Many people pursue happiness, but to realize life’s true purpose and find eternal happiness—not through social achievement or material satisfaction—one must redefine their values and life’s direction.
Everyone wants to be happy. Enjoying happiness and joy in life is the ideal pursued by all people, and it is the purpose of life. The purpose of studying hard to get into a better school or a better job is to gain happiness through these means. Furthermore, having a good academic background and a good job also serves the purpose of fulfilling one’s own desire for achievement and meeting a good spouse to build a happy family. Working hard at the office, pulling all-nighters until you become an owl, is also to gain happiness by achieving social status through promotion and securing a more stable income. The purpose of all these things we do in life—like enjoying our hobbies every weekend—is simply to be happy.
Yet, even though we know that achieving what we currently desire won’t guarantee lasting happiness, and that we’ll inevitably struggle for another form of happiness, we live as if unaware of this truth. Recently, as more people recognize that material satisfaction doesn’t guarantee happiness in life, bookstores see healing and mind-body recovery books topping bestseller lists over self-help guides. In broadcasting, a program called “Healing Camp” on a major network has gained immense popularity. While this healing craze offers solace and comfort through opportunities for self-reflection, many believe it too is temporary and ultimately fails to deliver lasting happiness.
According to 2011 Statistics Korea data, an average of 43.6 people commit suicide daily in Korea alone. Furthermore, the recent surge of violent crimes that disregard human life, dominating online news, reveals that people in our society have lost their will and joy for life and are becoming sick. Everyone wants to be happy, so why can’t people live happy lives? While we could attribute this to societal factors like economic hardship or difficulty finding employment, I believe the most fundamental problem is that people fail to discover the purpose of their own lives and feel the fulfillment of living according to that purpose.
People each set their own direction in life and their own standards for happiness. Yet, many people, even after achieving what they desired, ultimately fail to feel the fundamental fulfillment and happiness of life. But by then, too much time has passed to turn back. That’s probably why so many who lived before us say life is meaningless. Everyone must think it would be wonderful if someone told them, ‘The purpose of life isn’t that, it’s this,’ revealing the absolute purpose of the most ideal life and the path to ultimate happiness.
Like everyone else, I invested all nineteen years of my life to get into a prestigious university. Constantly tense about my ranking, which could drop at any moment, the saying “If you rest today, you must run tomorrow” became a whip driving me to run without rest. Looking back now, the time spent alone, racing forward amidst countless problem books before my eyes and the constant awareness of competitors studying alongside me even when I closed my eyes, was not easy. Through all this effort, I gained admission to a prestigious university. I believed that simply getting into a good university would bring happiness.
For me, who vaguely thought everything would end once I got into college, it was hard to accept that university life brought even tougher studies and competition, and that society was an even more treacherous path. Wanting to escape, even though I was still a minor, I went to bars and drank until I could barely stand, tried to meet girls, and went to karaoke rooms singing my heart out until dawn. It was fun. But on the way back to the dorm alone at 4 a.m. after parting with friends, I felt lonely and empty. I wasn’t happy.
Deep down, I had one wish: I longed for a truly high-caliber friend in life with whom I could speak openly. One day, by chance, through an acquaintance’s introduction, I began learning about the Bible at the ‘Christian Gospel Mission’ church. I knew there were many distorted media reports and countless negative online comments, but I felt that the Word contained no contradictions, and the lives of the church members, who lived cleanly and purely, also showed no contradictions. That’s why I started attending church.
Even though I attended church, I lived my faith vaguely, without truly knowing what I should live for or what the purpose of my life was. Then, at some point, the hymn “I Am Happy” resonated deeply within my heart. At our church, we always sing this song with lively, joyful dancing and band music. However, the composer of this song, Pastor Chung Myung-seok, who is also the General Assembly President, wrote it during the most difficult time of his life—while being transferred in a prison van after being unjustly convicted and sentenced.
‘People see me and call me a criminal, saying I’m unhappy, but no, I am a happy person. This person, that person, they live to achieve what they want and be happy, but that is not true happiness. Happiness is a life lived loving God, the Lord, and that is eternal happiness. Lord, am I not happy? The Lord says, “You know happiness and live it.” I am a happy person.’
Just like the lyrics of this hymn, the teacher always taught, “Wherever you go, whatever you do, live a life loving God and the Lord above all else—above any woman in the world, above money, above honor. This is God’s purpose in creating humanity, and it is the only way for humans to be eternally happy.” He showed us the example of such a life. Receiving this teaching and witnessing his life, I began to think: ‘If there is an absolute purpose and direction for human existence, is it not eternal happiness achieved by living a life that loves God and the Lord, the Creator of life, above all else—rather than the temporary happiness and joy enjoyed in this world?’ I resolved to live such a life.
Whether the path I choose in life is truly right or wrong, I will only know by walking it to the end. But I chose this path because I am convinced that worldly happiness cannot bring true fulfillment or eternal joy. This is the true value of attending a prestigious university.
Even now, people all over the world are striving hard for their own happiness. What must people truly do to become happy? Should we elect the right president? Should taxes be lowered? Should North Korea collapse? The solution does not lie externally; it is only possible when one’s life direction, mindset, and very existence change. Ultimately, the kind of life we live and the happiness we pursue depend on our own free will.
Additionally, it is necessary to read widely on various books and materials offering different perspectives on happiness, thereby redefining one’s own values and beliefs. People feel, think, and live differently depending on their environment and circumstances. Therefore, a process of finding one’s own happiness through diverse perspectives and experiences is necessary. On this journey, we may sometimes wander and sometimes face setbacks, but ultimately, what matters is making one’s life rich and meaningful. True happiness does not come from material things, but from inner peace and satisfaction.
In conclusion, happiness is something we seek out ourselves, and in that process, we learn and grow immensely. Establishing our own values, setting the direction of our lives, and steadily walking that path is, I believe, the true way to find happiness. What is important in our journey to pursue happiness is learning to understand and love ourselves more deeply through the experiences and insights gained along the way.
