The Pursuit of Happiness
By: Lori Rigdon
(January 1, 2007)
Lord, what has this generation done with you? We have lost you somewhere in the dailyness of life and have allowed the busyness of our days to turn you into something routine. You have become a part of a check list that we can mark off each week as we strive to conquer another day, another week. I am afraid that more and more of us have turned you into just another little “g” God that fits somewhere at the bottom of a long list of things to do and many never come to the realization that You are the true living God that desperately desires for a relationship with us. The thought that the Creator of the heavens and earth desires to know us, never enters our minds, never stirs in our hearts, never draws us to a place of seeking a deeper walk with You. We do not stand in awe at the thought that out of the multitude of faces that You have designed, the bodies that You have breathed life into, the souls that You died to save that You see us as one- a treasure worth pursuing, worthy of Your longing and desire. In Your eyes we stand out and are the one that You desire to walk with, to talk with, to love on and lead to truth and happiness. I look around and as I observe the day-in day-out lives of people, I see empty pursuits of happiness, meaningless attempts to achieve the goals of life on earth without realizing the life that awaits us in Heaven. It has become the goal to get through life gaining as much worldly pleasure as possible and achieving status and tangible gratification. We see the here and now and strive to fill it with worldly pleasures without realizing that this dwelling is a temporal platform in which You have created and have allowed us to be a part of. Sadly we have allowed vanity, greed, selfishness, and pride to take the place of humility, worship, mercy and grace. People of my generation have grown up hearing so much about you, that somewhere along the way the pursuit of knowing you has been replaced with the satisfaction of knowing about you. The opportunities to hear about you are endless through media tools such as Christian radio, TV, magazines and books as well as the countless churches that stand on the corners of our streets. These things are wonderful tools in and of themselves and are great ways to share the Truth of who You are but I am afraid that somewhere along the way these tools have been used to be a convenient way for people to achieve a form of godliness without truly seeking it and obtaining it for themselves. It is ashamedly sad to say that You have become such a part of life that people have become accustomed and apathetic and are not experiencing the true depth of a relationship with You. In our microwave world, like everything else, religious things have become easy to achieve. With a punch of a button we can get our daily worship through song, with the click of a remote control we can get a Sunday sermon, and by flipping through a few pages of a book we can get a quiet time. But is that enough? Is that what You desire? I am afraid that people of this society have been deceived in to believing that it is enough. That if they accomplish a few of these things each week, go to church on Sunday, and try to be good that they are doing what is required. But I know there is more because You have said in your Word to “seek” you and you will be found, to “love” you with all heart, mind, and soul, to put to death the things of our earthly nature. By the truth of your Word I believe that you expect more, you desire more. I am fearful and burdened for my generation, Lord because somewhere along the way we have missed it and as I stand back and watch the many ways people have sought to pursue happiness I see clearly that they have been deceived into believing that happiness comes from the here and now, the things that are seen, and that their hope does not rest in You. Oh Lord of Heaven, the creator of the stars, the water, the sky, the one whose breath gives life to each of us, forgive our unbelief, turn our hearts from deception to Truth and draw us to yourself. Lord, by the lives of this generation, may you be glorified and in our pursuit of happiness may we find it only where it can be found…. In You alone.
Since, then you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.
Colossians 3:1-4
Oh patient Father, forgive our wicked ways….
The idolatry and greed, the way we spend our days….
Open the closed eyes of our hearts Lord, help us to clearly see….
That you are the creator of all things who desires to walk with me
