They have joy
I listened to a podcast yesterday about positive psychology; the study of how ordinary people can become happier. The speaker went to Harvard and had studied in the field for years. His research proved that if you smile your brain chemistry changes and one feels happier. He also conducted experiments that prove if a person names two things a day for which they are appreciative for twenty one days their brain will be retrained to become more positive. Their outlook and perception of the world will change for the better. The best thing he said was that it doesn’t matter if the glass is half full or half empty. What matters most is that there is a pitcher near by to fill it back up again. Do we just center on our individual struggles and only think about the cup or do we look about and perceive the good in the world?
Happiness is considered an emotion and those are fleeting. Happiness in the sense of positive psychology should be redefined as joy. Joy is unbridled light and love coming from within. Those who appreciate their lives for good and bad have joy. We should all strive to live in that space of joy. After all, that’s what God wants for us, “Joy to the world the Lord has come.”
