Are you thirsty?

"What is happiness to you, David?"

That's a line creepily delivered by Cameron Diaz's character to Tom Cruise's character in the movie Vanilla sky, right before she commits suicide. It's a good question. Her character finds all of her happiness in the relationship she has with him. This is not an uncommon thing.

The pursuit of happiness is an important thing in our country and much of the Western world. In America, the pursuit of happiness is listed as one of our inalienable rights. Just what kind of happiness are we searching for?

The happiness we have come to prize is fleeting and transitory. It quickly stimulates and brings with it a pleasant emotional experience, but vanishes as it came, leaving us wanting more. Like a drug works on an addict, we are left feeling empty, yearning for more.

Our happiness has become dependent on external sources and stimuli. We spend our time trying to find out what to do next, what will entertain us, what will bring us immediate stimulation. We spend our money on the latest accessories, the newest gear, and the shiniest trinkets. We are led to believe that our happiness is in jeopardy if we don't keep up with the status quo.

We spend so much time, energy, and money on making ourselves happy, yet there seems to be a melancholy surrounding most of our lives, like we are wanting something more. In a land of overwhelming abundance, we have a general feeling of disappointment, like we've yet to truly "make it in the world", like we aren't having enough "fun".

A great example of the resulting emptiness from the pursuit of this transitory happiness is through the use of drugs. I've had my fair share of alcohol and other drugs in my life. The expectations beforehand are always based on "how much fun is this going to be", then a brief feeling of stimulation and false happiness, followed by emptiness the next morning, a feeling of having done something stupid, a feeling of regret, a feeling like more of that stimulant would make me happy again. This is emptiness.

Here is a short story (see John 4): Jesus and his disciples are passing through a Samaritan town called Sychar. As the disciples leave Jesus to go buy food, Jesus comes across a Samaritan woman at a well. He begins to talk with her, astonishing her, as Jews did not commonly converse with Samaritans. Jesus asks the woman for a drink of water and she wonders how he could ask such a thing. Jesus responds that if the woman knew who he was, she would ask him for water, and he would give her living water. She asks what this living water is and his response is:

"Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life (John 4:13-14)."

Later Jesus states: "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink (John 7:37)."

When we try to manufacture happiness out of possessions, drugs, love of others, or our activities we become thirsty again, that is, happiness wanes and we must have someting more to be happy. Not only that, but we require greater amounts of happiness (things, drugs, love) to quench the thirst we have. There is an invitation, though, to end the thirst.

Jesus does not offer a "get-rich quick" scheme happiness where one finds themselves suddenly quenched of thirst. The process of satiation can be fast or slow, but always moving forward. Through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we can come to know God. As we come to know God, we place our trust in Him to provide. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we stop thinking about worldly desires and begin to focus our attention on the eternal kingdom of God. Our desire for external happiness dissipates and is replaced by a permanent and stable joy that springs from within, liberating us from the cycle of searching for empty, transient happiness. Happiness can still come from external sources but they are realized for what they are and our overall joy is not at all dependent upon them.

Are you thirsty?