Happiness in unhappiness

"in much wisdom is much grief"

Ecclesiastes 1:18

A friend of mine was unhappy the other day. 

And that made me happy.

Well, that didn't really sound right.  Let me explain.  No, there is too much.  Let me sum up.  {Great movie...}

I talked to a friend of mine the other day, and she was disappointed about a circumstance in her life.  She had been hoping for an opportunity for something she wanted, and it wasn't happening.  At least not yet.  And when I saw her, I could tell she was unhappy, and I pretty much knew why.  But when I sat down next to her, to talk about what was bothering her, there was more to the story.  There was another reason she was unhappy.

She was unhappy because she was unhappy. 

She was disappointed in her reaction to things not going the way she wanted.  She accepted God's decision, but it still made her sad, and she wished that wasn't the case.  She wished that accepting God's decision meant being happy about it. 

And we all know that feeling, don't we? 

Trust is a tricky thing.  We can have complete faith in Him, and in His plan for our lives, and still not be happy with the way it has to be. 

Much like Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.  {Matthew 26:39}

And that's why my friend's unhappiness made me happy.  I was impressed with her desire to trust Him, to accept His decision, and with the high standard she was holding herself to, instead of just having an attitude of "it's my right to be unhappy with His decision."

It's okay to be unhappy with God.  He can take it.  It doesn't mean you're not trusting Him. 

But being happy with God is better.  It's better for you. 

And wanting to be happy with God means you're halfway there.

~ "Whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he" ~

{ or she! }

Proverbs 16:20