A Happy New Year by O. I. E.

Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Jan 4, 1883

A Happy New Year.

By O. I. E.

SOME DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING IT SO.

"Happy New Year!" How many voices have uttered these words within the past week. From parents, children, and friends we have heard this joyful greeting spoken with a heartiness that of itself would drive away a great amount of sorrow. What a power there is in these few words! What new life and energy they bring! The custom of exchanging this New Year's greeting is not to be despised. We are all better for it. No matter how selfish we may be, or how much absorbed in our own affairs, on one day in the year we give expression to our good-will to our neighbor. No one can receive this greeting, given in a hearty tone, without a feeling of pleasure; and no one can repeat it without experiencing a more kindly feeling in his breast. He is to be pitied, who has no one to give him this cheerful salutation; but he is far more an object of pity, whose interest in the welfare of others is so slight that he would withhold this simple tribute of good-will.

I said there is a power in these words, but I recall the statement. They contain no magic charm. It is simply the hearty good-will of which they are the expression that makes them productive of good. Other words spoken in the same manner would have the same effect. Then since we wish our friends a happy New Year, why should we not do our part toward making it so, by giving words of cheer throughout the whole year? It is often said in disparagement of kindly words, that they cost nothing, that talk is cheap; if this be true, then certainly we have no excuse for withholding them.

But in spite of all the wishes for a happy New Year, many will sadly fail to find it. Indeed there are very few who have any just idea of how happiness may be obtained. It is that for which all the world are seeking, yet but few can conscientiously say, "I am perfectly happy;" and even when found, it is often of short duration. It is my purpose to give some very plain and simple rules by which all may be truly happy. And if all would follow them, they would be doubly happy, for no individual can be happy without contributing to the happiness of others. Happiness is contagious; a wise man has said, "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine." These rules have all been tested, and have proved to be valuable; so none need hesitate to try them. Here is the first:—

"Happy is the people whose God is the Lord." This does not have reference to nations that are called Christian because a large portion of the inhabitants profess faith in the Christian religion; neither does it mean that any people or nation should have a clause in their constitution declaring that God is the ruler of the universe. England and the United States are called Christian nations, but this fact does not confer happiness upon the individuals composing those nations. A god is something that is worshiped; and if men choose the Lord for their God, they must worship him. Worship means reverence and submission; therefore if we worship the Lord, we will do his will; not from constraint, or for outward show, but "in spirit and in truth." So then, if we would be happy, we must have the Lord for our God; that is, we must do his will. But the will of God is contained in his commandments; and this brings us to another point.

"He that keepeth the law, happy is he." To many persons, especially the young, doing the will of God and being a Christian seem the farthest removed from happiness. They think that if they do so, they must give up all pleasure, and be gloomy. But this is not so. If they will stop and think, they will acknowledge that it is as the Bible says. Who does not find that a service rendered to another brings more real pleasure than any amount of selfish enjoyment? Even children realize that when they yield willing obedience to their parents, the time passes more swiftly, and they feel more light-hearted than when intent on having their own way. And if occasionally doing a kind act for our fellow-men has so much power to bring happiness, how much more will service to God bring it. The fact is that just as a loving parent desires only the welfare of his child, so God calls on us to give up nothing that is not injurious. He does not take certain things from us in an arbitrary manner, but simply those things which will mar our happiness.

And when we have given up those things which we do not need, and which are inconvenient for us to carry, God will give us in return rest and peace. One who had tried this method of obtaining happiness, once exclaimed, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee." And another, who, although eloquent, could find no words to describe this peace, called it "the peace of God, which passeth all understanding." And this is why so few people enjoy this peace. It has to be tested in order to be appreciated; and most people want the happiness first. They are not willing to do a thing contrary to their natures, in hope that happiness will follow.

