THE QUEST

At a stage in our lives, we all began to dream and wish.  I would want to be a doctor, a rocket scientist, a president, a governor, a football star, the richest man in the whole world etc. but in our numerous dreams and wishes, we forgot to include one big important thing which money cannot buy.

To most of us, our dreams and wishes came through but we are eluded with that same thing we refused to include and it has become One Big Quest in our lives – as we now have plenty money, I mean chucks of it, some of us are now senators, governors, presidents, rocket scientist, football stars just as we have dreamed but 95% of us are just not satisfied anymore with our lots just because we disregarded that singular important but undervalued thing in our wishes and dreams at that stage when everyone must dream and wish. 

The pursuit for our dreams were so focused on our endeared programs that even after much achievements, we are so miserable because we are now faced with that “One Big Quest”

Please and please, be honest with yourself and see if any of these below describe your approach to life.

• You constantly suffer from feelings of anger and bitterness toward others and life in general.

• You're always struggling with perfectionism and feelings of never measuring up.

• You see other people as barriers to your happiness and success.

• You measure happiness by what you own or how much money you have.

• You are obsessed with your appearance, clothing, jewelry, makeup, head and body shape.

• You suffer from excessive shyness.

• You have difficulty experiencing meaningful relationships with others.

• You feel stressed much of the time and can't relax when you're not busy.

• You are in constant conflict with others and always trying to bend them to your will-you feel that you are right in almost all situations.

• You have a preoccupation with sex.

• You always compare yourself with others and judging them by your personal criteria.

• You experience an inability to trust God or even believe that He exists.

If you are experiencing one or more of these symptoms much of the time, you have to admit you aren't very happy and you did not include happiness as one of your dreams, thus it has become One Big Quest in your life.

Happiness is a mental or emotional state of well-being characterized by positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy.  A variety of biological, psychological, religious, and philosophical approaches have striven to define happiness and identify its sources. Various research groups, including positive psychologists, endeavor to apply the scientific method to answer questions about what "happiness" is, and how it might be attained.

Happiness is a medicine- it is so much important to human life as life itself that The United Nations declared 20 March the International Day of Happiness to recognize the relevance of happiness and wellbeing as universal goals.

Is happiness having too much money, achievements, plenty properties, awards, or having great positions in the society?

I mean positions, as people have more than one positions in the society but yet are not happy,  hmmmm. It seems that saying “to whom much is given much is expected”.  What if I rephrase it this way “To whom much is given, much is taken” – their happiness, privacy, sleep, health etc have taken away from them.

Philosophers and religious thinkers often define happiness in terms of living a good life, or flourishing rather than simply as an emotion. Happiness in this sense was used to translate the Greek Eudaimonia, and is still used in virtue ethics.

Happiness is a fuzzy concept and can mean many different things to many people. Part of the challenge of a science of happiness is to identify different concepts of happiness, and where applicable, split them into their components. Related concepts are well-being, quality of life and flourishing. Some commentators focus on the difference between the hedonistic tradition of seeking pleasant and avoiding unpleasant experiences, and the eudaimonic tradition of living life in a full and deeply satisfying way.

To me, happiness is an innate thing-God’s gift which you can receive freely if you ask for it as you would when praying for other dreams.  Let your happiness roots grow down into  God and draw up nourishment from Him and then it will be everlasting happiness – not just creating a habit or living a fake life style to be happy even when you are not from the depth of your heart.  Although there are some key ways to be happy which we will discuss futher in this book, but no man can hide from his feelings since they are part of him - they always know where to find him.

It is God and Him alone that can give you inner mind happiness and not the things of this world.  Most worldly things only add more sorrow to your life if you don’t put God first in all the things you do.

Research has produced many different views on causes of happiness, and on factors that correlate with happiness, but no validated method has been found to substantially improve long-term happiness in a meaningful way for most people.

In fact, a lot of people have degenerated from sadness to depression. -Depression, also known as major depression, clinical depression or major depressive disorder is a medical illness that causes a constant feeling of sadness and lack of interest. Depression affects how the person feels, behaves and thinks.

Depression can lead to emotional and physical problems. Typically, people with depression find it hard to go about their day-to-day activities, and may also feel that life is not worth living.

About 30 percent of people with depression have some degree of treatment resistance. And the greater the degree of resistance, the more likely a future relapse, even if the patient continues taking the drug.

You can be happy, no matter the situation you found yourself only if you can take it to God. For He says in 1 Peter 5:7 “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”

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