Hidden Nuggets #27 - “Happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding; For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, and her gain than fine gold.” – Proverbs 3:13-14
“If only I had this car then I’d be happy.”
Ever heard of the “if only” game? It’s played like this:
Step 1: Look at your current life situation.
Step 2: Figure out all the junk going on that you don’t like.
Step 3: Use the information from Step 2 to fill in this statement, “If only I could change ________ then my life would be great.”
Step 4: Repeat Step 3 as new negative circumstances warrant.
We play this game all the time:
“If only I were out of debt then I’d be happy.”
“If only I had a bigger house then I’d be happy.”
“If only I were in better shape then I’d be happy.”
“If only my kids would behave then I’d be happy.”
“If only my boss would get off my back then I’d be happy.”
“If only…If only…If only…”
The “if-only” game promotes a lie – the lie being that circumstances produce happiness. The dangerous aspect of this lie is that we project into the future and base our happiness level on a hypothetical situation. In other words, we dream of happy life scenarios based on events that have not and may never occur.
