"There is nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good during one's life."
(Ecclesiastes 3:12)

        There is nothing better than happiness.   That is not to say, however, that happiness is all there is.

No, there are good foods, an endless variety of sights and sounds among God's creative works, to enjoy.   And while material things do not in themselves bring happiness with them, they can accompany it quite nicely.   Yes, the Israelites of old were warned that if they did not rejoice in all the abundance of things that God had provided for them, they would suffer (Deut 28:45-48), and they did, even suffering destruction by having Jerusalem destroyed twice by opposing armies.

What about if we are alone by having had parents or loved ones taken from us in some way, or if we are distraught by having not yet caught up with our goal of finding a marriage partner?   For one thing, we should be aware that the word 'alone' itself has interesting significance.   When you look at this word, what does it suggest?   Sadness?   No, but togetherness, as in 'all one'.   While the study of word origins is a highly uncertain field, one cannot help but be impressed by the great beauty in this word.   Yes, we may feel sad at times, but we can be confident that Jehovah cares about us; even as he himself said (Ephesians 4:6), he is in all of us.   God's Word confidently assures us of that fact.   And we have his word that he will never abandon us.   How do we know? (1Chronicles 28:9)   Well, the Bible itself has proved to be God's Word through the survival of much evil; many attempts have been made to stop the faithful transmission of this message down through the years, at times by keeping it in a foreign tongue, and at other times by torturing those who propagated it.   Yet the Bible remains the most widely distributed book of all time, claiming no author but the one who created the heavens and the earth.   So even if we have lost parents or loved ones, we can take consolation in the fact that we may find other loved ones through the pages of the Bible.   More than that, the Bible contains knowledge that leads to everlasting life (John 17:3).