happiness

i started reading the book "mere christianity" the other day and it is blowing my mind.

c.s. lewis has a way with words.  the chapter i read today focused a lot on the idea of free-will and happiness and this quote struck my fancy:

"the happiness which god designs for his higher creatures is the happiness of being freely, voluntarily united to him and to each other in an ecstasy of love and delight compared with which the most rapturous love between a man and a woman on this earth is mere milk and water".

later in the chapter he discusses the idea of satan's plan to counterfeit the happiness god offers to us.

"when satan put into the heads of our remote ancestors was the idea that they could 'be like gods'--could set up their own as if they had created themselves--be their own masters--invent some sort of happiness for themselves outside of god, apart from god.  and out of that hopeless attempt has come nearly all that we call human history-- money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery-- the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than god which will make him happy."

these ideas really got me thinking about the relationship i have with god and its correlation to my happiness.

i started making a list of everything that makes me happy:
long conversations with my best friend
the guitar
yoga, running, and being healthy
sitting on the back porch with my family
jumping into a pool
hitting a really good volley in tennis
surfing
running on the beach
eating good food
going to the temple
sunsets
family dinner
driving with the windows down and the music loud
running through the grass with bare-feet
being in love
riding my bike or longboard
working hard
***
the list goes on and on.  i am such a blessed girl.  honestly, it makes me emotional thinking about the life i have been given.  i make mistakes everyday yet somehow, god's love and blessings are always there.  i have an amazing family, a healthy body, the kindest friends, a beautiful home, a rocking education and i'm a member of the most soul-filing religion out there.  i get down about life sometimes, it's perplexities, and the unknown but i have every reason to be the happiest human alive and guess what?  i think i am.

"I hope we can be happy where we are, be grateful for our blessings—now, here—accept the challenge that is ours and make the most of it, and not be envious of others...God help us to be grateful for our blessings and never to be guilty of the sin ingratitude" 

Ezra Taft Benson