C'mon Get Happy

While I was traveling, before the holidays, I picked up a USA Today. There was an article that caught my eye, so I tore it out and stuck it in my briefcase for later review. Guess what I just found in the bottom of my briefcase? I still think it is an interesting article, two months later. Maybe that is a good rule of thumb – stuff it in the briefcase and if you still care two months later, then talk about it.

On page 7D of the December 7, 2010 USA Today there was a headline, “Happiness is having friends at church.” That seemed a bit obvious to me, and I thought of a quote from that great American philosopher, Homer Simpson, “D’oh!”

According to a study* released by the American Sociological Review (ASR), attending religious services regularly and having good friends at church are keys to being happy and satisfied with life. Even attending church several times a year makes a difference, the study says, if there is a circle of friends and strong, shared religious identity. So, just walking in the door doesn’t really make a difference. It is a beginning. I don’t want to diminish the value of “being there,” but we won’t soak up the goodness of the experience by just sitting in a pew. The study says we have to get involved, meet people, know them, and be a part of the spiritual community.

There have been many studies that report the positive effect of spiritual living/prayer on our healing process. Other studies have revealed that religious people have a higher level of well-being, when compared to the non-religious. The specific cause of the positive results that comes from a spiritual/religious life has not always been made clear.

The ASR study found that when looking at people with similar levels of church attendance, the social aspect of our faith - our “connection” – determined happiness. The researcher stated that, “90% of the correlation between church attendance and life satisfaction can be explained if you have these close interactions.” 90%!

Check this out:

• 33% of the people who attend services weekly and have 3-5 friends at church said they were extremely satisfied with life
  
• 23% of the people who attend services several times a year and have 3-5 friends at church said they were extremely satisfied with life


• 19% of those who attend weekly and have no friends at church said they were extremely satisfied with life


• 19% of those who never attend church and have no friends at church said they were extremely satisfied with life

The first two rows tell a great deal. Being in a faith community, where you are involved and making friends, has a direct impact on your life satisfaction. There are some people I know who would love to just be “mildly satisfied” with life – but this shows EXTREMELY SATISFIED.

Did you check out the last two rows? Attending regularly, but not making contacts/having relationships gives you the same life satisfaction as never going.

Jesus told us to hang out with like-minded people, and he would join us (Matthew 18:20). The Apostle Paul told us that hanging out with bad people would ruin us (1 Corinthians 15:33). The writer of the book of Hebrews, tells us to not skip out on worshipping together, but come together and encourage one another.

I think I see a theme, here! These are thoughts that have been around for a long time. They are sound Biblical principles that many of us have accepted as true. Now, scientific research is proving them to be true. (See Simpson quote, above). It’s like my friend Marty always says, “It’s about the relationships.” It is about our relationship s with the right kind of people and with God.

So, the question is, “Do you wanna be happy?”

*the study’s findings were consistent across all main Christian denominations, Mormons, and Jews. Conclusions were not drawn on other religious groups, due to small sample size for other groups.