Who am I? B. Part III

Guntars Baikovs
Share with you friends    


The secret recipe for happiness


The recipe for happiness has to do with who we are as human beings, and what it means to be human. According to God’s revelation, we are created to exist, to live in two kinds of relationships: first, with our God and, second, with others (creation in the broader sense).

Vertical relationship

In our relationship with God, we are recipients. 
What do we receive? The most important things in our lives: His wisdom, His truth (our worldviews), and our identity as God’s emissaries. He fills our lives with meaning, purpose, joy, peace, security, and so on.

But how does this happen?

Our God is a God who speaks: a God of conversation. He speaks to us and thus reveals the truth about Himself, about us and this world. It is He who bestows upon us our most important identity.

He is also the One who determines our worth. As one of my professors used to ask: do you know what your price is? Know this: Jesus Christ, the Son of God was ready to give up His life for you so that you may be His own.

Horizontal relationships

In horizontal relationships we are active givers.

We are created for many responsibilities, and for a great mission. The book of Genesis tells us that we are created to continue God’s work. But how?

By taking on His own given responsibilities. By participating in the creation of life. By entering marriage, being fruitful and multiplying. By taking care of this planet: exploring it, cultivating it and keeping it.

These horizontal relationships fill our lives with rich meaning. They give us many places of responsibility: as children, siblings, spouses, parents, grandparents, students, employees and employers, entrepreneurs, artists, citizens, etc.

God has put us in so many relationships, and He has given us so many gifts and talents and skills and abilities so that we can develop all of them and use them to serve the people in our lives.

This is the formula of true happiness...

When [1] we receive the most important things from our God as gifts, with grateful and joyful hearts, and then [2] we use what we have received to serve all the people in our lives, that’s the recipe!

If we reject any of these, either the vertical or horizontal dimensions, we are robbing ourselves of our humanity and of our chance to lead as happy and as fulfilled lives as possible.


Watch video and engage conversations on “Wisdom 4 Relationships” course.
Share with you friends    
Created with