Series: Question Everything. Week 1: Why Am I Not Happy? Psalm 1
“Why am I not happy?” Can you be truly happy in life? Psalm 1:1… Can we be truly happy? And, if so, how?
When you’re young: happiness is inevitable… but as you get older: happiness is unattainable. The Bible: happiness is neither inevitable nor unattainable: it is possible.
Psalm 1:1-6.
- You won’t be happy… when your happiness is based on circumstances (Psalm 1:3)
Life goes through seasons.
We will never succeed at removing all pain & suffering.
Psalm 4:7.
- You won’t be happy… when you have no anchor point outside of yourself (Psalm 1:4-5).
This attacks one of our cultural myths: the belief that happiness comes from complete freedom.
A tree without roots is tumbleweed.
Psalm 1:5.
There are 2 WAYS OF LIFE IN PSALMS. Which of these two ways do you want to live?
The Psalmist reveals the secret to really being happy.
Psalm 1:1—walk in step (or counsel): the way you think; the way sinners take: how you behave; Sit in the company of mockers: where you find your identity.
Let your mind, your behaviors, and your identity be shaped by the Word of God.
The secret to happiness is driving your roots deep in the gospel. In light of that… get more serious about 2 things: (Psalm 1:1–2)
- The Word of God (Psalm 1:2)
You can only escape the pleasures of the world through the pleasures of the Word.
Psalm 1:6.
Confess your cold heart to God.
Delight in the Word… then meditate on the Word. Psalm 1:2:
- The church.
Sermons might inspire you, but it is community that shapes you.
Do you want to be happy? Devote yourself to the Word of God & the people of God. Psalm 16:11.
Here’s the challenge: Go all the way. Either drive your roots deep into God—or walk away!
