As part of my stake calling, I had the opportunity to speak in Valley View ward today. Here's my talk though I had very little time and had to cut a lot out to fit in the few minutes I had to speak.
July 16, 2023
How believing in and striving to follow the Gospel of Jesus Christ gives you joy.
I’d like you to take a few seconds to ponder what makes you happy. (Pause.)
Maybe some of the things on your list might be similar to mine: sunrises and sunsets, reading a good book, eating ice cream, traveling, spending time with friends or family, eating chocolate, a hike to a waterfall, completing a puzzle
Now what brings you JOY? Are the things you thought of initially the things that bring you JOY or just happiness? I love a good ice cream cone...and it does bring a few minutes of happiness or pleasure, but it doesn’t bring real joy. On the other hand, a sunrise often does because it feels like a hug from my Heavenly Father and a reminder that He created that beauty for me—for all of us. Happiness and joy are similar, but they are not the same. In my mind, happiness is more fleeting and temporary and more earthly while joy is more lasting and more eternal.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the perfect recipe for JOY. I believe that in order to experience joy we need to have at least three things: a purpose, love, and making and keeping covenants with the Savior.
First, we must have a sense of purpose to experience joy.
The gospel of Jesus Christ gives us meaning and purpose. We understand the plan of salvation. We understand who we are—that we are children of loving and perfected and glorified Heavenly Parents and that we have a divine nature and eternal destiny. We understand that we lived premortally with Them, that a plan for our growth and development was presented, that we accepted that plan, and that we are here on Earth to learn and grow. We know that we have a Savior who willingly atoned for our sins and sicknesses, sorrows and tragedies, weaknesses and heartaches and that He can enable us to become like our Heavenly Father. We understand that we will be resurrected and live again, and that through our Savior’s Atonement and by keeping our covenants, we can be united as families eternally. We understand where we came from, why we are here and where we are going. When I ponder that knowledge—and consider how much of the world doesn’t have this knowledge, I recognize how greatly blessed we truly are. Understanding the plan of salvation—often called the plan of happiness—gives meaning and purpose and perspective to our lives. It means that when the inevitable trials and sorrows come, we know that they won’t last forever and that we are not alone in trying to navigate them. We have hope.
President Nelson said, “The gift of resurrection is the Lord’s consummate act of healing. Thanks to him, each body will be restored to its proper frame and perfect frame. Thanks to him, no condition is hopeless. Thanks to him, brighter days are ahead both here and heareafter. Real joy awaits each of us on the other side of sorrow.”
Second, joy comes through love.
After Nephi heard his father speak of his vision of the tree of life, Nephi wanted to understand and experience this dream. In 1 Nephi 11, the Spirit appears to Nephi and explains the meaning of the dream. In verses 21-23, we read: “21 And the angel said unto me: Behold the aLamb of God, yea, even the bSon of the Eternal cFather! Knowest thou the meaning of the dtree which thy father saw?
22 And I answered him, saying: Yea, it is the alove of God, which bsheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the cmost desirable above all things.
23 And he spake unto me, saying: Yea, and the most ajoyous to the soul.”
The love of God is the most desirable and most joyous to the soul. When we feel God’s love for us, we feel peace and joy beyond what this world can offer.
I’d like to share just one experience when I felt God’s love, though I’ve had many.
Experience:
Like many of you, 2020 was challenging for me. Now I want to say that I recognize that many people suffered more than I did during 2020, and I recognize that my struggles may even seem silly to some. But it was challenging. I am a teacher and suddenly had to teach online for nearly a year. I longed to be in church and in the temple, and because my husband isn’t very active, there was a period of time when I wasn’t able to partake of the sacrament weekly and I longed for that. During this period, I realized that my temple recommend had been expired for a couple of weeks, so I set up appointments with my Bishop and President Carlson to renew my temple recommend. The day that I was to meet with President Carlson had been a difficult day and I was discouraged. I wrote the following that night after our meeting: “I am so grateful for the gospel. I long to be in the temple. I am so grateful to have a temple recommend. I felt President Carlson’s love for me and for my family. But I also felt like for a moment I was encircled in the arms of my Savior. Like He was letting me know that He knew it had been a hard week and He knew I was really trying. And that He had sent this tender mercy to me to remind me that it was going to be okay. That I was doing okay. I'm so far from perfect and I have so many weaknesses but I know I am loved and that God is in the details of my life...even if it’s something small like making sure I would have my temple recommend interviews on a hard day to lift my spirits.”
We also find joy through loving others and developing close and deep relationships with our friends and family. I think if we think back over some of our most joyous moments, they are times when we are surrounded by those we love. Joy comes when we unselfishly serve others and when we love deeply. One of my happiest moments this past year was when my daughter was sealed in the temple to her husband. Being in the temple with them and seeing their joy and feeling the Lord’s love for them was incredibly special and sacred and a joyous moment.
Finally, we find joy in coming to know and follow the Savior and making and keeping our covenants with Him. President Nelson gave one of my favorite talks in October 2016, Joy and Spiritual Survival. I think it is instructive that he said that joy will be a key to our spiritual survival in these last days. President Nelson said, “It doesn’t seem possible to feel joy when your child suffers with an incurable illness or when you lose your job or when your spouse betrays you. Yet that is precisely the joy the Savior offers. His joy is constant...How, then, can we claim that joy? We can start by ‘looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith’ ‘in every thought.’ We can give thanks for Him in our prayers and by keeping covenants we’ve made with Him and our Heavenly Father. As our Savior becomes more and more real to us and as we plaed for His joy to be given to us, our joy will increase.”
President Nelson also said, “IF we look ot the world and follow its formulas for happiness, we will never know joy. The unrighteous may experience any number of emotions and sensations, but they will never experience joy! Joy is a gift for the faithful. It is the gift that comes from intentionally trying to live a righteous live, as taught by Jesus Christ.... Every day that you and I choose to live celestial laws, every day that we keep our covenants and help others to do the same, joy will be ours.”
Experience two: I feel a lot of peace and joy in the temple. I have actually had many experiences in the temple that I could share that demonstrate how the temple has helped me feel joy. But let me share just one. One day a few years ago as I was in the temple, I felt indescribable peace and happiness. I felt my Savior’s love and just felt like I was right where I was meant to be, doing exactly what I was meant to do. As I was feeling these deep feelings of contentment, purpose and joy, the thought came to me that if everyone could feel what I was feeling in that moment...if everyone could experience that joy, then it would be worth WHATEVER sacrifice, whatever effort, whatever change was needed in order to be in the temple and experience what I was experiencing. I don’t feel that level of joy or contentment every time I attend the temple, but I do feel peace and happiness. And that experience gave me a perspective that I have treasured. When life begins to feel overwhelming or discouraging or when I need extra help or strength, I go to the temple. When I need to remember who I am and that I am loved, I go to the temple.
Joy:
To gladden; to exhilarate.
The passion or emotion excited by the acquisition or expectation of good; that excitement of pleasurable feelings which is caused by success, good fortune, the gratification of desire or some good possessed, or by a rational prospect of possessing what we love or desire; gladness; exultation; exhilaration of spirits.
JOY is a delight of the mind, from the consideration of the present or assured approaching possession of a good.
Bring heavenly balm to heal my country's wounds,
JOY to my soul and transport to my lay.
2. Gayety; mirth; festivity.
The roofs with joy resound.
3. Happiness; felicity.
Her heavenly form beheld, all wished her joy
4. A glorious and triumphant state.
No comments:
Post a Comment