The Secret to Happiness

All these behaviors are currently rewarded in our culture as if they were virtues, yet Scripture rails against them as vices. Proverbs 16:18-19 states that “Pride goes before ruin, arrogance, before failure. Better to be humble and among the lowly than to share spoils with the proud.” And Romans 1:32: “Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things (slander, hate, insolence, disobedience, ruthlessness, heartlessness, etc.) deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.”

Some of us are rightly shocked when we see our leaders practicing, aiding, and abetting hateful speech and destructive behavior. But the truth is, while we might not engage in either directly, we do unwittingly support them with our tax and investment dollars.

In 2025 the average U.S. taxpayer contributed over $4,000 to the federal government to fund military pursuits that compromised our global strength and, by extension, our national security. Even after the murders of Renee Goode, Alex Pretti, as well as the deaths of 49 others in their custody, Congress continues to approve additional funding for ICE without requiring additional training, reporting, or oversight. The military and ICE are not the only areas where our tax dollars are being used for vanity projects for the wealthy and powerful. Data centers, which can consume as much electricity as 100,000 homes and require millions of gallons of water are offered tax incentives, while nutrition programs, public education, affordable housing, health care, and environmental protections are defunded. In short, the American taxpayer is paying to fund the desires of narcissists, psychopaths, and Machiavellians.

We may feel uncomfortable breaking the law by withholding our federally mandated tax contributions, even when they are being used in ways that make us unhappy. But we commit no offense when we divest our personal investments, retirement accounts, pensions, and interest-bearing bank accounts from assets that are being used for these same purposes. Our investment gains are disproportionately tied to the increase in military spending, DHS and ICE activities, and the development of AI. Changing the name of the Department of Defense to the Department of War ironically led to an appropriate acronym – DOW. Since the name was changed, the Dow Industrial Average has risen over 12%. If you have accounts with Vanguard, BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank, or Fidelity, it is likely that you are also investing in private prison companies like CoreCivic and GEO Group and otherwise supporting ICE detention and deportation.

And it’s hard to resist the temptation of investing in AI and data centers when they are getting such high returns.

But as we read in Matthew 6:24: “No one can serve two masters; for either s/he will hate the one and love the other, or s/he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”

The pursuit of happiness implies agency. We have choices to make. Whose version of happiness are we going to fund? How much our own happiness is diminished when we know our resources cause suffering?

A growing number of Americans are refusing to pay their taxes as conscientious objectors and political protesters. And an increasing number of investment and brokerage firms offer mutual funds and EFTs that can be tailored to reflect your values.

Contacting our representatives, participating in public demonstrations against the detention and removal of vulnerable individuals, and providing resources to advocacy groups challenging these systemic failures are all important ways to reflect our values in public. But we can’t ignore the frustrating truth that we are also privately funding the vices we publicly oppose.

It may seem daunting to figure out what exactly you are investing in, but it could result in the happiness defined in Psalm 84:5:

“Happy are those who dwell in Your house, they will sing Your praises forever.”