Question from a reader:

A friend sent me this article about the supposed differences between happiness and joy. The author writes: “Happiness is merely external, fleeting, and is only achievable on earth. Joy, on the other hand, is internal, selfless, sacrificial, and a spiritual connection with God.” And: “Another major difference between happiness and joy is that happiness is merely a bliss while joy is something selfless.” And: “Happiness can be both good and bad, while joy is only good because it comes from God.”

What are your thoughts, based on Randy’s writings about happiness?

Answer from Stephanie Anderson, EPM staff:

This article repeats the same tired platitudes about joy vs. happiness that Randy addresses in his books. It all sounds spiritual… but writing such as this is based on very little other than frequently repeated half-truths in the Christian world! I won’t lay out the case again, but if you’d like to read a summary of what Randy writes in Happiness, you can do so on his blog.

 This quote from Joni Eareckson Tada comes to mind:

We’re often taught to be careful of the difference between joy and happiness. Happiness, it is said, is an emotion that depends upon what “happens.” Joy by contrast, is supposed to be enduring, stemming deep from within our soul and which is not affected by the circumstances surrounding us. . . . I don’t think God had any such hair-splitting in mind. Scripture uses the terms interchangeably along with words like delight, gladness, blessed. There is no scale of relative spiritual values applied to any of these.

I think the issue is that people understandably want some way to explain that there is a deep, God-given joy/happiness that is possible even when life and circumstances aren’t going our way. It’s unexplainable to the world because it comes from the Holy Spirit, like in Acts 16:25 where we see Paul and Silas singing in jail after being beaten. (See Four Reasons Christians Distinguish Between Happiness and Joy.)

And it is true that for Christians there is something far deeper than just the happiness we feel when we eat chocolate cake or pick a flower (though those moments of happiness are gifts from Jesus too). However, Randy disagrees with the author over the thought that we should split the words joy and happiness to explain the deeper peace/delight that Jesus gives. As he makes the case in his books, that’s a modern distinction created by Western Christians.

But if we stop and think about it, don’t we instinctively know happiness and joy are synonyms? Consider the children’s song “I’ve Got the Joy”:

I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart
Where? Down in my heart!
Where? Down in my heart!
I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart
Down in my heart to stay

And I’m so happy, so very happy
I’ve got the love of Jesus in my heart
Down in my heart.
And I’m so happy, so very happy
I’ve got the love of Jesus in my heart.

Whatever word we use to describe the byproduct of knowing and walking with Jesus—happiness or joy—it’s a deep and lasting gift from His Holy Spirit!

Photo: Unsplash