Years ago someone wise said to me, in my hour of need, "God is interested in your holiness, not your happiness." Hmmmmmm, I wasn't sure what to make of that at first. What kind of wisdom is that? I was pretty unhappy, miserable even, perhaps a bit depressed. Happiness was my dream. What do you mean? I want to be happy!!! What is holiness? Being perfect? HA! I pictured a hyper modestly dressed lady, immaculately clean home, willingly obedient children, always sweet, kind, and orderly, knelt in prayer, hymns, doves, halo, radiant glow...what does that even mean, holy? I am millions of miles away from that! Holiness!?!?!!?!! Ugh!!!
I was indeed desperate, depressed, abused, at the bottom, broken, alone, afraid, and acutely aware of my sins. I knew my life was the consequences of my choices. All I knew to do was read my Bible and pray. Psalms, yes Psalms, anything accredited to David, the one after Yah's own heart. David knows what I'm going thru, his situation was way worse, and he stayed his heart upon the promises of Yah. David loved Yah, he didn't let his sin keep him separated from Yah. David repented, accepted his consequences, and embraced his chastisement as a son of The Most High, which gave him the title: a man after Yah's own heart(1 Samuel 13:14).
Holiness is... get this: Being set apart from the world, special to Yah. And Yah teaches us His perfect behavior as described in the instructions for living given to us in the first five books of the modern Western Biblical canon, aka, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy(Torah). Again...what? As a Christian, I wasn't taught about holiness, really. All I got from that was "Holiness was given to me thru Jesus. He, Jesus, was obedient to God to death and He gives me His holiness when I accept Him as Savior." Huh? It makes much more sense to me when it was explained that holiness was living my life following Yah's instructions for living. How to love Him, how to love others, how to treat the earth and all living creatures. Now that satisfies my understanding. Doing things His way, not the world's way. And I've since come to see that all the Scriptures from Genesis to Revelation ( and perhaps some others) are instructions for living.
Now the best part. When you chase after happiness, you will always be chasing. Nothing ever satisfies for long. Fleshly pleasures are temporary. But, if you seek holiness, joy everlasting will overcome you. The depths of love, comfort, peace, hope, satisfaction, and overwhelming joy are unimaginable and promised to us. Our lifetimes need to be spent in the pursuit of Holiness.
Trials in life? Trials are designed to take you to the next level of holiness. My most recent favorite quote is from Jim Stanley of Passion for Truth Ministries. He said: the trials you hate are the proving ground for your (Spiritual) promotion. OMG! Nail on the head! How will we act thru trials? Will we walk out the behaviors of Yah? Do we have the Holy Spirit with us to help us? Are we listening to the guidance of the Spirit? Again the Psalms of David to encourage us.
The truth is Yah is more interested in our holiness than our happiness, and that's a good thing.
A work in progress
Teresa
