Elevated Friday, July 13th, 2018

Happy Elevated Friday! Today we highlight a story of a woman who is proving that money can buy happiness – but not in the way one would think. Rachel Lapierre, a 55-year-old woman from Quebec, won the lottery in 2013, giving her a weekly stipend of $1000 for the rest of her life. But instead of using that money to live a new, grandiose life for herself, she chose to open a charity that she funds with that lottery money. When she was in her 20s, she won a beauty pageant and spent a great deal of time touring the country, seeing the poor and struggling. The experience left an indelible mark on her, and since then she has lived her life in service of others as a nurse and volunteer with various humanitarian organizations. Now, her lottery winnings go towards her charity to promote good deeds. As she says it, “Good deeds can be so many things. It can be a bike, it can be food, it can be transport to go to the hospital. It can even be just listening to somebody on the phone because they are lonely.” Rachel is every day striving to meet others’ needs, whatever they may be. By giving away the money each and every week, she has found true happiness.

Given the choice between anything (money, fame, power, etc.) and happiness, most of us would always choose happiness. What we often forget, though, is that happiness is not a result of money, fame, or power. It is human nature that we seek happiness everyday of our lives. Since Jesus was completely human while he walked the earth, one can be assured that he, too, sought happiness. That being the case, we can look to his life to see how he went about finding it. It is obvious that the route Jesus took was to serve others relentlessly. Jesus not only lived a life without sin, he also lived a happy life because his focus was on serving others. In Proverbs it says, “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.” Today, seek ways to serve others and reflect on the happiness it gives to you.

“A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.” – Proverbs 11:25 NIV

Original Article:

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