LIFE LESSON: Growth should be the goal of life, not happiness.

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The 55th conference of the ANC and the finals of the 2022 Soccer World Cup were held on the same weekend. I had a personal interest in the outcomes of both events. The ANC is currently the ruling party and the outcomes of their choice of leadership has a bearing on me as a South African citizen. I have a soft spot for Messi so I wanted to see Argentina declared the World Champs as an honor to him. 


As the weekend was drawing closer I realized that there is a real chance that this weekend could end very terrible for me if both the events produced results that were not in line with my preferred outcomes. It was becoming real to me that I could be an unhappy person at the end of that weekend.


I have always held a belief that living a life that is pleasing to God means I will always be happy, but there was a real possibility that this belief could be blown out of the window, I could end this weekend as an unhappy person. I started to ponder on what this means about my knowledge of God.


GOD IS NOT INVESTED IN MY HAPPINESS

God has a plan for those who love him and his plan is to reveal their true identity, the best version of who they are. God makes his plan a priority above everything else because when his children discover their true identity, they are well positioned to put on display his love and power and to provoke others towards him.


Our contribution to the success of his plan is to embrace his will which is given to us through the Scriptures. Fortunately for me both the outcomes from both events worked out as I had hoped for, but if the opposite would have been true I would have been unhappy but I would have had to accept that his plan is not just about me and my happiness it is about his glory. His plan is bigger than ensuring that I am always happy. 


I would have had to trust that his plan is the best plan , he has chosen for me to reveal my true identity, even when it makes me unhappy for a moment. 


God is not invested in my happiness but he is invested in the growth of my ability to align my will with his will. So my prayer is to grow in my understanding of his plan even when it makes me feel unhappy.


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