Here is the conversation that struck me yesterday:
The Journalist: “Are you happy?“
Buddhist Monk: Master Shaolin Shi Yeng Yi:
“It’s a difficult question. I’m not searching for happiness. I’m searching for peace. So, my state of what I’m aiming for, I would say it is PEACE, because happiness for me is taken by this word:
If there is happiness, there is sadness.
If something can rise, something must fall.
If you can attain something, there is something to lose.
That is why it’s difficult, I stopped a moment what type of happiness you mean.
Being satisfied with where I’m standing. Yes. Does this mean I don’t have hard moments? I have hard moments. That’s why for me like what is it I ultimately look for. I would call it’s just peace.”
In a short interview, a journalist asks a simple question: “Are you happy?” Yet the answer given by Master Shi Yeng Yi opens a deeper reflection about life. He explains that he is not searching for happiness but for peace. Happiness often comes and goes. When there is happiness, sadness may follow. When something rises, it may also fall. What we gain today can be lost tomorrow. If life is built only on happiness, the heart will constantly move between excitement and disappointment.
This insight invites us to think about a deeper foundation for life. For Christians, that foundation is peace in Christ. Jesus never promised that life would be free from struggles. Instead, He said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” (John 14:27) The peace of Christ is not the absence of difficulties but the presence of God within them.
A person who lives in Christ can still face hard moments, failures, or suffering, yet the heart remains anchored. True peace comes from knowing that our life is held by God’s love. Happiness may change, but the peace of Christ remains steady and faithful.
Let us pray:
Lord Jesus,
You know how often our hearts chase after passing happiness and forget the deeper gift You offer. Teach us to seek the peace that comes from Your presence. When life brings joy or sorrow, success or loss, keep our hearts anchored in You.
Grant us the peace that the world cannot give, a peace that remains even in difficult moments. Help us trust that in every circumstance, Your love surrounds us and Your grace sustains us.
May Your peace guard our hearts and guide our lives each day.
Amen.
With love,
Little-pencil
Little-pencil 