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Danger #8 Diagnosing the Culture
SUMMARY: Trying to find happiness in something other than God.
All the Wrong PlacesL king for Happiness in
What are some things that many people strive for or constantly focus on because
they think it will make them happy?
4 Things to Know or Remember about The 4 Levels of Happiness
1. EVERYONEwantstobehappy.(Ifyoumetsomeonewhosaidtheydidn’twanttobehappyyouwouldthinksomethingwaswrongwiththem)
2. Typically,wewilldowhateverwecantoattainthatwhichwethinkwillmakeushappy.
EVERYONE happydidn’t
happy wrong
whateverwecan
4 Things to Know or Remember about The 4 Levels of Happiness
3. AhealthyculturefocusesonHL3&HL4.(AnunhealthyculturefocusesonHL1&HL2whileignoringorcompletelyforgettingaboutHL3&HL4)
4. NoteverythingonHL1-HL3isbad.Godmadeeachlevelofhappinessforustoenjoy.ButifwerelyonHL1-HL3tocompletelyPillourheartswewillultimatelyendupunhappy.
HL3 HL4HL1 HL2
HL3 HL4
bad God
enjoyheartsunhappy
Happiness Level #1
GIMME GIMME GIMMEGOAL: Pleasure and possessions
(a.k.a. Hedonism and materialism)
EXAMPLES: Food, drink, sex, porn, shelter, clothes, cars, TV, phones, partying, stuff, etc.
Happiness is very short-term
EXTRA NOTES:
Focus is entirely on oneselfoneselfshort
Happiness Level #2
I’M THE BESTGOAL: Personal AchievementEXAMPLES: Success in school, success in
sports, success at work, social status (popularity), looks, etc.
Happiness is relatively short-term
Focus is entirely on oneself
Leads to “The Comparison Game”
A lot of people never move beyond HL2
EXTRA NOTES:
oneself
short
“The Comparison Game”
movebeyond
Happiness Level #3
ALL ABOUT OTHERSGOAL: Loving and serving othersEXAMPLES: Loving and serving: Spouse, child, parent,
sibling, relative, friend, teammate, church community, school community, the sick, the poor, the lonely, the spiritually lost, etc.
Happiness is long-term
Focus is on others
Requires a lot of time and effort (can be very hard work!)
Because people are imperfect and mortal, we will never find complete fulfillment at this level.
EXTRA NOTES:
others
long
time effortvery hard work!
imperfect
fulfillment
Happiness Level #4
ALL ABOUT GODGOAL:
EXAMPLES: The saints, praying “Thy will be done”, living with J.O.Y. (Jesus 1st, Others 2nd, You 3rd), being a Jesus Ninja, etc.
Happiness is eternal
Focus is entirely on God, which will naturally lead us to focus on others as well
Fulfills our desires for perfect truth, love, beauty, goodness, and being (home).
Loving and serving God
Requires a lot of time and effort (can be very hard work!)
EXTRA NOTES:
God
otherseternal
time effortvery hard work!
truth love beautygoodness being
St. Augustine, who pretty much lived his life from HL1-HL4, captures the essence of
Happiness Level 4 with his most famous quote from the first page of Confessions:
“You have us for Yourself, O Lord,
and our will remain
until they rest in .”
made
hearts
restless You
TREATMENT 1:Memorize this quote from St. Augustine so
you remember not to settle for HL1-HL3.
“Remember that you will die.”(“Memento Mori”)
TREATMENT 2:
“Americans are scared to death of death.”
*NOTE: I came across this scene while flipping channels one night. It’s from the movie Straight Outta Compton which, as a whole, is rather unwholesome. However, I thought this scene was pretty powerful and worth reflecting on. This clip has been edited for language.
WHAT IF YOU WERE ONLY GIVEN 6 MONTHS TO LIVE? What would you do? What wouldn’t you do?
“The devil will distract us to death - if we let him.”
distractwe let him
“Sometimes you have to think about your death in order to start
thinking about your life…”
Tikker watch
“AsIcontinuemyadvancethroughmy50’s,IamcertainthatIamclosertomydeaththanIamtomybirth.Ilookatthecalendarandseemybirthdaterollingaround.ButwhichisthedaythatIwilldie?Hmmm.Thinkaboutthatone.Wepassourdeathdateeveryyearwithoutgivingitathought.Butourdeathdateisjustasrealasourbirthdate.ItmightdousgoodtopauseandreElectonthat.”
-DennisJustison
deathlife