Happiness Is Your Responsibility

-


 DAILY VITAMIN

- Happiness Is Your Responsibility

"Let the peace of heart that comes from Christ be always present in your hearts and lives, for this is your responsibility and privilege as members of his body. And always be thankful." (Colossians 3:15 TLB)

You'd notice it said that enjoying the peace of heart that comes from Christ is not only our privilege (heritage) as members of His body, but it is also our responsibility. That means you are in control of your own happiness.

A tree might be abundantly fertilized, but only it can decide the state of the fruit it would bring forth afterwards. In the same way, the Holy Spirit has filled your life with the fruit of peace and joy, but now only you can choose what you will permit to be expressed. Only you can choose which feeling you will let overwhelm you; and in the scripture we are taught how we can maintain this happy feeling in Christ.

First, He tells us to be guided by love. As long as you respond to people's hatred with nothing else but love, you'd never lose your joy. Refuse to use words like "I'm mad at them" because they tune your mind towards bitterness. Though you may have been angry, say "I know what they did is wrong, but I forgive them and will get through this pain because the Lord is on my side" (see v. 13-14).

Second, be thankful in your hearts. Nothing can dampen the sun. Thus, set your heart ablaze with the shine of God's praise, and you will never be down and out. We are told to sing them out and we would be enriched (v. 16-17). In Philippians 4, we are told to rejoice with thanksgiving and God's peace will saturate our hearts and minds (v. 4-7). 

Remember, it is your responsibility to stay joyful in the LORD; so do so.

Comments

Post a Comment

What do you think?

Popular posts from this blog

Giving Generously

-
DAILY VITAMIN  There is a difference between giving and giving generously. Generosity is more than just how much you give, but how hearted you do. What makes the poor fellow rich in the sight of God is how richly he gives even though in need himself. Richly, not in terms of quantity or even quality, nor quantifiable mass, but richly based on how much from the heart it is given. Was the heart rich in compassion, God's love and mercy as it gave? Or was it full of egotism, self-pride and every trait that makes him believe it is all in his power? Remember, a broken heart and a contrite spirit[full of the first traits], God wil not despise (Ps 51:17); and as long as there is a willingness of heart and readiness of mind[spurred by genuine love], it is acceptable towards God (2 Cor 8:11-12). This is why God isn't just crazy in love with any giver, but a cheerful giver. One whose givings start from the heart outward. One who first gives with the heart and reflects it by his hands. Tha
Read more

See It God's Way

-
Image
DAILY VITAMIN - See It God's Way "For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." (Jeremiah 29:11 TLB)     Have you ever noticed how at some point in your life when everything seemed to be going AWOL, then all of a sudden something great came out of it all? At least I have seen it happen without number in my life and others'. Well, that's exactly what God does for a living- turning bitter sources into a spring of life.     Just like most of us, one man who had a myriad of experience regarding this has to be David. David once said that he would have fainted if he hadn't believed to see God's goodness in his life. And went ahead in advising us to wait patiently for all God has promised regardless of what we are currently going through (Psalm 27:13-14). And believe me, he knows what he was talking about.     For instance, David had been told he had been chosen by God to
Read more

Desist From Rash Decisions

-
Image
DAILY VITAMIN Decisions made out of anger or envy are not only self destructive, but they also affect the attitude of those we seem not to desire their hurt. For instance, when the sons of Jacob conspired to kill Joseph, to them it was the perfect way to get rid of the 'big dreamer' that made them all look like vision-less fellows, and had taken their father's affection from them; so they took it upon themselves and agreed that they were totally correct in their intended evil action. After they had sold him and feigned his death, they might have believed it had all ended, only to be shocked with the countenance of their father, thereby sentencing themselves to a lifetime of grief and sorrows from the man they honored most- their father Israel. That alone was enough to prick their conscience until they were clouded with the mist of regret. They sought his attention for themselves, but all they created was a deficit to their own loss; thus causing more harm than what warran
Read more

Love Is Where Life Begins

-
Image
DAILY VITAMIN What's the most important thing to you in life? Think for a while before you answer. And you can take as long as it takes. Alright! Are you ready now? Let's continue. In everything you do always remember that love comes before ambition. Most times we get so carried away in climbing the ladder of success that we fail to recognize and notice when there are hands stretching high for us to help lift them up. We so much pursue self-purposed desires that we miss those God sends our way to impact; not that they didn't show up, but that we failed to notice their arrival.  And guess what: Our silver lining of greatness in the sands of time and in the mouth of men is not built by the success we built for ourselves, but by how much success we attained in imparting and influencing people. Any achievement of ours' that has no positive impact on others isn't labeled success, but a self-fulfilled goal; and that's why Mother Teresa wrote 'a life not lived
Read more

Actions Speak Loudest

-
Image
  DAILY VITAMIN - Actions Speak Loudest “Don’t hide your light! Let it shine for all; let your good deeds glow for all to see, so that they will praise your heavenly Father.” (Matthew 5:16 TLB) It was 4:30 p.m., sometime in late January 2015. The students were crowded en masse for Laboratory Practice registrations. Everybody was there; the sleek guys and girls, and the geeks as well. And also there was myself, and my very good friend Earnest. We were both members of the Christian Community on campus; but Earnest was the more vocal kind. Well, on this day, the hall was replete with students and the process slow, but eventually it got to our turn. The Registration Officer (R.O) requested for the required fee and documentation and thus signed me up; however when it was Earnest’s time to get registered, he failed to ask for the fee. Anyway, when we were both done with the process and on our way back home, Earnest softly indicated that we stop for a moment. As we stood there under the canop
Read more