With most of us wanting to start the New Year off either equal or better than last year, we should first examine our motivation behind that goal.  If our motivation is pure, then we have a greater chance of success.  If our motivation is riddled with selfish reasons alone, then the chances are that 2012 may be a repeat of 2011…or even worse.

I think it is safe to say that the reason we set a goal like the one listed above is our innate desire for happiness. But will the pursuit of happiness lead to true fulfillment and joy?  There is no denying that when we are happy, the sky seems to be bluer, the flowers are more vibrant, the sun is warmer, the world looks like a better place to live. 

Some mental health experts believe the desire for happiness is a need for personal fulfillment.  If that is the case and personal fulfillment is the driving force, then we must be preoccupied with our own needs.  If we are preoccupied with our own needs, then the happiness we achieve will be short lived.  For mankind seems to always find a way to allow this happiness to be replaced with worry and the ever-consuming pace of life.

Author Randy Alcorn said it best in his book Deadline, “For those who pursue holiness can find both holiness and happiness, while those who pursue happiness can find neither”.