Comments on: The Secret of Happiness in 2015 http://www.ubfriends.org/2014/12/31/the-secret-of-happiness-in-2015/ for friends of University Bible Fellowship Wed, 21 Oct 2015 04:34:18 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=4.3.1 By: Ben Toh http://www.ubfriends.org/2014/12/31/the-secret-of-happiness-in-2015/#comment-16129 Fri, 02 Jan 2015 18:10:25 +0000 http://www.ubfriends.org/?p=8739#comment-16129 Yeah, embracing death as being a part of the very fabric of life is a point of emphasis that Richard Rohr and other mystics and contemplatives have repeatedly made.

We humans suffer so much because we like life while despising death, not realizing that God the the Lord of all–which includes both life and death.

I have been thinking that even the death and/or elements of death we experienced from our own selves, from our loved ones, and sadly even from the church, does in some mysterious way enrich our lives.

Darkness and death, evil and hatred will continue to be around. I’m not saying condone it or not address it, but in a way to embrace them so that we can deal with them and even live with them (since they’re not going away, not even anytime soon), and not be overcome by darkness, death, evil and hatred ourselves.

]]> By: Darren Gruett http://www.ubfriends.org/2014/12/31/the-secret-of-happiness-in-2015/#comment-16128 Fri, 02 Jan 2015 16:13:25 +0000 http://www.ubfriends.org/?p=8739#comment-16128 “I find there isn’t really any principle that helps ease the void caused by death. That is why I think we humans need faith of some kind. Logic and reason only make sense in life. In death, only faith, hope and love remains.”

Very well said indeed. Happy New Year!

]]> By: BrianK http://www.ubfriends.org/2014/12/31/the-secret-of-happiness-in-2015/#comment-16126 Thu, 01 Jan 2015 15:33:52 +0000 http://www.ubfriends.org/?p=8739#comment-16126 Sorry to hear about your beloved cat, Ben. I find there isn’t really any principle that helps ease the void caused by death. That is why I think we humans need faith of some kind. Logic and reason only make sense in life. In death, only faith, hope and love remains.

I would urge caution about the “one verse” approach. One of my principles is to avoid quoting one verse at a time or thinking too much about any one verse apart from all the other 31,000~ verses in the bible. I found it was far healthier to choose one “year book” of the bible. I did that the past three years, with Job, Galatians and Hebrews. It was a fantastic study of Scripture!

For this year I am not prompted to do any year verse or year book. Instead, I am compelled to explore being an author and to connect with a larger community of believers. I plan to support and join the Reformation Project, and keep writing. I found that writing is a great source of happiness for me.

Grace and peace, and happy new year everyone!

Thanks for all the support. I gave away just under 100 free books during this end of year break. Check out my new book. Right now the ePub format is available. Paperback should be ready this weekend, followed by Kindle, Nook and iBook in the next 2 weeks.

]]>