Jefferson got it wrong.

Happiness is not something we have a right to.

The Declaration of Independence states:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Pursuing happiness is all too common. Mantras like “live your truth” are shouted from the rooftops as though we are entitled to a life free from judgement or morality.

Yet, happiness is fleeting.
It is an emotion just like anger, sadness, or surprise. All temporary. All fleeting.

Rather than pursuing something that is conditional to your circumstances, it is a better use of time to pursue something that is unconditional. Constantly trying to better your circumstances leads to anxiousness and can cross the line into immorality.

There’s a better way to live.

Replace your pursuit of happiness with a pursuit of peace. It is unconditional. Unchanged by your circumstances.

Philippians 4 is my favorite chapter of the Bible. It goes a little something like this:

“4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

We are not owed happiness by God or anyone else. Instead, choose peace and the everlasting love that only He can give.

If you do not know Christ, I encourage you to seek after Him and reach out if you’d like to talk!

Other Ideas

• Working with the same people every day creates a bubble of ideas and experiences. The only way to pop the bubble is to get input from other people. If you aren’t learning new ideas, then you will continue to get the same results.

• Photographers have a knack at capturing beautiful moments in the mundane. Those moments were always there, you just have to point your lens at them.

Thank you for reading my newsletter!! I genuinely appreciate it and hope you have a takeaway or two from each edition. Please reply with any thoughts or feedback! Have a fantastic week.

God Bless,
Matt Virgin