Comments on: Difference Between Joy and Happiness

By: bartosik

bartosik — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 15:57:39 +0000

I thought it was interesting that you say….”Joy, in the Biblical context, is not an emotion.” but then just a couple sentences later give it an emotion….”Joy brings us peace in the middle of a storm.”

I don’t think joy=peace as an emotional outlet. peace is peace.

When I feel gratitude I may cry,when I am afraid I may tremble. When I am comforted I feel safe and at peace.

Emotions do not run the train, but to have gratitude,fear etc are not optional.
We are Commanded to have joy (phil 4:4)

Physical sensations aren’t essential…but…
there does seem to be a connection between the feelings we feel in our soul and the sensations or emotions of our bodies.

We give emotions to peace, fear, gratitude, hope, and grief.

There seems to be an emotion attached to joy in Matthew 13:44, Ps 37:4….why do you want to take the emotion out of joy and so adamantly potentially leading others to feel content that they don’t feel any happiness?

It feels like your taking the joy out of joy.

My hope is that Christians are the happiest people in the world because we have found the ONLY lasting, ultimate, true being that can bring eternal satisfaction and happiness.

We have joy and that joy could get emotionally expressed in happiness. Not essential, but your happiness can become a thermometer or indicator of how much joy you truly have and how much you are truly treasuring Christ above everything else in this world.

CS Lewis says, “If we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the gospels, it would seem that our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us,like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by an offer of a holiday at sea. We are far to easily pleased.” (weight of glory, pg1 )

Thoughts?

By: Jerry L. Lewis

Jerry L. Lewis — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 03:35:06 +0000

A couple more differences: Happy comes from the world, and Joy comes from God; it is one of the fruits of the Spirit. Happy always costs you something, but joy is a free gift. Jesus never told anyone to be happy; He told them to have joy. I’ve written extensively on the difference between the two on my website pastorjerrylive.org, and the word “happy” also has an interesting origin.

By: hokeypete

hokeypete — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 23:50:58 +0000

Really enjoyed this post! I’ve heard countless sermons saying the same thing, that joy is permanent and happiness is temporary. I believe this. Now, my question ties into the Beattitudes of Jesus. He said, “Blessed are the….” That word, “blessed,” is “makarios” in Greek, which is “happy.” Along the lines of how you define happiness, the moment-by-moment happenstances that come our way can cause us to feel encouraged, pleased, pleasantly surprised, etc. So, since Jesus referred to this spiritual axioms (the Beattitudes) in terms of happiness, we shouldn’t discount the value of happiness. BUT I think it’s so important to let our joy, the “attitude of our hearts” be the lens through which we look at our happiness. I think the two things – joy and happiness – are not on opposite ends of the spectrum, but are designed to feed into each other.

I’m looking forward to checking more of your posts, my friend! God bless!

By: Sharla

Sharla — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 21:54:36 +0000

Over 3 years later and your blog of Joy vs Happiness is still a hit, and helping many people! I am one of those people. I would really like to thank you and your readers for the blog and the comments. I recently answered the call to do youth ministry and as a stepping stone toward my new life’s ambition my pastor is allowing me to give a sermon. With that said, this is the topic I chose, and you and your readers have given me some excellent insight! Thanks so much and keep up the amazing work! God Bless!

By: monikasidabutar

monikasidabutar — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 04:52:42 +0000

thank you Brian, now i know how to explain “joy” and “happiness” to my girls at my dormitory.

By: A J G

A J G — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 15:01:10 +0000

My sister is going through some rough patches and this was PERFECT for me to share with her. THANK YOU!

By: Lauren

Lauren — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 14:12:42 +0000

Great article on the difference of Joy and Happiness. Because “the joy of the Lord is my strength,” I’d rather have joy than happiness. I publish a newsletter at my church and September’s theme is Joy. Love, love, loved Sean White’s analogy, plan on using it (and attributing him, of course) in the newsletter. Kirk Franklin says something awesome at the end of his song “I Smile”, he says: “I don’t want to be happy, because that means I have to have something happening. I’d rather have joy, because no one can take it from you.” Awesome. Thanks!

By: Richard Yeboah

Richard Yeboah — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 12:28:23 +0000

Thank you very much for such a wonderful teaching.May God bless you with more wisdom and understanding.

By: Ann

Ann — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 09:03:00 +0000

Hi,

I too get happy when i find a secret $100 note in my purse. But to be honest I hide it myself when i have lots of cash knowing that in broke times i might surprise myself with it. Silly, but it works for me.. didn’t think any1 else ever felt this. I feel less weird. thanks.

About the topic at hand, it is very true. I also first experienced joy when i accepted God into my life. I could say its floating on a cloud at all times, with the assurance that all is well, even when times are hard.

Thanks. Good article

By: jessica bayaban

jessica bayaban — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 04:23:50 +0000

Now i know the differences between joy and happiness'' that joy is eternal and happiness is temporary''