When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:1-12

Many believe good things come to the good and bad things go to the bad. But Jesus challenged that lie. When Jesus gave his sermon on the mount, he explained to his disciples and the crowd that those they would least expect to be the recipients of God’s good favor were in fact the ones who were the ones whom God would bless most of all. The word blessed simply means happy—a happiness in this instance given to them by God. Jesus wanted his listeners to discover that having money or power were not the basis of a happy life. Happiness could come when they recognized that their life belonged to God. God loved them and it was his love for them that served as the basis for happiness.

Too often we believe that the reason we are not happy is because we’ve done something wrong, or because we haven’t found the right prayer, church, or program. As if God were a vending machine waiting for the right change. Instead, we only need to realize that because God loves us and we love others, we already have joy, satisfaction, and success no matter the immediate circumstances of our lives. We are God’s children. He walks with us every day and he will always be with us. We have all of eternity to live with him and those we love. How much more blessed could we possibly be?

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