20220201 SEEKING HAPPINESS IN LIFE
01 February, 2022, Tuesday, Chinese New Year
Numbers 6:22-27
22 The Lord said to Moses, 23 “Say to Aaron and his sons, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them,
24 The Lord bless you and keep you:
25 The Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you:
26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.
27 “So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”
Psalms 90:1-17
1 Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place*
in all generations.
2 Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting thou art God.
3 Thou turnest man back to the dust,
and sayest, “Turn back, O children of men!”
4 For a thousand years in thy sight
are but as yesterday when it is past,
or as a watch in the night.
5 Thou dost sweep men away; they are like a dream,
like grass which is renewed in the morning:
6 in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
in the evening it fades and withers.
7 For we are consumed by thy anger;
by thy wrath we are overwhelmed.
8 Thou hast set our iniquities before thee,
our secret sins in the light of thy countenance.
9 For all our days pass away under thy wrath,
our years come to an endf like a sigh.
10 The years of our life are threescore and ten,
or even by reason of strength fourscore;
yet their spang is but toil and trouble;
they are soon gone, and we fly away.
11 Who considers the power of thy anger,
and thy wrath according to the fear of thee?
12 So teach us to number our days
that we may get a heart of wisdom.
13 Return, O Lord! How long?
Have pity on thy servants!
14 Satisfy us in the morning with thy steadfast love,
that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad as many days as thou hast afflicted us,
and as many years as we have seen evil.
16 Let thy work be manifest to thy servants,
and thy glorious power to their children.
17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
and establish thou the work of our hands upon us,
yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.
James 4:13-15
13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and get gain”; 14 whereas you do not know about tomorrow. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or that.”
Matthew 6: 31-34
31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.
34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day’s own trouble be sufficient for the day.
SEEKING HAPPINESS IN LIFE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [NUM 6:22-27; PS 90:1-17; JAMES 4:13-15; MT 6:31-34]
We all desire to be happy. No one seeks sadness and misery in this world. We are created to be happy, to live in paradise where there is plenty, without suffering and misery; and where there is love and intimacy; meaningful and supportive relationships with our fellowmen. Our disagreements and confusion lie in where true happiness is found. Most of us tend to associate happiness with wealth and luxury. For the Chinese particularly, Lunar New Year is full of symbols depicting wealth and prosperity. Of course, the symbols of Chinese New Year are not only concerned with wealth, but they are also concerned with progress, longevity, good health and posterity. Regardless, most of the aspirations pertain to happiness in this world. It involves comfort and security in life.
Of course, it is not wrong to hope for such earthly blessings in this life. We are all averse to suffering. We cannot be happy if we are sickly, anxious and deprived of the basic needs of life. However, earthly blessings can only do so much. Even if we have all the material needs of life, wealth, position and even good health, we will still not be happy. We may be healthy and have plenty, but these only cater for the body. We have a soul that seeks for more aesthetic and spiritual values. We seek love, friendship, beauty, truth, meaning and spiritual fulfilment. Without which, our life will have no meaning and purpose. Material things and achievements can only provide us with material comfort and security.
At any rate, we know that such things do not last. We know that life is fragile. The responsorial psalm reminds us, “You sweep men away like a dream, like grass, which springs up in the morning. In the morning it springs up and flowers; by evening it withers and fades.” Our life is short when compared to eternity. Of God, the psalmist remarked, “You turn men back into dust and say: ‘Go back, sons of men’. To your eyes a thousand years are like yesterday, come and gone, no more than a watch in the night.” St James also warned us about the unpredictability of this life when he wrote, “Here is the answer for those of you who talk like this: ‘Today or tomorrow, we are off to this or that town; we are going to spend a year there, trading, and make some money.’ You never know what will happen tomorrow; you are no more than a mist that is here for a little while and then disappears. The most you should ever say is: ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we shall still be alive to do this or that.'”
