This is written for anyone having periods of unhappiness.  There are a few requirements to guarantee happiness.  You must believe there is a God who loves you.  It is necessary to accept the Bible as God’s manual for living life to the fullest.  The Bible is a daily reading requirement to become knowledgeable with how one is to live their life as taught by Christ.

Here is the problem.  Most do not read or accept the Bible as God’s manual for life.  Many, who read it, do not understand it.  There are some who read regularly and understand but do not apply its principles to living.  The results are: most people live unhappy lives and try everything the devil proposes to become happy.  They think that accumulating an abundance of material things, fame or power will make them happy.  They learn that happiness is only temporary.  The fulfilling of greed and lust is the devil deceiving many to think that will bring them true happiness.

In ancient times people were ruled by kings, priests and religious authorities.  They told them what to do and what they were to believe and they had little choice.  At one time we are told that one-third of the world’s population were slaves.  Under those conditions very few lived happy lives.  But that is not how God had planned for us to live.

Genesis 1:26 – “Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”  NLT

God made us to be like Him.  But man sinned and was no longer like God. This nature changed man completely and it was this new self-centered nature that rebelled against God just as Lucifer and 1/3 of the angels did.   History tells us how sinful man behaved and it was more evil than nice.  Had man kept his original nature and had not sinned, we would have had the potential to rule the universe as God had planned and everyone would have lived a joyful, peaceful and happy life.

God tells us through Scripture that we will never find true happiness until we recreate our human nature.  We are told we must be born again to become a new person.  The old nature must die out and we take on a nature similar to what God had originally planned for us.  The only way that could happen was to accept Christ as our Lord and Savior in order for God’s Spirit could come and live within us.  It is with God’s Spirit and our new nature that provides this guaranteed happiness if we follow the Spirit’s guidance.

We learn to love God with all our might and love others unconditionally.  We learn that it is more blessed to give than to receive.  God tells us His blessing and our happiness is a result of giving out of love.  He commands us to return to Him a tithe or one-tenth of what we receive.  Malachi 3:8 – 10 – “Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated me! “But you ask, ‘What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you?’ “You have cheated me of the tithes and offerings due to me.  You are under a curse, for your whole nation has been cheating me.  Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!”

With this new nature that God gives us we learn to have faith and trust that whatever He promises He is committed to doing.  Without that spiritual nature maturing, it is difficult to have the kind of faith and trust necessary to accept God’s promises.  We learn from Christ that we are to have a servant’s heart and a spirit of kindness.  Galatians 6:10 – “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.”

As a person who has tithed more than 10% for over fifty years God has never failed to keep His promise to us. I can attest to the fact that three things that will make your life happy is putting God first, loving others as ourselves and being a giver rather than being a willing taker.  Do you look for ways to be kind to others?  Scripture tells us that being kind will bring us happiness and it is a promise.  This is part of love others as we love ourselves.

America can still be called a Christian nation but they are not living by Christian principles.  God tells us to stay out of debt.  We are teaching our people to be proud takers and not be concerned about being givers.  Are we a nation that is putting God first?  Is our nation known for loving and being kind to each other?  Knowing what you see, would you say the majority of Americans are living happy lives?   Is it because we are unwilling to allow God to change our nature back to what He wanted us to be in the beginning?

We may not be able to change a nation but we can allow our own natures to be recreated and live holy lives.  When that happens, God promises that He will bless us and we shall have a joyful, peaceful and happy life, guaranteed.  This is one person who knows it works.  You can face all kinds of difficulties and still remain happy.  Our security is in God, knowing that all things will work out for our own good.  Try it, (let God give you His Spirit and a new changed nature) you will like the difference!