Pastor Rick's Daily Hope

Guest (Male): Hey, thanks for joining us today on Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, the Bible teaching ministry of Rick Warren. Today, we're continuing our series called The Habits of Happiness. In this series, Rick dives into the book of Philippians and helps you discover God's path to true and lasting happiness. Now here's part one of a message called How to Be Happy No Matter What.

Pastor Rick Warren: We're in a series we started just a week ago that I'm calling The Habits of Happiness. We're looking verse by verse through the book of Philippians, which is the most positive, the most joyful, the happiest book in the Bible. One of the common mistakes that we all make is we fall into the trap of what I call "when and then" thinking. When such and such happens, then I'll be happy.

You have done this all your life and so have I. We fall into this when and then thinking: When I get into college, when I get married, when I have a baby, when I get a job, when my kids are born, when my kids leave the house... then I'll be happy. Last week, I shared with you five laws of happiness and one of them is that happiness is a choice.

You're as happy as you choose to be. If you're unhappy, you can't blame anybody for your unhappiness because happiness is a choice. You don't go looking for happiness; you create it. It's something you create. Happiness, by the way, is not a goal. It is the byproduct of right thinking and right acting.

There are four common barriers to happiness. I want you to just write these down at the top of your notes. I call these the killjoys of life because when any of these enter into your life, they're going to rob your happiness unless you're prepared for them. The first one, of course, is pain. Pain is a killjoy. It's hard to be happy and in pain at the same time.

But there's another one and you're familiar with this one too. I call it "picky people." People of all kinds, actually, can cause you to lose your joy. They can be irritating, they can be demanding, they can be uncooperative, they can be arrogant. People are a common killjoy in life. Number three: pressure.

Pressure can cause you to lose your happiness and you can have pressure from within yourself or you can have it around you. It can be internal or it can be external. And then number four, and one you're all familiar with, of course, is problems. There are all kinds of problems. So pain, people, pressures, and problems all are what I call the killjoys.

In Philippians chapter one, verses twelve down to about verse thirty or so, Paul talks about all four of these killjoys and we have an example of how to be happy no matter what's going on in your life. Now I want to remind you that Paul, when he writes this book, the happiest book, he's in prison. He's in prison in Rome.

In fact, the last four years of Paul's life had gone like this before he wrote this happiest book in the Bible. He spent two years in jail in Caesarea on false charges. Two years in jail for false charges. Then he is sent on the way to Rome and he is shipwrecked in the Mediterranean Ocean on the way to Rome and he ends up on a desert island in the Mediterranean.

He's stranded there for a while with some people. While he's there, there are some snakes, poisonous snakes on that island. He actually gets bit by a snake while he's there. Then he's imprisoned again for another two years in Rome with a guard chained to him twenty-four hours a day. So he has no privacy at all.

He's in prison in Rome with a Praetorian guard because he was such an important prisoner chained to him twenty-four hours a day. He has no privacy. Now Paul has every reason to be bitter. He has every reason to be unhappy. Instead, he writes this book on happiness and on joy. Now let me read you today's text. It's Philippians 1:12-30. It starts like this:

"I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters," Paul's writing, "that everything that has happened to me has helped me to spread the good news. For everyone here, including all the soldiers in the palace guard, know that I am in chains because of Christ. And because of my imprisonment, many of the Christians here have gained confidence and become more bold in telling others about Christ."

"Now some are sharing Christ out of jealousy and rivalry." He's talking about the people who are outside. "But others preach Christ with pure motives and they love me and they know that the Lord brought me here to defend the good news. But there are those who do not have pure motives as they preach about Christ and they preach with selfish ambition and they're not sincere, intending to make my time in prison more painful to me."

"But whether or not their motives are pure, the fact remains that the message about Christ is being preached, so I rejoice. And I will continue to rejoice no matter what. For I know that as you pray for me," he's writing to the people in Philippi, a church in a city in Greece called Philippi. It's called Philippians; if he were writing to us, it would be "To First Californians."

