Summer 2020: The pandemic was in full swing with no end in sight. Happiness did not abound.
So when my friend and mentor, Mary Beth Vogelzang, invited me to a class about happiness, titled The Science of Well-Being, I didn’t have to think for long. I said yes.
Until then, I wasn’t familiar with Women Doing Well. And to be honest, I wasn’t interested in getting involved with a new organization. But the class drew me in. Who could say no to a course on happiness taught by a Yale University professor and facilitated by Christian women?
How Science and Faith Complement One Another
As a Christian, the setup of Science of Well-Being is powerful. While science is many things, it is essentially a measurement and observation of what God created. In other words, science affirms our faith.
This class does that beautifully, constantly displaying how faith and science complement one another. Over and over, we saw that what science discovered about happiness has already been spelled out in God’s Word.
Of course, we recognize that non-believers can find some level of happiness in this life. However, as God’s children, we are uniquely positioned to understand that happiness. To soak in that happiness.
Refocusing on Gratitude
In a time when life could have been overwhelming, this class helped me refocus. As I went about my daily routine, the course’s practical applications came to mind, over and over.
The course helped me move to gratitude more quickly. To live in the present. To savor where I am in my present journey.
The Well-Being and Faith Course, developed to help an unbelieving world smile a bit more, drew me closer to God.
Since January 2021, I’ve used the course in my ministry to help others do the same.
Christ-Centered Happiness Is Contagious
Once I completed the course, I couldn’t keep it to myself. I had to share the course with the women to whom I’d ministered over the past 20 years. So I invited every one of them to participate.
Some live in Florida, near me. Others have moved away. Thanks to technology, that doesn’t matter. Intrigued at the course’s offerings and my strong recommendation, four dozen women joined the happiness course.
There were moms and daughters. A 95-year-old friend whose daughter helped her manage the technology each week. And a beloved Rwandan whom I consider my daughter.
It didn’t take long for the course’s message to take root in this group. These women learned how they, too, could grow in happiness. In joy. In faith. Now, their lives are fuller, and they want to share what they’ve learned. Two loved the course so much they plan to facilitate a future class.
Help Finding Your Happiness
If you aren’t sure whether WDW or their Well-Being and Faith Series would fit into your life or ministry, try it! There is absolutely no risk. Besides, we need to share our wealth of relationships and network with our sisters in Christ. This gives ample opportunity to do that.
Need a little more happiness in your life? A happiness laid out in Scripture and confirmed by science? Sign up for WDW’s Well-Being and Faith Summer Series today!
