Enjoying God’s Gifts
Brother Bob Pellien: Even though stress and disappointments are part of life, there are several ways to find peace and happiness. The Bible tells us all the things that God created just for us to be happy. You’re listening to the podcast version of God’s Message Magazine. Today’s topic is “Enjoying God’s Gifts”.
Brother Bob Pellien: Being cheerful keeps you healthy. It is a slow death to be gloomy all the time (Proverbs 17:22 Good News Bible).
This biblical passage must serve as a reminder for the problematic and the burdened soul. It surely will not help if we bury ourselves in sorrow. In fact, doing so will only make things worse as it can harm our health and shorten our life.
Scientific studies prove that “stress can indeed cause heart disease, certain ulcers” (Stress and Health Magazine, p. 152-155) “and cerebral stroke”, all of which can eventually lead to death.
So, instead of having a pessimistic view of life because of so many problems, let us cheer up and be happy. It would be helpful to recount the wonderful deeds intended for all of us by the Almighty One Who gave us this life.
God’s gifts to mankind
Brother Bob: From the very beginning, God had manifested His desire to bring joy and happiness to the human beings He created. The Bible enumerates the things God created for the enjoyment of all mankind:
#1 Food. God created earth as man’s home and filled it with all of natures’ bounty. He designed our environment in such a way that we can find food to satisfy our hunger and thus be happy.
#2 Work. God’s desire for man’s happiness did not end when He sent the first human couple out of paradise. He commanded man to work for his needs, thus giving him the opportunity to savor the joy of harnessing the fruits of his labor.
Your work will provide for your needs; you will be happy and prosperous.
[Psalm 128:2 Good News Bible]
Brother Bob: #3 Friendship. Another way by which man can afford happiness is through the company of friends whom he can rely on to listen to him and give sound advice when needed. The Bible acknowledges that the pleasure we gain from such friendship is also in accordance with God’s plan:
Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the pleasantness of one’s friend springs from his earnest counsel.
[Proverbs 27:9 New International Version]
Brother Bob: #4 Knowledge. God made us different from the rest of the living creatures in that we possess the ability to think rationally. When this uniqueness is served through the pursuit of knowledge, pleasure can be attained:
You will become wise, and your knowledge will give you pleasure.
[Proverbs 2:10 Good News Bible]
Brother Bob: #5 Marriage. Still for happiness of the human being whom God created, He established the sacred institution called marriage:
So be happy with your wife and find your joy with the girl you married.
[Proverbs 5:18 Good News Bible]
Brother Bob: God willed that a man and a woman find pleasure in each other’s company through marriage. Together they can build their own family and have children to stand by them as they grow old. So, more than just sexual satisfaction, marriage offers emotional, social, psychological, and spiritual assurance of having a family and a caring partner for life.
From these wonderful graces of God, we should understand that He truly longs for our happiness just as we do. So, let us enjoy life. Let us avail of these gifts that God has prepared for us.
How not to abuse happiness
Brother Bob: However, we should be careful not to abuse the pleasure drawn from food, work, knowledge, friends, and marriage. Inasmuch as all these gifts come from God, He tells us the proper way of using or dealing with them. Thus, we should follow the rules He gave, which are also found in the Bible. They may be summed up as follows:
- Don’t indulge in too much eating or gluttony.
Brother Bob: Concerning food, the Bible says:
Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor.
[Proverbs 23:20-21 New International Version]
Brother Bob: Our body can only take enough food to sustain our health. Indulging in too much eating should be avoided as this would result in awful consequences.
- Do not be filled with greed.
Brother Bob: It is true that hard work has its happy rewards, but to be filled with greed for money and for material success ends in many sorrows:
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
[I Timothy 6:10 New King James Version]
Brother Bob: Because of greed, others are pushed to cheat, bribe and betray their fellowmen, rob or kidnap them for ransom sometimes even to the extent of hurting them either physically or emotionally. Some may not resort to these desperate measures but are so fixed on acquiring riches that they have no more time left to worship and serve the true God. In both cases, man’s opportunity of working to earn a living is being abused. Thus, true happiness cannot be achieved.
- Don’t go with bad companions.
Brother Bob: Finding happiness in friends also has its limitations. Apostle Paul admonished:
Do not be fooled. “Bad companions ruin good character.”
