"The difference between happiness and joy is the difference between a human emotion that's connected to circumstances and a spiritual way of engaging with the world that's connected to practicing gratitude."
The root words for happiness and joy in Greek reflect this definition. The root word for happiness is Makarios, "which was used to describe the freedom of the rich from normal cares and worries or to describe a person who received some form of good fortune, such as money or health."
The Greek word for joy is Chairo. "Chairo was described by the ancient Greeks as the culmination of being and the good mood of the soul." It is something that is only found in God and "comes with virtue and wisdom."
I especially love this quote from author Lynne Twist, in her book "The Soul of Money": "For many of us, our first waking thought of the day is I didn't get enough sleep. The next one is I don't have enough time. Whether true or not, that thought of not enough occurs to us automatically before we even think to question or examine it. We spend most of the hours and the days of our lives curing, explaining, complaining, or worrying about what we don't have enough of".
Brown says, "We are starving from a lack of gratitude."
Brown also discusses how our fears can keep us from being joyful. Sometimes we are so afraid to feel joy because we are waiting for the last shoe to drop. Unfortunately, holding back from embracing the joy in those beautiful moments of life just robs us from experiencing life to its fullest.
Jesus did not come to give us life but to give us life abundantly! I'm going to live life the way He intended.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Location:Russo Dr,San Jose,United States
No comments:
Post a Comment