And this leads to another thought, and that is that present enjoyment, no matter how keen it may be, is not necessarily happiness, but is quite often the reverse. It may not be generally known that the words "happy" and "blessed" in our Bible are translated from the same original word, but that is the case. So when we read, "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake," we might with propriety read, "Happy are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake." And we might also substitute "happy" in the verse which reads, "Blessed are ye, when men shall persecute you, and revile you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake." Indeed, the Bible itself makes this substitution. The apostle Peter says, "If ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye;" and Job, who certainly had experience enough to enable him to speak understandingly, said, "Happy is the man whom God correcteth."

According to these statements, a person may be happy even in misery. This sounds like a contradiction, but it is true. Here is the explanation: The Bible considers matters in the light of eternity, and not as compared with the short life of a man. If a man should live to the age of seventy years, and should in all that time have not the slightest feeling of pain, except for a single minute, he would say that he had always had good health. In looking over his life, that minute of pain would sink into insignificance. He would not be able to remember it. Well the Bible takes into account the fact that man, if he makes a proper use of this life, will live through all eternity. But eternity cannot be measured. Three thousand million years is a long time, but it would be only the beginning of eternity; but by the side of that long period of time, seventy years would appear more insignificant than one minute would compared with seventy years. So then, if a man should live to old age, and should suffer during every moment of his life, and should finally gain Heaven, his sufferings on this earth would not even come into his mind, so short would the period seem.

This thought should ever be with us. It will help us to endure many things that otherwise would be very severe. This is the surest way to obtain happiness; in fact, the only way. The person who depends on passing events for happiness, will sometimes be happy and sometimes miserable; and when the event that gives pleasure passes away, he cannot look forward, but must look backward; and the thought of what he has enjoyed will only increase his misery. But the man who finds happiness according to the Bible plan, cannot only enjoy the good things that he may have in this life, but when sorrows come he can look forward to an eternity of happiness; and in contemplation of that, can find joy in sorrow. And right here we have the testimony of inspiration: "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen."

Here is another point, which is really included in that already mentioned. It is this: "He that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he." If you have never tried this, you have lost one of the greatest pleasures of life. Our Saviour said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive," which means that it makes a person really happier to give gifts than to receive them. Those of you who have made presents to your friends and relatives, can appreciate this to some extent. I say, "to some extent," for if we give merely to our friends, who are not absolutely in need, we lose the most of the pleasure. The text says, "He that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he." Perhaps one reason why giving to the poor brings so much more happiness than giving to others, is because they are less accustomed to receive gifts, and the thought of their joy, even if we do not witness it, adds to our happiness. Perhaps it is because, "He that giveth to the poor lendeth to the Lord." The Lord always pays back more than we lend him; and although the principal part will be paid in the next life, he gives us a portion of our reward immediately. I think this is the chief reason. Shall we not, then, improve this method of making ourselves happy during the whole year? Jesus said, "the poor ye have always with you;" so if we follow the Bible plan, we need never be unhappy.

And finally, "He that trusteth in the Lord, happy is he." A state of perfect trust is one of happiness. The word itself means confidence, repose, contentment. Then if we have perfect trust in God, we shall have learned in whatsoever state we are, therewith to be content. But this condition cannot be obtained without humility, for God assists only the humble. "For thus saith the high and lofty One, that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy, I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit." We read also that "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble."

One passage in Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" comes to my mind very often. It is the song which the pilgrims heard the little shepherd boy sing, as he watched his flock in the Valley of Humiliation. These are the words:—

"He that is down needs fear no fall;] He that is low, no pride. He that is humble ever shall Have God to be his guide.] "I am content with what I have, Little be it, or much; And, Lord, contentment still I crave, Because thou savest such."

Mr. Great Heart, the guide, said that this boy had in his bosom a plant called Heart's Ease, which prompted his song of contentment. If we are careful to obey God, and to love his law, we may always carry this plant with us.

And now, dear friends, in whatever part of the world you may be, I commend these rules to you. They are not affected by any climate, but are of universal application. There are many more directions of the same nature, contained in the Bible, and I trust that you will make them your daily study. Let these incite you to know more of them. Let parents teach them to their children, and let all practice them constantly, and you will certainly have, what I most cordially wish for every reader of the Signs, a happy New Year.