The Foundation of Happiness
All has been heard; the end of the matter is: Fear God [revere and worship Him, knowing that He is] and keep His commandments, for this is the whole of man [the full, original purpose of His creation, ... the foundation of all happiness...] and the whole [duty] for every man. (ECCLESIASTES 12:13)
The writer of Ecclesiastes was a man who literally tried everything to be happy. He had much wealth, great power, and many wives. He restrained himself from no earthly pleasure. Anything his eyes desired, he took. He ate, drank, and made merry. He had tremendous knowledge, wisdom, and respect, yet he hated life. Everything began to appear useless to him. He tried to figure out what life was all about and became more and more confused.
Finally, he realized what his problem had been all along. He had not been obeying God's commandments. He was unhappy because of it and made the statement that the foundation of all happiness is obedience.
There are many, many sad, grieved individuals walking around blaming their unhappy lives on people and circumstances, failing to realize that the reason for their dissatisfaction is their disobedience toward God.
I believe you want to be happy. The key to happiness is obeying God. Ecclesiastes 12:13 says that obedience is "the adjustment to all inharmonious circumstances." That means that anything out of order or harmony got that way through disobedience and only obedience can bring it back into harmony. Every time we obey God, something in our lives improves.
GOD'S WORD FOR YOU TODAY: Set your mind to obey God in all things and your joy will increase.
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