"Does God just want us to think of our life as “glass half full”? Is that all God wants? Many people think that this is the goal of the Christian life. And by the way some people write and speak, you could easily think that circumstantial optimism is the very essence of the Christian faith. Surely these things—a cheerful attitude and sense of hopefulness—are wonderful by-products of rejoicing in God while in the midst of our homes. But that’s just what they are—by-products. The source of our faith, hope, love, joy, and gospel-grounded optimism is God himself and not our stuff or our circumstances”
Gloria Furman, Glimpses of Grace