5 Simple Rules
For Happiness
My Doctor asked if any members
of my family suffered from insanity, I replied no, we all
seem to enjoy it. You were never created to live depressed,
defeated, guilty, condemned, ashamed or unworthy. You were
created to be happy and victorious.
The 92 year old petite, well-poised and proud lady, who is
fully dressed each morning by eight o’clock, with her hair
fashionably coifed and makeup perfectly applied, even though
she is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today. Her
husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move
necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the
lobby of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her
room was ready. As she maneuvered her walker to the
elevator, she was provided a visual description of her tiny
room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on her
window. “I love it,” she stated with the enthusiasm of an
eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy.
“Mrs. Jones, you haven’t seen the room….just wait.” ‘That
doesn’t have anything to do with it,” she replied.
“Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether
I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is
arranged, it’s how I arrange my mind. I already decided to
love it. It’s a decision I make every morning when I wake
up. I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting
the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no
longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones
that do. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open
I’ll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve
stored away, just for this time in my life.” She went on to
explain, “old age is like a bank account, you withdraw from
what you’ve put in. So, my advice to you would be to deposit
a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories. Thank
you for your part in filling my Memory bank. I am still
depositing.” And with a smile she said: “Remember the five
simple rules to be happy:
1. Free your heart from hatred.
2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.
Speaking the truth in love,
Pastor Ben
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