Happiness Is Not Found - It Is Created

Going through a rough patch? Sometimes life hums along at a pretty steady, enjoyable pace and other times it seems like every step forward is a gigantic emotional and physical effort.

At these challenging times we often sit back and ponder what we could do or get that would make us feel more happiness.

Rarely is happiness found in something or someone…it is usually created.

It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful.

If you are feeling down and out, one of the most beneficial things you can do is to begin making a list of the blessings in your life. As we count our blessings instead of our woes, we usually begin to feel gratitude and joy follows very closely on the heels of gratitude.

Do you have a home, a family, friends, a job, a car, or a warm bed to sleep in tonight? Were you able to get up and walk across the room this morning, are you able to see the leaves on the trees beginning to turn? Have you had at least one meal today? Do you know you are loved unconditionally by the Creator and Savior of the Universe? Someone right now is praying for something I am taking for granted.

No one else can make you happy. Happiness is an emotion that only an individual has control over. It is our choice each moment of each day to determine if we will be happy or not. There are people in what most would consider miserable circumstances, and yet they choose to be happy. I recently met an 88 year old retired Lt. Colonel from the Army. This gentleman started out as a paratrooper and became a helicopter pilot who won a medal of honor for his heroism as he served in both the Korean and the Viet Nam War. Due to a degenerative disease of his muscles, he is now confined to a wheelchair for the remainder of his years. Someone who used to jump out of planes can no longer use his legs and struggles to get his hand to his mouth to feed himself…and he is one of the most joy-filled and content people I’ve met. He could be bitter but he chooses to be grateful. Grateful that he was able to raise a family when so many of his comrades in the military didn’t make it home from either war.

What will you choose to think about? Your blessings or your woes. Will you grumble or be grateful. It truly is your choice.