"For I know," he says, "that you pray for me and as the Spirit of Jesus helps me, this will all turn out for my deliverance. And I live in eager expectation and hope." And then he says, "I want my life to always honor Christ, whether I live or I die. For to me, living is for Christ and dying is even better."

"If I live, it just means more fruitful years of service for Christ, but I'm often torn between two desires. Sometimes I want to live and sometimes I long to go on and be with Christ in heaven. That would be far better for me. But it's better for you if I live so that you can grow and that you can experience the joy of your faith."

"But whatever happens, you must live in a manner worthy of the good news about Christ. Don't be intimidated by your enemies. It will be a sign to them of their downfall that God's with you and that he will save you. For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ, but also the privilege of suffering for him."

"And we are in this fight together. You've seen me suffer for Christ in the past and you know that I am still in the middle of a great struggle." It's a very warm, personal note that Paul's writing. This is a very personal book, this letter he's writing to his friends in the church of Philippi that he started.

In this passage, he covers these four different killjoys and he talks about how he has dealt with them, how he's maintained his happiness in spite of everything going in ways he hadn't planned. Now the key verse in this whole passage I just read is verse twenty-seven. It's there on your outline and it says this:

"Whatever happens, whatever happens, conduct yourself in a manner worthy of the good news of Christ." So this weekend, we're going to look at how to be happy no matter what happens. So in this passage, we learn how to be happy no matter what, even if you're in prison in Rome. Paul models four habits. Let's get right into it.

Number one: I can be happy no matter what happens in my life if I look at every problem from God's viewpoint. If I look at every problem from God's viewpoint. Happy people have a larger perspective. They have a bigger worldview. They see the big picture. When I don't have the big picture, when I don't see things from God's point of view, I get discouraged, I get frustrated, I get unhappy.

The reason we get unhappy is because we don't see what God does. Now the truth is, no matter what's going in your life, the good, bad, the ugly, God is working out a plan. And he even takes all of our mistakes and even puts those into the plan. He says, "I can use that too." My sins? Yes. My faults? Yes. What other people do? Yes. God says, "I can fit it all into the plan."

Paul knew this. And so he starts out, the first verse is verse twelve, and he says this: "Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me has helped spread the good news." Now let me explain what's going on here. Ever since Paul had become a Christian on the road to Damascus, he had dreamed one great dream and that was this: I want to preach in Rome.

Rome is the center of the universe. Rome is the capital of the empire. Rome is the most prestigious, powerful, strategic city in the world. There was no nation more important than the Roman Empire and there was no city more important than Rome. So Paul's dream is sharing Christ at the center of the universe.

What he wants to do is this: He wants to go to Rome, he wants to rent the Coliseum, and he wants to do a Harvest Crusade for six months. That's what Paul's thinking. I'm going to Rome to preach. God had another idea. "Paul, you're going to go as a prisoner and I'm going to make you a royal prisoner of Caesar."

Now does anybody know who was Caesar at this point? Nero. You ever heard of that guy? Yeah, Nero. About as wicked and as bad as you can get. So Paul is a prisoner of Nero. And as a royal prisoner with a royal guard chained to him twenty-four hours a day, he gets to talk to all kinds of key people he would never otherwise talk to because he's an important prisoner.

He's chained twenty-four hours a day to a palace guard for two years. They changed that guard every four hours. So I added it up: Over two years, he witnessed to 4,380 guards. Now my question is, who's the real prisoner here? Who has the captive audience? Paul is talking to the entire court of Caesar's palace.

God says, "This is my plan. You want to go do the big city lights national crusade, but I'm going to put you in prison." And there were two results of it we know for sure. Chapter four, when we get to it later on, will tell us that within two years, some of Nero's own family had become believers because Paul was a prisoner in Rome.

