Do we find happiness at church?

Jonathan Clements of The Wall Street Journal wrote this week about an interesting study on happiness and leisure time. The study of 4,000 Americans, by academics Daniel Kahneman, Alan Krueger, David Schkade, Norbert Schwarz and Arthur Stone, found that how we spend our time is a key factor in our happiness.

What Clements found the most intriguing was "the study's data on which activities we enjoy. The five professors grouped activities into six clusters, based on the emotions associated with each.

The standout cluster was what the authors label 'engaging leisure and spiritual activities,' things like visiting friends, exercising, attending church, listening to music, fishing, reading a book, sitting in a cafe or going to a party. When we spend time on our favorite of these activities, we're typically happy, engrossed and not especially stressed."

Come to think of it, I should head off to church now.

I'm glad that I'm not super rich!

It's so easy in our American society to get wrapped up in having the most expensive this and the most expensive that. Madison Avenue would have us believe that our self-worth is based upon the number and quality of toys that we have. Jonathan Clements of The Wall Street Journal wrote an excellent column on why "great wealth is overrated":

We all tend to sit up and take notice when we come across people with fancy titles, hefty incomes and immense riches. Yet these aren't signs of genius or virtue. Want proof? All it takes is two words: Paris Hilton.

As I get older, I'm getting less impressed with material goods. Clements also notes that all is not as it seems when it comes to wealth:

Displays of wealth can also be misleading. Folks can appear wealthy -- but the mansion may be fully mortgaged, the cars might be leased and the landscaper may still be awaiting payment. Even if you come across somebody who can easily afford the trappings of wealth, the trappings themselves are not a sign of wealth, but of wealth that has been spent. The money lavished on the cars, homes and jewelry is now gone.

I know that my self-worth does not come from earthly possessions, but from the treasures of God and heaven, and that God loves me just the way that I am. I just need to continually focus on that in the face of all the advertising.