When you truly believe in God you are happy

In Tehillim, King David writes, “Serve God with happiness, come before Him with joy.”  Other sources in Torah and Navi emphasize a lot that serving God with happiness is very important. Rabbi Nachman of Breslov writes that it is a big mitzvah to always be happy.  In Mishlei, King Solomon writes that happiness leads to good health and healing, and in contrast, sadness can harm us physically.

But how can we achieve this happiness?  We know that to really be happy means that we have to have a lot of faith in God. A person who believes in God believes that everything is in God´s hands, therefore, both good and bad come from God, and our job is to believe in Him. Belief gives us a framework to understand life’s challenges, pain and joy as part of His greater plan.  Our faith in God can provide us with emotional support during hard times.  We feel a sense of belonging and gratitude.  When a person feels sad, it is harder for him to see and really believe that everything is in God´s hands, and is for the best. I can´t lie and say that to always be happy is easy, but we have to do our utmost to always in any situation understand and accept that everything that is happening is for the good because it comes straight from God.

I know very well how it is not to be happy. For many years I did struggle with myself and my ADHD. To keep up with everything around me was hard. After my divorce (soon to be 5 years ago) I was not in very good shape and I wasn´t able to do very much. But even in those periods, my belief in God was solid.  For example, it never entered my mind to break shabbat, because I knew that God was challenging me, and I had to prove that I was able not only to overcome the challenges, but also never to give up on God. Every time I was able to overcome my challenges, I felt good about my achievement, and my happiness grew, and I thanked God for the opportunity to overcome the obstacles in front of me.

So does that mean that you don´t believe in God if you are not happy? I would not take it that far. Some people as people are not very happy. I was for many years a very serious person and it was hard for me to smile. When I was around people it was important to protect myself and never let down my guard. It was first really when I met my wife Sara that I learnt again to smile and laugh. She opened up something inside me that had been closed for many years. Even though I was happy most of the time, I wasn´t smiling.  Smiling added a dimension to my happiness. Today, when I wake up, I have my first smile when I see my wife and from then on, the day goes by. Some days are harder than others but the smile and happiness is there. To smile and be happy adds so much to life. Not only to your connection with God but also to yourself and the people around you, and even to your overall health and wellbeing.