re late for work. You have to eat, and sure enough, you have your first spill inside your car. Some time passes, and you get that first little dent in the door. Then the paint chips a little. And after a while, that new car is not so exciting.

We could take that metaphor and apply it to everything in life. No matter how big, how cool, or how fastââ,¬"whatever it is, everything loses its appeal after a period of time. So if you think happiness comes from what you have, you will find that you are always going to want something else to take its place.

But the Bible teaches that happinessââ,¬"true happinessââ,¬"comes from who we know. Listen to the words of Habakkuk: "Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!" (3:17ââ,¬"18).

Let me update that for modern times: Even when business is slow and there are no prospects in the immediate future, even when my investments have evaporated and the car won’t start, I will rejoice in the Lord.

Our joy and contentment in life does not come from what we have. It comes from whom we know.