The book of Ecclesiasticus also gave us some words of wisdom with regard to security and happiness in life. Good things and bad, life and death, poverty and wealth, come from the Lord. One becomes rich through diligence and self-denial, and the reward allotted to him is this: when he says, “I have found rest, and now I shall feast on my goods!” he does not know how long it will be until he leaves them to others and dies. Do not say, “I have enough, and what harm can come to me now?” (Sir 11:14,18,19,24) This reminds us of the parable of the rich fool who said to himself, “‘Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.” (Lk 12:19-21)
True happiness is found when we find peace in our hearts because we live a life of justice. Jesus said to His disciples, “Do not worry; do not say, ‘What are we to eat? What are we to drink? How are we to be clothed?’ It is the pagans who set their hearts on all these things. Your heavenly Father knows you need them all. Set your hearts in his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given to you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow: tomorrow will take care of itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.'” Indeed, living a righteous and upright life in truth and charity is what brings happiness.
Let me narrate to you a story which someone sent to me about this wealthy entrepreneur and billionaire. When Nigerian billionaire Femi Otedola was asked by a radio presenter, “Sir what can you remember made you a happiest man in life?” Femi said: “I have gone through four stages of happiness in life and finally I understood the meaning of true happiness. The first stage was to accumulate wealth and means. But at this stage I did not get the happiness I wanted. Then came the second stage of collecting valuables and items. But I realised that the effect of this thing is also temporary and the lustre of valuable things does not last long. Then came the third stage of getting big projects. That was when I was holding 95% of diesel supply in Nigeria and Africa. I was also the largest vessel owner in Africa and Asia. But even here I did not get the happiness I had imagined.
The fourth stage was the time a friend of mine asked me to buy wheelchairs for some disabled children. Just about 200 kids. At the friend’s request, I immediately bought the wheelchairs. But the friend insisted that I go with him and hand over the wheelchairs to the children. I got ready and went with him. There I gave these wheel chairs to these children with my own hands. I saw the strange glow of happiness on the faces of these children. I saw them all sitting on the wheelchairs, moving around and having fun. It was as if they had arrived at a picnic spot where they are sharing a jackpot winning. I felt REAL joy inside me. When I decided to leave one of the kids grabbed my legs. I tried to free my legs gently but the child stared at my face and held my legs tightly. I bent down and asked the child: Do you need something else? The answer this child gave me not only made me happy but also changed my attitude to life completely. This child said: ‘I want to remember your face so that when I meet you in heaven, I will be able to recognise you and thank you once again.'”
Indeed, happiness ultimately is never about oneself but about others. It is when we care for others, especially those who need our assistance, when we defend the poor and those who are oppressed, when we reach out to those who are lonely, when we are encouraging and supportive of people, when we have good and faithful friends to support us. In other words, as the first reading urges us, when we show the face of God to others. When God instructed Moses to bless His people, Moses was to say, “May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord uncover his face to you and bring you peace.” God uncovers His face to us not only at prayer, in worship, but most of all in our fellowmen whom Jesus our Lord identifies with, calling us His brothers (Heb 2:11), especially those who are in need when He remarked, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” (Mt 25:40 NIV)
This Lunar New Year, we celebrate the year of the Tiger. The characteristics of the Tiger is one of confidence, speed, courage, tenacity and ambition. Such positive assets can also be destructive when used negatively. Those born under this zodiac sign are said to have a tendency to be rebellious, impetuous, impatient and irritable with those who are slow and weak. Like the Tiger, we need to be adventurous and be open to new challenges ahead of us, yet, we must not allow our independence and strong self-esteem to make us lose our human touch and sensitivity to those who are weak. Instead, let us use our boundless energy to do good, to build a more just world, to touch lives, to change society to be more humane, gracious and kind.
This is what the Lord means when He asks us to set our hearts on the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. We should not be too worried about how rich we are or what positions we have in life. At the end of the day, all gifts are meant for service. What matters most is that we find happiness not just in this life but eternal happiness with God when our days come to an end. Let us not live a life of regrets like so many rich and powerful people who unfortunately found their meaning in life only in their later years when they have conquered the world, only to find that the world cannot give happiness. Only God can give us ultimate happiness. Only love and service can give us meaning and true joy. Only God can give us our assurance of security in this life. Happy Lunar New Year! May you be happy in the Lord!
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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