One of the key element to be happy is to HAVE PEACE OF MIND.
A verse from Max Ehrman's poem "Desiderata" has this to say:
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.
Trying to be happy with a restless mind is like trying to catch the wind. That much is obvious.
Yet, look around you. Do you see many people who are at peace and happy?
Some may own a lot of material things and are able to do things many people can only dream about, but despite that level of lifestyle, and despite knowing that peace of mind is needed to be happy, why can't we simply be at peace and happy?
The root cause is fear. Fear of change, fear of loss, fear of death.
Here lies our seemingly insurmountable challenge. Overcoming fear. After we have done things to survive, our next major time consuming effort is put forth into our ATTEMPTS to quell or remove our fear.
For example, let us take the issue of finances.
The basic fear is "NOT TO HAVE A MEANS TO EARN A LIVING". As we grow up, we are always looking for that source of income, either by finding someone who will support our need or by finding an occupation that will pay.
To that end, we attend school, hoping that after graduating in college or university, we would have quelled our fear of not having any money to support our needs and wants. It does not stop, even if we actually find a good paying job, the fear lingers on, in a slightly changed form: "I hope I will not be fired from my work.", "I hope my company would not shutdown", "I hope they pay in time" and "I hope that what I earn will be enough for what I need."
This progressive, incessant fear about the loss of financial support, has its own versions with regards to other basic human needs. That is health, love, authority, etc. These fears make us do things or not do things. They are so strong that we can say that, MAN LIVES IN FEAR, all the days of his life.
Now, this is the most important question to resolve: HOW CAN WE OVERCOME FEAR?
Right? Do you agree?
Yes it is important to know that, because we are SUBCONCIOUSLY trying to do that, all our life. Maybe, just maybe this is the right time for you to know JUST HOW TO DO THAT EFFECTIVELY.
You, what have you tried so far, that seems to be effective to relieve your own fears?
Do you use ACCEPTANCE? Do you just tell yourself, that you just have to accept what life brings to you and so be at peace with them? Que sera sera.
Do you use a kind of IGNORE BUTTON? You just hit it and, never care. YOLO
Or maybe you use the DIVERSIONARY tactic. Keeping your thoughts on other things just so you don't feel burdened with fear. IDK, IDC
We sometime employ the above methods, and in some cases they are effective to give us at least a fleeting moment of PEACE OF MIND.
The trouble with them is that they work, much like a pain reliever pill. They just numb your senses for a while, eat you on the inside and leave you feeling worse than before when their effects subside.
There is only one way to totally remove FEAR of every kind from our minds. There is only one way to get that lasting PEACE OF MIND.
That is to search God, make sure you are in His good side. Then stay faithful to Him.
No it's not enough to "believe in God". Even the devil believes in God. Its not even good enough to "have faith in God", because a faith without action is dead.
To be at peace, we have to actively seek to know God and His will, DO THEM and stay doing them. Obedience is the key. But we cannot CORRECTLY OBEY, if we don't even know what to REALLY OBEY.
Why will we be at peace when we know that we are on God's side? It's because NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS TO US, GOD CAN REVERSE THE ILL EFFECT IT MAY BRING. This is why, even those that worship the false gods, are so tenacious, because they also thought that they will be receiving such kind of protection. Is it not wonderful to be one of the people who would surely receive such blessings? That is peace of mind.
When you get to the point that you are sure about what you need to do. THEN YOU WILL FINALLY HAVE THAT ELUSIVE PEACE OF MIND.
Again, I would like to remind you of Max Ehrman's verse:
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.
Be with a peaceful mind. Be happy. -east