Happpiness = Outward Focus

A rabbi was called to a hospital to see a Jewish teenager who was suicidal. He had attempted to take his own life, feeling that he was a good for nothing who could not get anything right. Even his suicide attempt had failed. The hospital staff, seeing he was Jewish, called a local rabbi to come and try to lift the boy's dejected spirits.

So the rabbi arrived at the hospital not knowing what to expect. He found the boy lying in bed watching TV, a face of utter misery, black clouds of despair hanging over his head. The boy hardly looked up to the rabbi, and before he could even say hello the boy said, "If you are here to tell me what the priest just told me, you can leave now."

Slightly taken aback, the rabbi asked, "What did the priest say?"

"He told me that G-d loves me. That is a load of garbage. Why would G-d love me?"

It was a good point. This kid could see nothing about himself that was worthy of love. He had achieved nothing in his life, he had no redeeming features, nothing that was beautiful or respectable or lovable. So why would G-d love him?

The rabbi needed to touch this boy without patronizing him. He had to say something real. But what do you say to someone who sees themselves as worthless?

"You may be right," said the rabbi. "Maybe G-d doesn't love you."

This got the boy's attention. He wasn't expecting that from a rabbi.

"Maybe G-d doesn't love you. But one thing's for sure. He needs you."

This surprised the boy. He hadn't heard that before. The very fact that you were born means that G-d needs you. He had plenty of people before you, He added you to the world population because there is something you can do that no one else can do. And if you haven't done it yet, that makes it more important to live and do and give to the world a gift that only you can.

To say G-d loves you means you can look at yourself and be satisfied, feel good. But to say G-d needs you means you can't be satisfied, because you have work to do, you have a mission, G-d has put you here for a reason.

If I can look at all my achievements and be proud, I can believe G-d loves me. What if I haven't achieved anything? What if I don't have any accomplishments under my belt to be proud of?

Well, stop looking at yourself and look around you. Stop thinking about yourself and start thinking of others. You are here because G-d needs you, he needs you to do something.

My friend, you and I know that happiness does not come from fulfilling our desires. Happiness comes from serving others, from living life with meaning. I am convinced that all you need to do is focus outward, not inward, not on what you need but what you are needed for, and in finding what you can do for others, you will find yourself.

(The rabbi in the story was Rabbi Manis Friedman)