You will keep in perfect peace
all who trust in you.
—Isaiah 26:3
Indulgence promises happiness, whereas happiness is often the product of abstinence. Frequently, what you don’t do produces greater joy than what you do.
“Blessed (Happy) is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of scoffers” (Ps 1:1).
There are three things happy people do not do:
- They do not walk in the counsel of the wicked—they guard their direction.
- They do not stand in the way of sinners—they guard their leisure.
- They do not sit in the seat of scoffers—they guard their disposition.
Say “No” to undisciplined direction, to the influence of sinful companions, and to the assumed superiority of scoffers.
Happiness is a by-product of
what you do . . . and don’t do.