Some of the royal family had become Christians because Paul was in prison. And second, Paul's kind of like Rick Warren; it's hard to get him to sit down, sit still, not stop moving. He's forced to sit still and he, as a result, writes the New Testament. I wonder which had a bigger impact? Go do Harvest Crusade in the Coliseum or be forced to sit still hour after hour and write Romans, First and Second Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and on and on.

First and Second Timothy and First and Second Thessalonians, most of the New Testament. This is why Paul says, "I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me," being in prison, "has helped spread the good news." So he says, "I've got my plan, but God has a bigger plan."

He says, "I can be happy because I can see what God is doing through my problem." Now I want to just stop right here for a second. I want you to think of a problem that you're facing right now in your life. Okay, think of a problem that you're facing in your life and I want us to bow our heads for thirty seconds.

Just bow your head and I want you to say these words in your heart: God, help me to see this problem from your perspective. Help me to see this problem with eyes of faith. Amen. Anytime you have a problem and it's starting to get you down, you're starting to be unhappy, you need to do what Paul does. Learn to see it from God's point of view.

What is God doing here? What's the bigger picture? What's the bigger perspective? And then you'll be able to face the problem in faith. And when you face the problem in faith, two things will happen. Write these down. First, it's a witness to unbelievers. When Christians handle big problems in faith, it is a witness to unbelievers.

That's why in verse thirteen, he says, "For everyone here," talking about the palace guard and in his royal prison, "everyone here, including all the soldiers in the palace guard, knows that I'm in chains because of Christ." Well, I guess so; he'd witnessed over four thousand times to guys chained to him. It's a witness to unbelievers.

Number two: it's an encouragement to believers. In verse fourteen, he says this: "And because of my imprisonment, many of the Christians here have gained confidence," those in Rome, "and they've become more bold in telling others about Christ." It's a witness to unbelievers; it's an encouragement to believers. Have you ever thought that God might want to use the problem you're going through right now for the very same reason?

Since Matthew died, both of these have been true in my life. It has been a witness to unbelievers and it's been an encouragement to believers. Why? Because Kay and I looked at the problem from God's perspective, not our own, and we faced it in faith. The story went out in People magazine.

I never imagined in my lifetime that I would ever be on People magazine. I mean, I know I'm that good looking, but I never imagined in my lifetime that I would be on the cover of People magazine. So how many people have heard the Gospel since Matthew died? Millions. Millions because of all the stories and the interviews and the CNN and all that. Millions have heard the good news.

And I could say, like Paul, I want you to know, friends, that all that has happened to me has worked out for the furthering of the good news. Have you ever thought that that might be true in the problem in your life? If you will look at it from that way, it's going to change your perspective in a major way.

Alright, number two: I can be happy no matter what happens if I never let others control my attitude. This is a good example of Paul gives us right here in this passage. I can be happy no matter what happens in my life if I never let others control my attitude. I don't let them decide whether I'm going to be happy or not.

Now Paul, in this next section, he talks about four kinds of people. While he's in prison, he says, "Now there are some people who are attacking my ministry." They slandered Paul, they judged Paul, they criticized Paul, they were gossip mongers. There were some people who supported his ministry; those were friends.

There were some who competed with his ministry; they're trying to kick him while he's down. And there were some who were undermining his ministry. They're even trying to destroy him. They're trying to rub it in; he's in prison and they're trying to make it more painful. In Philippians 1:15-17, Paul describes four kinds of people.

Three of them are killjoys; one's a good kind. He says, "There are four kinds of people in my life: there are critics who are slandering me and who are creating all kinds of controversy; there are comrades, that's my friends; there are competitors who are preaching Christ out of rivalry; and he said there are conspirators who just want to make my problem worse."

They want to rub it in. They want to kick me while I'm down while I'm in prison. They're my enemies. Now notice these verses there on your outline. The first verse is verse fifteen, talking about critics. He said, "It is true that some preach Christ because they are jealous and quarrelsome." Have you ever met anybody like that?

