Are You Happy?

by Jeffrey W. Hamilton

You are in my daily prayers and I think about you often. You want the freedom to make your own decisions, which you actually always had. But now marijuana rules your life and your thoughts and it dictates the decisions you make. So as I think about you, my friend, I wonder: Are you happy?

Jesus said, "You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them" (Matthew 7:16-20). He was speaking about false teachers, but it applies to false ideas as well. Do you find yourself happy with the type of person you are? Are you happy with the direction of your life? Does the future look brighter than today?

Solomon noted, "Good understanding gains favor, but the way of the unfaithful is hard" (Proverbs 13:15). Good and bad choices in life can often be detected by looking at what comes as a result of those decisions. Each choice you make impacts your life and when you let Satan choose for you, well, life isn't so wonderful. "Your own wickedness will correct you, and your backslidings will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing that you have forsaken the LORD your God, and the fear of Me is not in you," says the Lord GOD of hosts" (Jeremiah 2:19).

Put the blame where it belongs, not on the friends and family who love you. I wish you joy in your life, the joy of knowing where you are going and knowing whom you serve.