Elusive happiness

I read some advice a few women hypothetically offered to newborns. They used different words but the same sentiment. Find what makes you happy. Hopefully, you'll be able to make a living by doing it. I love my job, but I'm not always happy at work or happy doing my job. There are to-do items I do not like to complete.

I am pro-happiness, but it is an emotion. It is not a deer to be hunted and then mounted on the wall, so it is always present. It's a meandering butterfly, flittering in and out of attainability but always visible. We have many visions of our butterflies. Your standard monarch or an exotic zebra-striped type. Once we net our monarch, we seek the zebra. The zebra-striped butterfly will linger longer.

There is something beyond happiness.

John 4: 1-26. Jesus asks a Samaritan woman for a drink. Jesus is a Jew. The Jews and the Samaritans are like the Montagues and the Capulets. Furthermore, men typically did not talk to women in public. Also of importance is the fact that the woman was at the well at noon. Women typically went to the well together early in the morning before the heat blazed. This woman was not accepted by the others, yet Jesus talked to her. He asked her for a drink. She's confused by his request. Jesus responds by saying that He can give her living water. Verse 14 is a powerful promise from Jesus: "but whoever drinks from the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

Yes, there is something beyond happiness. Not the mythical fountain of life, but a relationship with Jesus Christ. A savior. The road will be filled with happiness and sadness, but He walks that road with us. He rejoices, mourns, and consoles us. He fights for us. He appears through friends and family, personally and through strangers.

If I were to give newborns advice, assuming I wrote it down for them to read at a later age, I would encourage them to seek Jesus, because happiness is no match for sadness. Jesus conquered death. I trust Him.

God responds

While in New York these past 10 days, I had quite the adventure. God used my time to speak to me and to guide me. He surrounded me with support, with my roots. He gave me a strength I did not know I possessed. But that's not a story for my blog. Not today.

I wanted to share an answer to my prayer on October 18. Early in the day, I confessed my loneliness and asked God to do something to let me know He was with me. Throughout the day, I completely forgot about my prayer. In the picture, my room is located in the building behind the green canoe. After I had went to bed, I left my room to go to the bathroom. While walking back, I looked up at the sky. There was a patch of sky without clouds, revealing a starry sky. It was beautiful. Stars are few in San Diego. I looked up at the starry sky and remembered my prayer from the morning. I was thankful for a response.