Most people are adamant that they evaluate their happiness based on a thoughtful approach of measured judgment and NOT a gut feeling. In fact, studies show that when we’re asked how happy we are, we have every belief that we’re considering all the available data in a rational way. But unfortunately, our brains prefer to use the least possible effort and therefore don’t always cooperate.
So, when we think we’re carefully deliberating a certain question, we’re actually making more of a gut decision. According to Daniel Kahneman and other researchers, our brains secretly and simplistically morph the question from, “How happy are you with life these days?” into “What mood am I in right now?” (Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow; Eurich, Insight, p. 55).
To illustrate this point, Kahneman describes a study by German researcher Norbert Schwarz, who set out to investigate life satisfaction. Unbeknownst to his participants, he arranged for half the group to find the German equivalent of a dime on a nearby copy machine outside the lab. Though they had no idea why, those who found the coin—a mere 10 cents!—subsequently reported feeling happier and more satisfied with their lives as a whole (idem.).
The moral of the story? We are emotionally affected by circumstances far more than we wish to admit. This is part of our human nature. If something goes well, we’re happy. If something goes badly, we’re sad.
But the way of Jesus is to rise above our circumstances and find our ultimate satisfaction in Him. The Apostle Paul teaches us that we can learn to be content regardless of our circumstances. “In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need” (Philippians 4:12).
We can “rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance” (Romans 5:3). We can “count in all joy…when we meet trials of various kinds” (James 1:2).
How? “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).
Rather than a facile answer that doesn’t match the reality of life, the way of Jesus is the truest reflection of the complexity and beauty of reality. It acknowledges hardship and suffering, but it also provides a way forward filled with hope.
The next time you reflect on how happy you are with life these days, ask yourself, “What is the basis for my happiness?” If it’s anything other than Jesus, your “life these days” will always be tossed to and fro by the waves of circumstance. Only in Jesus do we have “this hope…a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls” (Hebrews 6:19, NLT)—the anchor that holds steady no matter how stormy life gets. Amen.
