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| Source True, enduring happiness, with the accompanying strength, courage, and capacity to overcome the greatest difficulties, will come as you center your life in Jesus Christ. |
Our Father in Heaven wants each of us to enjoy peace and
happiness in mortal life. Our Master, Jesus Christ, and His prophets have
taught how to have that peace and happiness, even in a world that is ever more
challenging, with increasing conflict and an intense concentration of alluring
temptations.
I will illustrate the wrong way to find peace and
happiness, and then the proper way, by using an analogy to rock climbing. There
are those who attempt to scale a difficult rock cliff by a method called
“soloing.” They ascend alone, without equipment, companions, or any secure
protection. They depend on their own skill and capacity. They do it for the
thrill of living on the edge with high risk. It is done despite the probability
that in time they will fall and be seriously injured or lose their life. They
are like many who face the challenges and temptations of life without the
security of following the commandments of God, guided by the Holy Spirit. In
today’s difficult world they will almost surely violate critical laws, with
painful, destructive consequences. Do not “solo” in life. You will almost
certainly fall into transgression.
There is a safer way to rock climb. When a pair of
climbers tackle a difficult ascent, the leader scales a wall, placing anchors a
few feet apart. His or her rope is linked to the anchor by a carabiner. Safety
is assured by a companion, called the second, stationed in a very solid
position. The lead is protected as the second belays, that is, carefully
controls how the rope is payed out. In this way the lead is assured protection
while ascending. Should there be an inadvertent misstep, the anchor will safely
limit the fall. The second not only secures the lead but gives encouragement
with comments and signals as they communicate back and forth. Their goal is a
safe, exhilarating experience by overcoming a significant challenge. They
employ techniques and equipment that are tried and proven. The essential
equipment includes a secure harness, a reliable rope, a variety of anchors to
be fixed to the rock face, a chalk bag to improve grip, and proper boots or
special shoes that a leader can use to grip the surface of the steep wall.
The companionship has studied the rules and techniques of
rock climbing. They have received instruction from experienced climbers and have
practiced to become comfortable with the proper moves and the use of equipment.
They have planned a route and determined how they will work together. When the
leader scales far enough and finds a convenient place that is very safe, he or
she belays while taking up the rope as the second follows the “pitch” or length
of rope that has been extended. When the leader is reached, the process is then
repeated. One belays while the other climbs, inserting anchors every few feet
as protection should there be an inadvertent fall. While technical rock
climbing appears to be risky and dangerous, these precautions assure an
exhilarating experience, safely accomplished by following correct principles.
In real life, the anchors are the laws of God that
provide protection under all of the challenges that you will face. The rope and
carabiners that secure the rope to the anchors represent obedience to those
commandments. When you learn those commandments, continue to practice them, and
have a plan to avoid danger, you will have a secure means of obtaining
protection against Satan’s temptations. You will develop strength of character
that will fortify you against transgression. Should you make a wrong move,
there need be no enduring problem because of the belaying or help that is
available through your repentance.
Let the Savior be your “lead” in life. He has said, “I am
… the Rock of Heaven … ; whoso cometh in at the gate and climbeth up by me
shall never fall.” 1 The Redeemer will safely lead you over the most difficult
obstacles of life. His laws are absolutely secure anchors of protection that
dispel fear and assure success in an otherwise dangerous world. Such a life
will certainly provide you peace and happiness.
True, enduring happiness, with the accompanying strength,
courage, and capacity to overcome the greatest difficulties, will come as you
center your life in Jesus Christ. Obedience to His teachings provides a secure
ascent in the journey of life. That takes effort. While there is no guarantee
of overnight results, there is the assurance that, in the Lord’s time,
solutions will come, peace will prevail, and happiness will be yours.
The challenges you face, the growth experiences you
encounter, are intended to be temporary scenes played out on the stage of a
life of continuing peace and happiness. Sadness, heartache, and disappointment
are events in life. It is not intended that they be the substance of life. I do
not minimize how hard some of these events can be. When the lesson you are to
learn is very important, trials can extend over a long period of time, but they
should not be allowed to become the confining focus of everything you do. Your
life can and should be wondrously rewarding. It is your understanding and
application of the laws of God that will give your life glorious purpose as you
ascend and conquer the difficulties of life. That perspective keeps challenges
confined to their proper place—stepping-stones to further growth and
attainment.