They love to argue. They love conflict. They enjoy creating controversy. They enjoy getting into a catfight. These people are contentious. They are divisive. They are critical. Have you ever read a blogger or saw somebody on social media who was contentious and critical of somebody's ministry or this or that? If you haven't, just go to my website and you'll find hundreds. There'll be plenty.

Notice here, he says they're jealous and they're quarrelsome. Notice that the critic's motive is usually jealousy. When people criticize something, they usually are jealous of it. But what he's saying here is, "I have to deal with these people." And would you agree that few things could rob your happiness faster than being criticized?

When you're criticized at work or you're criticized by friends or you're criticized by neighbors, your stomach starts churning. Why? Because we all want to be loved. We all want to be approved. We want everybody to like us. But let me give you a little happiness hint, one of those little HHs you might write this down: I don't need other people's approval to be happy.

I don't need other people's approval; I don't need other people's permission to be happy. You're as happy as you choose to be. If they're unhappy, that's their choice, but you don't have to depend on other people's approval in order to be happy. And if you haven't got it now, you're probably not going to get it.

And you're going to be miserable if you try to live for the approval of everybody else. Paul is modeling here: Never let others control your attitude. And he says some of these people, they're just jealous and they're quarrelsome and they're cranky and they criticize everything I do in my ministry.

And then in the next verse, verse sixteen, he talks about the good guys. These are his friends, these are his comrades. He says, "Others preach Christ from genuine goodwill and they do so out of love." That's the real reason we share the good news: out of love. "And they know that God has given me the work of defending the Gospel."

So he says, "Those people bring me joy, obviously." Then in verse seventeen, he talks about another killjoy: competitors. He says, "Others preach Christ insincerely from a spirit of selfish ambition." Circle the phrase "selfish ambition." He says, "I hate to say this, but there are actually people in ministry, there are people with national ministries, radio, television, and books, who are ego-driven."

How do you know when somebody's ego-driven? They put other people down all the time to build themselves up. That's when you know somebody's ministering in selfish ambition. They feel compelled to put other people down in order to build themselves up. Now you're not a preacher, but if you're in any kind of business, you have competitors.

And if you don't deal with this, competitors will rob your happiness. And you'll look at, "Well, look at what they're doing." You can have competition over the color of your lawn. Neighbor's yard's greener; we better get ours going. You can have competition over the car you drive. You can have competition over your kids. "My kid, my kid, and I'm so proud." You can compete over hairstyle; you can compete over shoes. Don't look at people right now, but you know that's true. And if you don't deal with this, you're going to be unhappy a lot of your life because critics will rob your happiness and competitors will rob your happiness.

Guest (Male): Thank you for listening to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. Did you know that most people look for happiness in all the wrong places? You won't find it through money, fame, or power. You'll only find real, lasting happiness by following God's commands. And that's why Rick created the Habits of Happiness Bible study. Here's Rick to tell you more.

Pastor Rick Warren: If you'd like to learn more about the habits of happiness, I've got a new resource to help you. It's called the Habits of Happiness Guided Experience Book. In this resource, you're going to learn how seeing things from God's perspective will help you develop the biblical habits of happiness.

And you're going to discover how happiness runs deeper than any circumstance or any feeling or any relationship. Now I'm excited because this book is filled with biblical truth, practical lessons, application exercises, and a lot of space for you to write down your responses to what God is teaching you.

It's a really powerful workbook and it's a comprehensive study tool I believe is going to help you grow to your next level of spiritual maturity.

Guest (Male): This Bible study is only available on Daily Hope and quantities are limited. So be sure to request the Habits of Happiness Bible study today when you give a gift to help Daily Hope take the hope of Jesus to a hurting world. It's our way of saying thanks. Just go to pastorrick.com to get your copy of this great resource. That's pastorrick.com or you can just text the word "hope" to 70309. Again, that's the word "hope" to 70309. And thank you so much for your support. Your gift to Daily Hope helps us share the hope of Christ with people everywhere. Be sure to join us next time as we look into God's word for our daily hope. This program is sponsored by Pastor Rick's Daily Hope and your generous financial support.