How to find happiness in 2025

Hint: obedience and service play big roles

You already know this: You can’t click or scroll your way to happiness. You won’t find it by putting money, sex, fame, or power [sic] up on your throne.

Our obsessions with social media and algorithms have us chasing images more than ever. We end up envious of carefully curated profiles that are nothing more than fictitious highlight reels — perpetually honing our “image” to match such fantasies.

Meanwhile, we are already made in God’s image and nothing this world can offer will change that or improve on that. Thus, everyone’s actual road to joy begins with:

To conform to this world is to see it as normal to find meaning in social media, be addicted to TV, seek dopamine hits through impulsive acts, and consume content that glorifies sin — to cheat, steal, lie, and worse.

To renew your mind, as stated by David (most likely) in Psalm 1 below, is to take delight in the law of the LORD.

Note how David understands the progression of the seductive power of the flesh. In the opening verse, things advance from walking with evil to standing with evil until we are sitting with evil. We make a few compromises and boom, we become more relaxed and comfortable in the presence of sin.

But the blessed person shall be known by their fruits (Matthew 7:16). This is not to assume an easy life but rather, we will blossom (like fruit) in our season.

The ungodly are never in season. They remain unrooted and will eventually blow away.

We all want happiness but mistake it for the transient pleasures dangled before us. Sure, you think, I shouldn’t berate that person on a comment thread, but stirring up trouble feels right when I want to indulge pride as a mask for my fear.

Like Adam and Eve, who were gifted a literal paradise the likes of which we have never seen, we are still so easily deceived into believing we can do better.

Virtue signaling and doom-scrolling will not renew our minds, friends. Rather, as Psalm 1 explains, we must meditate on the Scriptures — meditation, not rote repetition or cherry-picking or “I’ll do it later.”

Remember, when we perpetually look inward for answers, we can slide into a morbid form of introspection. When we instead look outward, we are subject to the temptations of the flesh.

But there’s another way to look: upward.

We can resist the urge for instant gratification or the desire to dominate. Keeping your sword in its sheath is not a sign of weakness. On the contrary, choosing to serve others is the very definition of self-control and “meekness.”

This leads us to happiness via an invitation to enter a new promised land:

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As I move forward — through a frigid NYC winter — in year 9 of my mission, I’m always thinking of ways to do better. What’s becoming increasingly clear is that the two best ways to ask for help are first: monetary donations. Secondly: gift cards.

Please allow me to explain: I walk all over my NYC neighborhood to find my regulars — and find new people to help. Thus, there’s a clear limit as to how many bags of supplies I can carry, especially in very hot or very cold weather.

Your monetary donations enable me to find people, ask them what they need at that precise moment, and then do my best to find somewhere to buy what they need. It’s hyper-efficient and also, catered to specific needs rather than general guesses.

In second place are the gift cards. They’re obviously very easy to carry and can a) instantly give a vulnerable person a chance to get indoors for a meal and bathroom break and b) serve as a successful icebreaker when I meet someone new who may not want to talk much until they know me better.

Can anyone step up and support my work today?

If so, please see the links below. Btw, I’ve added Venmo to your options because it eliminates some fees.

Thanks!

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Also, to support my ongoing mission of 8-plus years to help homeless women and other vulnerable souls on the streets of NYC:

• Donate at GoFundMe

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Thank you in advance!