Would You Rather be Rich or Happy
I know most people think that rich and happy are synonyms.
But the truth is wealth is no predictor of happiness. It may make it easier to accumulate stuff, but stuff doesn’t guarantee happiness.
So, what do you think? If you had to choose, would you rather be rich or happy?
Did you know that blessed and content are synonyms for happy?
The real question becomes, how much money does it take to feel blessed and contented. For many Americans the answer is more, but maybe that’s because we spend too much time comparing what we don’t have to what we perceive others have.
How rich is rich enough? How much does it take to be happy?
I found several quotes that address our question.
Money has never made man happy, nor will it, there is nothing in its nature to produce happiness. The more of it one has the more one wants. ~Benjamin Franklin
The best way for a person to have happy thoughts is to count his blessings and not his cash. ~Author Unknown
“I am indeed rich, since my income is superior to my expenses, and my expenses are equal to my wishes. ” -Edward Gibbon
We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements in life, when all we need to make us really happy is something to be enthusiastic about. ~ Charles Kingsley
No matter how much we have we will never be happy as long as we compare ourselves to those who have more….
If you’ve decided on happiness I have a few tips:
1. Only compare yourself to those who are less fortunate.
2. Appreciate what you have by listing your blessings.
3. Thank God for His faithful provision.
4. Share what you have with people in need.
5. Stop, breathe, be content.
6. Repeat.
Maybe those who enjoy blessed contentment are happy because they consider themselves rich in the things that matter most.
Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content. 1 Timothy 6:6-8
Love the idea that we should only compare ourselves to people with less.
Melanie Wilson recently posted..Are You Leading a Zombie Existence?
Thanks Mel, It’s hard to do, but not impossible by God’s grace!
Deb recently posted..Would You Rather be Rich or Happy