The Secret to Happiness

Last night I found myself out with the family at about 6:30 PM. We were going to picnic at a local park and enjoy Boston's September weather. As enjoyable as that sounds, I was not very happy. I was, what you might call, a little hangry. I wanted to eat and I wanted it now! And I did eat, eventually. I ate a wonderful sandwich prepared by Allie, and I was happy again.

We all want to be happy. Sometimes the cure to sadness is a snack. Other times we can't seem to find happiness no matter what we do.

In search of that one killer app that will make us happy, researchers have studied happiness for decades. And it may surprise you to find out, they have found the one thing that consistently improves happiness.

In a recent article for the New York Times, Jessica Grose went on a journey to find the one thing that made her happy. She downloaded an app that helped her track her mood three times a day to see where she was the happiest. What really surprised her was that tracking her mood and seeking happiness had a counterintuitive effect. She was now less happy and more anxious as she thought about how she felt at every moment of the day.

Unable to find happiness through her own experiments, she asked happiness professionals where to find it. Over and over again they pointed to the only thing that constantly brings happiness: Others. An 85-year-long Harvard study showed that happiness isn't found in "career achievement, money, exercise, or a healthy diet." Instead, they learned that "Positive relationships keep us happier, healthier, and help us live longer. Period." The study would continue, "Self-help culture [has] caused many people to look inward to find meaning and vitality. Yet the self by itself is a poor source for meaning.”

And there it is. The secret to happiness is that healthy relationships keep us happy and healthy. God made you for community. Yes, even you introverts need community! Just in short well-spaced bursts.

Tomorrow we will talk about the importance of spiritual community and how Arborway will help you build that kind of community. Then after service, we will enjoy a wonderful meal... you know, just so you don't get hangry.