Have you ever heard the saying "do what makes you happy?" How did this conventional wisdom come about and is it a true way to guide one's life? A wise man once said, "there is a way that seems right to a man but its path may lead to destruction."
We live in a world of instant gratification and the mindset that we need to fulfill our desires immediately. With technology and the advancements in our society, satisfying our desires usually takes us no time at all. Pleasure comes in many different forms. For some it is money or sexual desires, for others it could be as simple as food. Pleasure can come in the form of a person as well. Whatever medium pleasure may come in, an illegitimate pursuit to satisfy impulsive pleasure always brings the same results.
Why is it that the higher in wealth and the higher in status have higher rates of suicide than the lower in wealth and the lower in status do? Why do the third world countries have lower suicide rates than first world countries? One would expect under the conventional wisdom that the case would be reversed. It seems like there has to be some correlation between the two. One of the reasons for this may be that the secular view of being happy is doing whatever you want, whenever you want and however much you want to do it; this is not happiness, this is anarchy. The main reason that anarchies always fail is because there is no stability, no structure and no guidance. The reason living a life just doing what you desire and indulging your pleasures will fail is because there is no stability, guidance or structure.
Many people also chase pleasure to satisfy a feeling. However, no feeling lasts forever and feelings change. Therefore, if you chase pleasure your happiness will not last forever and you will always be chasing after the wind. This is not to say that you shouldn't chase pleasure or that all pleasure is bad, it is a question of what you are living for. If what you are living for is not worth dying for then it is probably not worth living for. Would you die for a party? Fornication? Alcohol or drugs? Probably not, yet many people live for these things.
The more you satisfy your desires, the more you become a slave to them; so be careful about what you consume because it will consume you.
However, many of you are still hungry and many of you are still thirsty so you may be wondering how do you fill your stomach and quench your thirst? A wise man once said,
"Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me not because you saw the signs I performed, but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life. I am the bread of life, whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and will never be thirsty."
