Happiness or Joy?

 

“I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”

—John 15:11

“Happiness is a quality desired by a little child. Joy is what mature adults desire.”

A former pastor of mine, Dr. Ronald K. Nasshan, now home with the Lord, often drew a distinction between “happiness” and “joy.”

There is a whimsical, almost silly quality to happiness. It is far more fleeting. Just as a little child can be giggling one moment and dissolve into tears the next, so happiness has an insubstantial bent that reduces its value.

Mature adults should desire something more solid, something with greater depth than happiness, something more able to withstand the ups and downs of life.

Our blessed Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, offered his disciples thoughtful instruction regarding “joy” in John 15:9-11:

“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.

“If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.

“I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”

Let us begin this new day by determining to remain in the love of our Savior. If we do, we will surely secure true joy.

 

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