“Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
Habakkuk 3:17-18
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.”
Philippians 4:4
Having joy is the best medicine for maintaining a healthy lifestyle and being physically and mentally strong. People become ill physically because they have problems with their mental health i.e., they are not happy and feel sorry for themselves and need anti depression pills to help them keep going.
Indeed, if there is such a business whose product is “happiness”, then it should be the best selling product in the world. People misunderstand that it is only possible to have joy and happiness if we have a lot of money, and only people who are well accepted and honored by their community can be joyful and happy.
In perspective, there is more happiness in this world that people can consume but that is worldly joy and is unsustainable; people are longing for a kind of happiness which can satisfy their hearts’ desires to replace a sense of emptiness and lost in their life. This is proof that money cannot buy true happiness in life.
Habakkuk, a preacher before the birth of Christ, and Paul a preacher in the New Testament, both have the same thought about happiness. We can be happy even though we are surrounded by unfavorable circumstances. We can be joyful amidst disappointment or things do not go our way. This kind of joy and happiness is heavenly and cannot be bought with all our possessions. This joy is permanent and is from God which is able to replace all our emptiness.
Both Habakkuk and Paul felt the same, “Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.”
Rejoice then in the Lord always and again I say, rejoice. Jesus is the well which springs happiness and is a well which will not go dry. Today, let the joy of God be our strength.