I'll be Happy When...

Have you ever said "I'll be happy when..."

I'll be happy when all the laundry is done; I'll be happy when my husband finds a job; I'll be happy when I lose 10 pounds, etc.  I was reading a book by C.S. Lewis, Screwtape Letters, that is about a tempter in training and one of the tools he was learning was to fool people into believing the lie, "I'll be happy when".

HOLY COW!  When I read it, it hit me.  I'll be happy WHEN is a straight road to disappointment,  discouragement, and unhappiness.  When we put a destination on happiness we will never arrive because it isn't a destination.  It is a choice, it is something that has to be practiced daily, it is something that we all can be right now no matter what your circumstance are.  It may take a little work and a lot of effort.

For instance, and this is a minor example, but I have had a pinched nerve in my back for a day now.  I had plans and things I wanted to accomplish.  I'm not one that enjoys stopping but now I am being forced to stop.  So, a choice has been placed before me.  I can be disappointed,  grumpy, even angry or I can look for the good, I can rest, check my social medias, admire my children pitching in, be thankful that my sweet five year old daughter climbed in bed with me, tickled my arm, and asked me if I was okay.  I even woke up to a clean sink with the dishes done (thanks to a thoughtful hubby).

Now there were some things that didn't go smoothly like my kids going to bed late, having to ask several times for vitamins to be passed out and teeth brushed, but the good I looked for outweighed all the negative, and even though I am in pain and I didn't get to do what I had planned to do, I am still happy because I choose to be happy!  I could have said, "I'll be happy when my back feels better" but I have learned that that is a lie.  I can be happy right now.  We can look forward to the laundry being done, or losing 10 pounds, or a job being found but it should not dictate our happiness.  We should have goals and aspirations but it should not depend upon our happiness.

Instead of saying, "I'll be happy when..." practice replacing it with "I am happy now because..."