Happiness

People want two basic things: happiness and truth. The order in which we want these things determines  the rigor of our personal constitution. Here at Wise as Serpents we believe that, in the pursuit of truth, a person will find both in Christianity. Speaking to the truth of Christianity will need to wait for another post. A recent blog post on happiness from Professor Ryan Howell at the Your Morals blog is the focus du jour.

According to Howell, in his empirical research he found five important characteristics of a happy person. I will put into my own words in the bullet points but you can read the article here.

• Wise Management of Money
• Not Spending Money to Store up Stuff
• Holding on to the Good, and Forgiving the Bad
• Sharing in Joys and Sorrows
• Living in Community with Others

These are central themes throughout the Bible and guidance on how to live a good and righteous life. The fact that humans find fulfillment in these simple actions should not be surprising to the Christian if we have a correct view of God. We are called to live a certain way by our creator, and, of course, we flourish when we live in the manner we were designed.

I will follow up with specific verses soon. Have a great weekend!