What makes you happy? Big house? Expensive car? Large income? In the United States we have achieved this. Yet, there seems to be worry, fear, anxiety–everything but happiness.
Ancient wisdom taught that we are best when we live in the moment. We neither fret over what we did yesterday, nor worry about what may happen tomorrow.
Athletes report that when they are in “The Zone” they are exceedingly happy. When their entire focus is on the next play, on just the moment, neither replaying the last play or thinking three plays ahead. They are just at one with the game, teammates, competitors and the game flows.
Jesus taught (see Matthew 6 for example) that we should not worry. It does us no good. I can’t think of anyone else I’ve ever read about who lived as much in the moment as Jesus.
I am trained in science and the scientific method. I have no conflict within me about science and religion. I do not thing they are separate spheres, either. But often they study different things. I also believe the ancients were scientists, too. They observed, thought about it, observed some more, and wrote what they learned.
But they didn’t have iPhones and a ubiquitous connection called the Internet with the Web to study things. Matt Killingsworth did. He set up a study with many thousands of people checking in with their iPhones so that he could study what people were doing when they were happy or unhappy at the moment.
He defined focus on the present and mind-wandering as the two variables to study. He found a significant correlation between mind wandering and unhappiness–or the other way around, a correlation of focus on the moment to happiness.
Ah, science, always there to prove ancient wisdom is correct.
I picked this up on a TED Talk. Here is his presentation:
Faith Venture 
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