Feelings are frequently misleading, presenting us with false ideas. For example, have you ever felt like everyone forgot your birthday? All day long no one seemed to remember. Your feelings continually told you that people didn’t care about you or your birthday. Later in the day as you opened a door, a room full of people yelled “Happy Birthday!”

A surprise birthday party is just one example of how our feelings lie to us. Here are a few others: People feel they have a right to steal from their company; they get caught and are fired or go to jail. People feel that they are capable of driving; then they get a DUI and lose their license. People feel that no one cares about them; they act out in self-destruction.

Obeying feelings frequently produces pain. Human beings, however, have much better measures of reality than their feelings – logic, conscience, and the wisdom and experience of others. And human beings, unlike animals, have the ability to ignore the feelings, cravings, whims, or compulsions that seek to lead them into self-produced misery.

“If it feels good, do it,” is a big, fat lie. Here is the truth! If it is wise, honest, fair, moral, and will produce positive consequences in your future, do it. If not, avoid it no matter how good it may feel.

MTV and AP recently conducted a survey looking for what makes young people between the ages of 13 and 24 happy. They asked 100 questions of 1280 young people. Guess what they found out?

The number one answer to the question “What makes you happy?” was “spending time with family.” Almost 3/4 of the young people said that their relationship with their parents makes them happy. Almost no one gave “money” as the answer to that question. The survey also found that being sexually active leads to less happiness for teens. And almost 1/2 of those surveyed said that religion and spirituality are very important to them.

It appears that a great many young people know what brings true happiness. However, unfortunately in our society, young people have to battle a culture that attempts to lead them astray by giving them the lies that fashion and style, drugs, cheapo sex, being cool, disrespect of parents, vulgarity, and other self-destructive behaviors are the way to find happiness.

I am glad that so many young people see beyond society’s lies. I hope they have the courage to resist the pressures to behave in ways that produce misery and to actually do the things that lead to happiness.

Andrew Jackson impersonator, Dave McArdle, recently quit his job with Andrew Jackson's home, The Hermitage in Nashville, because he thinks that the truth about slavery is an insult to Jackson. A new Hermitage audio tour asks the question: “Was Andrew Jackson a good slave owner?” The tour then answers with: “The institution of slavery was just wrong.”

McArdle sent an e-mail complaining about the new Hermitage audio tour to The Tennessean that read “they are defaming the president.” However, Patricia Leach, CEO of The Hermitage said: “The Hermitage is not about to defend the ownership of another human being as it tells its slice of history.” Good for The Hermitage.

Unfortunately, many American founders and leaders did defend the idea of a “right” to own other human beings. Many, like Jackson, chose to personally hold men and women in lifelong bondage and forced labor. Many forcefully kept men, women, and children from learing how to read. Many denied men and women the right to marry and all other legal rights. Many of our founders took children away from parents and sent them into lifelong servitude in other parts of the country. Whippings and other forms of torture were used to keep slaves in line. Methodist preacher, John Wesley, called American slavery ”the vilest that ever saw the sun.”

I grew up in Arkansas and Tennessee. In junior high school, I had a class on Arkansas history. It presented slavery as a kind, benevolent institution and slave holders as upstanding men. A few years ago, I began to search history for myself. I read numerous slave narratives (the personal stories of runaway slaves) and other eye witness accounts of slavery. I also read Mark Twain’s novel Puddin’ Head Wilson and Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin. My personal conclusion is that slavery was a horrible atrocity perpetrated by people who claimed to believe in freedom. I appreciate The Hermitage and their willingness to be honest about slavery.

Motivation Quotation: “Life is a journey. You can be a passenger accepting what each day brings, or an active explorer, following your own vision and creating your own happiness and success.” –Fernando Espuelas

Motivational Thoughts: All people experience negative and painful events. Some have more than others. No one, however, has to settle for what life offers. As human beings we have an amazing ability. If we don’t like what life serves us, we can build a better life.

In order to build a better life, we must know what it looks like. We need a pattern, a blueprint, a vision. If all we can see is misery, we will have trouble creating happiness and success.

A flea thinks a dog is the entire world. The dog is all the shortsighted flea knows and all it can see. We, humans, also get shortsighted and sometimes our life begins to look, feel, and smell like a dog. Sometimes we begin to growl at everyone and everything.

But somehow we need to learn to look beyond the dog and behold all the wonderful possibilities available to us as an individuals. Our options are endless, if only we had the vision to see them, the faith to believe in them, the courage to go after them, and the self-discipline to persist.

Don’t accept misery, low-expectations, depression, slavery to compulsions or addictions, anger, passivity, self-pity. Instead, lift up your eyes and behold a great future for yourself full of peace of mind and victory over negativity and self-destructive behaviors.

How do you create your own happiness and success? Read dozens of biographies of men and women who overcame great obstacles. Find a group of successful overcomers and make close friendships with them. Get a mentor who is living a positive, uplifting life and spend frequent time with him. Read everything you can find about how to achieve a better life. Every single day take at least one bold, positive action to make your life better. And quit looking at that ole dog!

I was enjoying an I Love Lucy episode recently when Desi Arnaz, as Ricky Ricardo, began to sing a song called: I’m Breaking My Back Putting Up A Front For You. Now that would make a great country song title, wouldn't it? And it is true! After all, many people nowadays seem to be breaking their backs putting up fronts in an attempt to impress others. That made me think of some other opposites as song titles.

Get To The Bottom Of It Or I’ll Blow My Top

You Gotta Be Low Down To Get High Tonight

You Left Because I Was Right

I’ll Make Peace If You Won’t Fight

I’ve Got A Short Fuse For Your Tall Tale

It’s A Little Too Late To Show Me Your Big Heart

When You Get Full Of It I Always Feel Empty

I Can’t Get With It When I Am Without You

When You Are Near I See A Far Away Look In Your Eyes

Come On In; I’m Going Out