The Lord is intent on your personal growth and
development. Your progress is accelerated when you willingly allow Him to lead
you through every growth experience you encounter, whether you welcome the
experience or not. Trust in the Lord. Ask to be led by the Spirit to know His
will. Be willing to accept it. You will then qualify for the greatest happiness
and the heights of attainment from this mortal experience.
Peace and happiness are the precious fruits of a
righteous life. They are only possible because of the Atonement of Jesus
Christ. I will explain.
Each of us makes mistakes in life. They result in broken
eternal laws. Justice is that part of Father in Heaven’s plan of happiness that
maintains order. It is like gravity to a rock climber, ever present. It is a
friend if eternal laws are observed. It responds to your detriment if they are
ignored. Justice guarantees that you will receive the blessings you earn for
obeying the laws of God. Justice also requires that every broken law be
satisfied. When you obey the laws of God, you are blessed, but there is no
additional credit earned that can be saved to satisfy the laws that you break.
If not resolved, broken laws can cause your life to be miserable and would keep
you from returning to God. Only the life, teachings, and particularly the
Atonement of Jesus Christ can release you from this otherwise impossible
predicament.
The demands of justice for broken law can be satisfied
through mercy, earned by your continual repentance and obedience to the laws of
God. Such repentance and obedience are absolutely essential for the Atonement
to work its complete miracle in your life. The Redeemer can settle your
individual account with justice and grant forgiveness through the merciful path
of your repentance. Through the Atonement you can live in a world where justice
assures that you will retain what you earn by obedience. Through His mercy you
can resolve the consequences of broken laws.
The Atonement was a selfless act of infinite, eternal
consequence, arduously earned alone, by the Son of God. 2 Through it the Savior
broke the bonds of death. It justifies our finally being judged by the
Redeemer. It can prevent an eternity under the dominion of Satan. It opens the
gates to exaltation for all who qualify for forgiveness through repentance and
obedience.
Pondering the grandeur of the Atonement evokes the most
profound feelings of awe, immense gratitude, and deep humility. Those
impressions can provide you powerful motivation to keep His commandments and
consistently repent of errors for greater peace and happiness.
I believe that no matter how diligently you try, you
cannot with your human mind fully comprehend the eternal significance of the
Atonement nor fully understand how it was accomplished. We can only appreciate
in the smallest measure what it cost the Savior in pain, anguish, and suffering
or how difficult it was for our Father in Heaven to see His Son experience the
incomparable challenge of His Atonement. Even so, you should conscientiously
study the Atonement to understand it as well as you can. You can learn what is
needful to live His commandments, to enjoy peace and happiness in mortal life.
You can qualify, with obedient family members, to live with Him and your Father
in Heaven forever.
Lehi taught his son Jacob, “No flesh … can dwell in the
presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the
Holy Messiah.” 3
Jesus Christ possessed merits that no other being could
possibly have. He was a God, Jehovah, before His birth in Bethlehem. His
beloved Father not only gave Him His spirit body, but Jesus was His Only
Begotten Son in the flesh. Our Master lived a perfect, sinless life and
therefore was free from the demands of justice. He is perfect in every
attribute, including love, compassion, patience, obedience, forgiveness, and
humility. His mercy pays our debt to justice when we repent and obey Him. Since
with even our best efforts to obey His teachings we will still fall short,
because of His grace we will be “saved, after all we can do.” 4
I testify that with unimaginable suffering and agony at
an incalculable price, the Savior earned His right to be our Redeemer, our
Intermediary, our Final Judge. I know that He lives and that He loves you.
Consistently make Him your “lead” in life. The secure anchors of His laws will
assure safety and success as you scale the challenges you will face. You will
not fall into serious transgression. Yours will be a life of peace and
happiness crowned with exaltation in the celestial kingdom. In the name of
Jesus Christ, amen.
References:
1. Moses 7:53.
2. See D&C 133:50, 52–53.
3. 2 Nephi 2:8;
emphasis added.
4. 2 Nephi 25:23.
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