AUTHOR BIOGRAPHYSir John Templeton was born in Winchester, Tennessee, went to Yale and then to Oxford as a Rhodes scholar. He is known for his astute investment skills on Wall Street and through the Templeton Mutual Funds. In 1987 he founded the John Templeton Foundation, and he currently funds the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion.
REVIEWSNassau Guardian
July 6, 2004
I bet that there are people in my reading audience who simply don't buy my premise as stated in the title of today's article. It is indeed unfortunate that far too many people spread throughout this great big world of ours believe incorrectly that when they finally have a whole lot of money they'll be deliriously happy. Well, my friend, these people obviously don't understand what happiness is, thus they don't really know how to acquire it.
Margaret Lee Runbeck summed it up like this when she said "Happiness is not a state to arrive at, but a manner of traveling." As I have put it on many occasions in these articles, happiness is not an end in itself; it's a by-product of giving to, serving others. To those who still think that money can buy happiness, let me quote a small passage from the book 'Golden Nuggets' written by Sir John Templeton, founder of The Franklyn-Templeton Fund.
In a chapter on 'Happiness' he writes as follows: "People devote much time and energy to seeking happiness, but the sad fact is that we are often seeking it outside ourselves. Actually, the happiest people are those who are working to give happiness to others. Happiness is not found by seeking it; it is a by-product of caring about other people.
True and lasting happiness comes from spiritual wealth because, with it, we have a resource to draw upon. With spiritual wealth as the foundation and security for our lives, we gain a deep and abiding peace that cannot be obtained with material wealth alone." To which I will simply say AMEN!
Now, lest you get me wrong her today, I'm not talking against the acquisition of wealth; oh, no, not at all. What I'm simply saying is this. It's fine and indeed O.K. to acquire wealth; after all, there's enough money in the world for everyone to get their fair share. With hard work, plenty of sacrifice and prudent financial planning; everyone should be rich, that's a fact.
However, I just don't want anyone to get confused by thinking that once he has acquired wealth, he'll be automatically ecstatically happy. Not necessarily so! Let me just quote one more time from Sir John Templeton's book 'Golden Nuggets'.
He writes "If we live to share our special talents and serve others instead of just accumulating material wealth, we can find happiness from the joy of freely giving. Although happiness as a goal unto itself is an empty one, it can be our companion on the road to fulfilling our destiny in this world."
My friend, by all means plan your finances carefully so that you'll acquire wealth. But never confuse the acquisition of wealth with happiness ----this simply doesn't compute. Set out today to unselfishly serve the needs of your brothers and sisters in God's Universal Family and I'll guarantee that you'll earn the by-product of assisting others, which is real and lasting happiness.
THINK ABOUT IT!
REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
If you are a student who cannot use this book in printed form, BiblioVault may be able to supply you
with an electronic file for alternative access.
Please have the accessibility coordinator at your school fill out this form.
It can take 2-3 weeks for requests to be filled.
