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The Math of Happiness

            “If I just (fill in the blank) then I would be happy!”
            That is the way most people think.  They focus on their circumstances and believe that if certain things changed, then they would find happiness.  The problem is that years of research have proven that it is not true. 
            Those who study such things tell us that only about 10% of your happiness comes from your circumstances.  In other words, some people are rich and happy and others are rich and miserable.   Some are poor and miserable and some are poor and happy.  Happiness levels are about the same no matter what people have or lack.  You know this from your own experience.  Some changes are life-altering (a death for instance), but most things affect us for a little while and then the feeling fades away.  That new car that you wanted so badly eventually becomes just your car.  Moving to a new town may provide a lift, but after a while it is just the place where you live.  In time, your new circumstances become your “new normal” and then you start looking for another change to make you happy. 
            A bigger factor in the equation is your inner makeup or disposition which contributes about 40% of your happiness.  One does not have to be around babies very long to realize that some are smiley and content and others are fussy and more easily upset.  You can influence some of this over time, but the truth is that some people simply have a brighter disposition than others.
            The remaining 50% of your happiness is determined by what you choose to think about.  The key word in that sentence is “choose”.  Most of your happiness hinges on something that is very much under your control.  You can think about bad things and ruin your day, or you can think about good things.  That one decision will have more to do with whether you are happy or not than anything else that happens to you.
            In an section about rejoicing and living a peaceful life, Paul writes, “Brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8).  Their joy was going to be determined by their thinking.
            You can argue with the percentages, but I do not think that you can argue with the truth.
            Happiness starts inside of us, not outside.

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