Joy or Happy

One of the characteristics that describes a person indwelled by the Holy Spirit is Joy (Gal. 5:22). A significant portion of Galatians chapter 5 describes how people are known by their displayed actions (worldly or spiritual). But, what does Paul mean by joy and how does being indwelt produce this quality? First, what is “joy” and is it different than “happy”? As we seek understanding and insight about this, we must cautiously attempt to recognize Holy Spirit inspired joy in believers. We must first consider that both joy and happiness are emotional responses to events, perceptions, and opinions experienced in one’s life. This is further complicated by the difference in the emotional level of different individuals. The emotion of joy is deeper and more consistent than the emotion of happiness. While happiness may come and go quickly, joy is a settled confidence that God is in ultimate control of all that surrounds a person. God doesn’t dictate every situation that a person encounters, but for the faithful servant, the Holy Spirit can work out things to allow personal responsibility while yielding an outcome beneficial to God. Paul says explicitly, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” - Rom. 8:28 (ESV). This assurance should lead to great confidence and contentment that all situations will work out in a way that honors some part of God’s plan. Happiness, may be transitory or changing depending on the environment under consideration, even mostly physical. Usually, joy is observed when someone is more focused on others than themselves; Happiness tends to be observed by more self-focused activities. Some have postulated that while happiness comes from external events, joy comes from inside the person and is more focused on the needs of other people. In this view, happiness becomes more individualistic, whereas Joy has greater meaning when other people are being considered. When accessing Old and New Testament scriptures where the focus was usually on an entire community, the two words may become almost synonymous. Depending on the individuals and context scripture may use other synonyms like blessed, gladness, merry, rejoice, and laughter to create the mental picture desired. Happiness is perhaps more individualistic and focused more on oneself. If however, the actions viewed have benefit for the community and this may be better understood as joy. Happiness tends to be externally activated and is based on things, places, thoughts, and events. Joy exhibits less change and is nurtured internally. It is visualized when a person accepts who they are, a child of God; they display this heritage of why they are and how they are to praise God. All Christians need to recognize they travel along a unique individual spiritual journey with a guaranteed destination. This realization should produce great joy demonstrated in the appropriate manner for that individual.