Happy-go-lucky. Happy birthday. Happily ever after. Happy hour. A happy medium. Happy Days. A happy meal. And, for the Duck Dynasty  fans  – Happy, happy, happy!

The word might as well be a magnet, because we all want to know how to be happy! We all want the secret formula, special location, or genetic makeup that guarantees, or at least occasionally offers, happiness.

Sometimes, in Christian circles, we’re taught that it’s okay to want Joy – the ability to be content despite unfavorable circumstances – but it’s somehow less holy to desire happiness.

Jesus taught otherwise. In fact, he thought the desire for happiness was such a valid desire that he used part of his very last conversation with his disciples to address the “secret to happiness” in the Upper Room during the Last Supper:

When he [Jesus] had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. (John 13:12-17)

The first thing you need to know about Jesus’ instruction is that the word he used for “blessed” is the Greek word, Makarios, and it means “happy.” In fact, it’s the same word he used in the Sermon on the Mount when he gave The Beatitudes. “Blessed are the poor in spirit…” can easily read, “Happy are the poor in spirit…” and so on.

Likewise, when he tells his disciples that they will be blessed if they follow his example, he is saying that they will be happy.

So it turns out, there may be a secret to happiness after all.

When Jesus washed his disciples’ feet, he was demonstrating how to be a servant. He wanted to show them, by example, the power and importance of serving others.

But he was also explaining the promise of serving others as well – The promise of blessing. Being a servant leads to being blessed, which means that you feel happy.

Is that a promise you need to be reminded of today? Are you feeling unhappy? Are you feeling glum? Are you in a funk or maybe even slightly depressed today?

Jesus promises blessing. He promises happiness.

BUT, it’s a conditional promise. Happiness doesn’t come without a little work on your part. It comes from serving others.

So, are you serving others today? I suggest that you give it a try. Do something special for a friend. Surprise your husband. Help a stranger. Turn your focus away from your funk and focus on the needs of others and see if happiness doesn’t follow.

Tell us about a time when serving others made you feel happy.