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A Happy New You

“The art of being happy lies in the power of extracting happiness from common things” – Koyasis

I was sitting in my room, jotting down a few thoughts for a section of this article and half listening to the news that was airing on the Television set in another room. The news report that droned in the background included the usual mixture of politics and catastrophes- NPP taking the EC to court, the “Woyomisation” of gargantuan state funds all in the name of paying judgement debts, lawsuits and counter lawsuits within a family over land. Heavy stuff. I had to sigh. Life can be so hard and unfair. I was distracted from writing. But as I started to rise and looked up, I saw an inscription put up on the gate in front of me. On it were the simple words: SCATTER JOY!

I sat back down. I asked myself, do I scatter joy? Do I even understand true joy and happiness? Of course I understand and talk about happiness a lot, and my family and I certainly have much to be happy about. But happiness is based on circumstances and comes as a result of doing; doing something that makes you happy, and I know too well on a personal level, I’m not happy when things aren’t going the way I want them to go. As I thought of the stories I had heard on the news, as I thought about the amount of time I think about my own happiness, I realized that there’s something very different about joy than happiness.

Joy is not based on circumstances. You can experience a deep abiding joy no matter what you have to be happy about or unhappy about in your world. Joyful people always radiate something that is based in their heart and will. Others sense it and feel uplifted. I think that’s what “SCATTER JOY” is all about. And I realized that I cannot scatter joy unless I’m joyful myself. How much true joy do you see on a typical day in your life? I know it’s not nice, but I almost have to laugh out loud at some of the people I see in the hall. They look miserable. I even see them at church singing hymns about God’s amazing grace, all the while looking like they swallowed “g)b3” forcefully.

How about you? Do you want to live to make a difference? If so, you have to be different than those who go with the flow, and one key way to stand out is to be joyful! There are so many ways to experience joy in your life-no matter what’s on the news or what you going through. How many ways are you celebrating right now. See the blessings all around you?

The joy of God’s presence: He is beside you and no one can steal your joy.

The joy of Salvation: There’s forgiveness of sin and one can achieve peace with God.

The joy of God’s goodness: He is good all the time.

The joy of God’s Word: Do you set yourself up for each day to study God’s Word?

The joy of a clean heart: If you are not experiencing joy in your life, check your own conscience.

Joy in suffering: We should not lose the lessons anytime we go through hardships.

Things do go wrong from time to time. We’re not supposed to be happy about everything that happens to us in our world. But life’s too short to succumb to a spirit of negativity. Be positive. Sometimes it takes a decision, an act of the will to be joyful-and then God plants something real and abiding in our hearts. Are you discouraged about your grades? Blue about your GPA? or Depressed by your relationships? Don’t forget- joy is everywhere.

Edward Bannerman Koomson(Koya)

BSc. Psychology, 0246388999