Happiness/Holiness/Free

Do more of ….
Normally when that statement is used, it’s followed by:

“… what makes you happy.”
Do I disagree? Not entirely. Do I think it’s a phrase to approach with caution? Somewhat. Do I think it should be the ultimate priority? No.

How’s this for a try:

Do more of what makes you holy.

Yeah.
Holy.

Not exactly the catchy phrase you see all over Pinterest.
But it is one to take note of.

But what does that even mean? Holy?
It seems impossible.

Be set apart. Be different from this world.
Strive to flee from sin daily.
Be love. Be kindness. Be service. Be joy.
Strive to defend the poor, the weak, the widow, the orphan.

Be more like Christ.

And that’s not a one time, quick fix, easy decision all the time.
It’s a daily choice, a conscious effort, a sacrifice.

But here’s where the phrases
“Do more of what makes you happy” and “Do more of what makes you holy” collide:
Throughout Scripture, we are called to do and be many things. God doesn’t call for us to pursue worldly, personal happiness. He does however call us to deny the desires of the flesh. In Galatians 5 of the ESV, it says that those desires are crucified. That’s some powerful language to take lightly. We’re called to take up the cross daily, to flee from sin, to die in order to live – that all sounds happy enough, right? Actually – yes.

To deny, to crucify those fleshly desires allows us to have Heavenly desires.
To take up our cross daily allows us to draw near to God.
To flee from sin allows us to run into the arms of the Holy One.
To die to this life allows us an eternity with Him one day.

To follow those calls, among others gives us a deep intimacy with Happiness and Joy Himself. Why would we want to choose false, faulty, man-made, worldly happiness when we could instead have happiness with and from the creator of happiness? To be holy, to be in Him, is to be truly free. When we strive to be more like Christ, and when we follow His commands, eventually your heart starts to look a lot more like His. And your desires reflect His desires. And what makes you happy is a lot like what makes Him happy. Though it may not be immediate, and though it may not always feel like it – to become more like Christ, to be near Him, is the best and most rewarding way to be. It’s how we were created to be.