[I Corinthians 15:33 Good News Bible]
Brother Bob: We should be careful in choosing the people with whom we go. Companions who would influence us to carry out evil deeds with them are not the kind of friends that the Bible says will give us pleasantness. God’s advice is that we should “not walk in the way with them” and “keep [our} feet off their path” (Proverbs 1:15 New King James Version).
- Do not dishonor marriage.
To be a true source of joy, marriage “should be honored by all” (Hebrews 13:4 New International Version). Thus, we should not make a mockery of God’s sacred union by having the wrong motives (as in the so-called “marriage of convenience”) or false notions about it, like treating marriage as something disposable and infidelity to one’s spouse permissible. God emphatically says:
“I hate divorce,” says the Lord God of Israel. “I hate it when one of you does such a cruel thing to his wife. Make sure that you do not break your promise to be faithful to your wife.”
[Malachi 2:16 Good News Bible]
- Don’t let knowledge mislead you.
Brother Bob: Like everything else, knowledge is also something we should deal with in moderation. There is nothing wrong with being knowledgeable, but one should be careful in handling his intelligence not to become puffed up with pride (I Corinthians 8:1 Good News Bible) and be misled to deny God’s power and existence:
You have trusted in your wickedness and have said, “No one sees me.” Your wisdom and knowledge mislead you when you say to yourself, “I am, and there is none besides me.”
[Isaiah 47:10 New International Version]
Brother Bob: Such is the mindset of the morning star or anointed cherubim who was cast out from heaven, thrown to earth, and became the devil or Satan (Ezekiel 28:14; Isaiah 14:12; Revelation 12:9). Hence, anyone who is similarly led astray by earthly knowledge not only misuses the gift but also makes enemies with its Giver. There is no true happiness in it.
Indeed, God made food, work, friends, knowledge, and marriage available for our delight and happiness. But we can draw meaningful joy from these things only if we acknowledge them as God’s gifts and obey His governing rules. If we abuse the pleasures derived from these gifts and go beyond the limitations set forth by God, they will cease to bring us true joy and will become a root of sorrows instead.
Seeking happiness in God
Brother Bob: Hence, beyond the physical, material, social, emotional, and intellectual satisfaction, what kind of happiness should we further seek and aspire for?
How precious, O God, is your constant love! We find protection under the shadow of your wings. We feast on the abundant food you provide; you let us drink from the river of your goodness. You are the source of all life, and because of your light we see the light. Continue to love those who know you and to do good to those who are righteous.
[Psalm 36:7-10 Good News Bible]
Brother Bob: King David mentions the incomparable joy of being under God’s loving care and protection. Those who have the Almighty One on their side are certain that they will never lack in anything. Indeed, God’s goodness transcends all the pleasures that food or work or friends or anything else can provide us.
How can we achieve this happiness? David tells us what we must do to find the happiness that is in God:
Trust in the Lord and do good; live in the land and be safe. Seek your happiness in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desire. Give yourself to the Lord; trust in him, and he will help you; he will make your righteousness shine like the noonday sun.
[Psalm 37:4-6 Good News Bible]
Brother Bob: To find our happiness in God we should put our trust in Him. But trust in God is not only a matter of words but of works. According to the Scriptures, to prove our trust in Him, we should do what is good.
That which is good are the laws or commandments of God (Romans 7:12). Foremost of these is Christ’s admonition that we join the fold or flock (John 10:9 Revised English Bible), which is the Church Of Christ (Acts 20:28 Lamsa Translation). It is this Church for which Christ died and shed His blood and that which He will save from God’s anger or punishment on Judgement Day. (Romans 5:8-9, Zephaniah 1:18).
Thus members of the true church will survive whatever problem or difficulty may come their way. Unlike other people in this world, they do not wallow in misery for they have the most valid reason to be joyful, the assurance of God’s salvation.
And it will be said in that day: “Behold, this is our God; We have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for Him; We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.”
[Isaiah 25:9 New King James Version]
Brother Bob: Let us make it a part of our search for true happiness to join the true Church Of Christ or Iglesia Ni Cristo. By becoming part of this Church, we will find the ultimate joy in God not only in the present life but also in the life to come.
To find more articles like these, get your copy of God’s Message magazine from a member of the Church Of Christ. You can also find the podcast version on incmedia.org/podcasts or on iTunes or Google Play under “INC Podcasts.” Thank you for listening. I’m Brother Bob Pellien. God bless.
