Журнал Афиша Февраль 2016

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THE GREATEST ADVENTURE OF YOUR LIFE
I am writing this from deep down inside.
It seems as if everybody is in search
of happiness. What makes me happy?
What makes you happy? I am not sure if
this is just me, but I go through different
mood changes throughout the whole
day. I wake up in the morning all content.
In my car I rock out to my music and
have a solo concert. On my walk to class
through downtown I feel empty. In class
I am so engaged and interested in the
topic my professors are lecturing about.
During lunch with my friend I am full (pun
intended). On my max ride home I am
happy. At home I question why am I doing
what I’m doing, am I doing enough, or
what other opportunities are there that
I should take. You could probably do a
psychoanalysis on how the mood I am
in correlates with the activity I am doing,
but it’s reality. You might argue that this
writing is even therapy for me. In which
case, you are right. I trust that this is
therapy for you as well. I know I am not
alone. We have struggles so that we may
bless others. And we are blessed so that
we may bless others.
What if we are not put on this earth to
live a selfish life. What if we are not put
on this earth to make ourselves happy,
but instead to make others happy. What
if we are focusing on the wrong things.
When we focus on making ourselves
happy, our world is me. This world is so
much bigger, greater, and vast than me,
than you. And I didn’t even mention our
universe, other galaxies, and heaven.
Nothing will bring you more fulfillment,
joy, and meaning to your life than the very
One who created life. Absolutely nothing.
We seek happiness in our social circle, in
how many followers we have on Instagram,
how many people like our pictures, in the
latest cool purchases we got. What if the
purpose for our life is not to be happy,
but to love others. To know God. To love
Him. He is love himself. Wherelse can we
find the purest, richest form of love except
from the source itself. Knowing God is
not a selfish thing. It is a sacrificial thing.
Jesus lived the most sacrificial life, and
calls us to do likewise. When we come
to listen and truly understand the story of
Jesus we are compelled to never be the
same. Leaving our old life is a sacrifice,
but it pales in comparison to the sacrifice
Jesus made for us; living in the new life
won’t even be a sacrifice. I could keep
on telling you how awesome Jesus is and
how awesome life is with Him. But it will
never do any good until you experience
life with Him yourself. Until you experience
His love, not just know about His love.
How do you get to know your new
girlfriend or boyfriend? By spending time
with them. Having a relationship with Jesus
is the same. When you spend time with
your girlfriend or boyfriend what do you
do? Communicate, you ask questions,
you listen. And the same with Jesus.
Just talk to Him like you would talk to
your best friend. He is always listening.
In response, God speaks to us through
His Word, the Holy Bible. But you may be
asking, how do I do this? We often like to
over complicate things, such as having a
relationship with Jesus. We make all these
rules that it becomes a burden, and that
is the last thing Jesus wants for us. Jesus
tells us to have childlike faith. Children just
do and trust. So just spend time with the
Lord by talking to Him through prayer and
listening to Him through the Bible each
and every single day. I also have been
trying to implement silence into my prayers
where I hear His voice. It may not be an
audible voice, but the Holy Spirit speaks
to us through our thoughts. Look up and
read Isaiah 30:21. And sometimes, all you
may hear is silence. I believe God is very
selective in His words, He doesn’t say
much, there’s no fluff. At the end of this
article I have included some scripture to
open up to, some of my favorites. Dive
into it. Ask what is God saying here? How
does this fit into the context and setting
of the chapter, the book, the Bible itself.
Start with studying one each day. Yes it
looks long, but I would rather have you
read God’s word than this article. Buckle
yourself up; you are about to embark on
the greatest adventure of your life.
Maybe happiness is not wanting to
be someone else, not wanting to be
somewhere else, not wanting to be with
someone else. What is the opposite of
that? Being grateful for who you are,
grateful for where you are, grateful for who
you are with. And if you are not content,
then do something about it. Jesus gives
us the contentment and Jesus tell us to
give thanks in all circumstances. There
was one quote I came across from the
Creeds, “If we truly understand what sort
of Companion, Counselor, and Friend we
have in the Holy Spirit, it would banish
all thoughts of loneliness forever.” These
thoughts formed the previous night and
now I am finishing the article the next day
and I took my own advice, God’s advice
really. I walked through downtown with
46 February 2016 Будьте замечены!