Plan of Happiness

Last week I wrote about happiness here on earth.  What about after we die?

How can I return to live with God?

The utmost happiness can be obtained by returning to live with our Heavenly Father. He loves us and blesses His children with guidance.  He did not just send us off to earth without a way to return to Him.  Would a loving Father do that? No! We have scripture so we can learn from prophets of the past, however, we also receive guidance through prophets that are on earth today who can give us direction concerning specific situations we are faced with now.

A prophet is called by God and given priesthood power which is the authority to act in God's name for the salvation of His children.  Prophets receive revelation and act as guardians for all God's children.

"Brothers and sisters, if God loves us enough to send us prophets, then we need to love Him enough to follow them"
-Sheldon F. Child Oct. Gen. Conf. 2003

Our Father's plan is for us to return to live with Him again.  This is called the plan of salvation or plan of happiness. Jesus Christ and His atonement for us is the center of the plan.  Through the atonement we can gain eternal life if we exercise faith in Jesus Christ, repent, and are baptized by immersion for the remission of sins, receive the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end.

Plan of Happiness

Of course we all have our agency in this plan.  We can accept or reject it.  Those who accept are blessed, and those who reject, ignore or distort the gospel do not receive God's promised blessing; and as a consequence distance themselves from God and dwell in spiritual darkness, or apostasy.  When apostasy is widespread, God withdraws His priesthood authority, to teach and administer the ordinances of the gospel, from the earth.

In the Bible there are many instances where God speaks to prophets, and many instances of apostasy.  Every time there is an apostasy, God eventually ends it by calling a new prophet and giving him the priesthood to teach the gospel.  Each of these periods of time are called a dispensation.

God revealed the gospel to Adam and gave him priesthood authority.  Adam was the first prophet and he taught his children the truths that were revealed to him.  Over time his posterity rejected the gospel and choosing to be unrighteous, fell into apostasy.  With each prophet (Noah, Abraham, Moses etc.) a new dispensation began and God granted them eternal truths and authority.  Unfortunately, in each dispensation people eventually used their agency to reject the gospel and fell into apostasy.

A new dispensation began when God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ appeared and began to reveal the truth of the gospel to Joseph Smith at the humble age of 14.  We now have the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, with all the truth and priesthood authority that existed when Jesus walked the earth!  It's an incredible thing that we have on earth today.  Let's share it!

Restoration

Happy?

Have you ever had one of those dreams where your mouth is as dry as leather and you go to get a drink but the water somehow does not wet your mouth?  Then you finally wake up and gratefully get a wonderful cool drink of real water!

I had a completely different post all ready, but as I've laid awake the last couple hours, I've been thinking about emptiness vs. happiness.  Who hasn't felt at one time or another that something is missing in our lives and we deeply just want to be happy.  So we go about our lives searching for what exactly it is that we need to fill this empty emotional void: food (as I drink my ultimate comfort food- chocolate milk), jewelry, clothes, a beautiful house, pets, a new career, hobbies, sex, cars, shoes...the list could be a mile long.  We get a little rush of excitement and endorphins make us feel happy.  But once this wears off we just feel plain empty again and life's flavor is gone like chewed up gum.  We're left still thirsty.

So how can we feel emotionally satisfied?  We've all probably heard that true happiness is gained from making others happy.  Do you believe this?  I enjoy this quote:

"Happiness is like jam, you can't spread even a little without getting some on yourself."
-Vern McLellan

It's true. Think about it. When have you felt the most real joy in your life? I think about the time when my mom made me and my rainbow bright doll matching pajamas. Sure it was an awesome gift, but I knew it was how my mother showed that she loved me. I'd bet that she felt so happy making them for me too. I think of the many times my dad took me swimming as a kid and running up the flights of stairs and down the water slide. I think of the many love notes my husband has written to me. I think of giving birth to my three kids and the joy of holding them for the first time. Sadly, at the moment I can't recall many times recently when I've made someone feel happy. I think I will go play cars with my son.

"Where Can I Turn for Peace"

I don't care how many times you've heard this song. Listen to it and see if you can figure out why this song applies to my topic today.

I love this song. It reminds me how the Savior is the only one who can truly understand how we feel when we are in our darkest hours. We would be wise to stay close to Him and serve Him. How do I serve the Lord?

Mosiah 2:17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.

"The more we obey God, the more we desire to help others. The more we help others, the more we love God and on and on. Conversely, the more we disobey God and the more selfish we are, the less love we feel." 

"Trying to find lasting love without obeying God is like trying to quench thirst by drinking from an empty cup. You can go through the motions, but the thirst remains."  

John H. Groberg - 2004 Oct. Gen. Conf

What Shall we Give?

So we see that it is only through the service of others that our thirst can be quenched. John 4:14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

So let's all go do something nice for someone we care about.  Give someone a hug, a love note, a thank-you or an apology, a kind act, or a special gift.

And feel happy!

Sweet Blessings

What blessings come through the gospel of Jesus Christ?

I like the scripture Ecclesiastes 11:1:  "Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days."  Ok, that's a little odd, right?  Why on earth would I cast perfectly good bread in the water, just to get soggy and then have the tide bring it back in later.  Well, that is the image that came to my mind, anyway.

I thought about this passage and imagined I had been asked to give something necessary, food or money, away to someone in need.  A part of my brain might think that I'm throwing something away and what a waste that would be!  If I have the faith that no good deed goes unnoticed, than I might just notice in some little way that I am blessed in return.  If I'm not paying close attention, I might not notice it at all!

I'm reading a book called "Everyday Miracles-True Stories About God's Hand in Our Lives" by Jay A. Parry.  It's full of sweet, simple blessings that express God's love for His children.  It quotes a saying: "Cast your bread upon the waters, and after many days it will return--buttered" (p. 3).  I like that image better than the soggy bread image :)

That was a little tangent to what I am actually posting, but I felt like I needed to share it, especially at this time of year when the spirit of giving is fresh in our hearts.  Alright, now the heart of the message is that the Gospel of Jesus Christ brings blessings upon all who embrace it.  I have to share it, and even though it is not material, I do believe I'll be blessed in return.  There are many lives who have been touched and renewed by the light of Christ.  Those who are lost in spiritual darkness have been found and accepted the good news.

Families are especially blessed through the gospel and are so important not just for this life, but for eternity.  We believe that the bond that is made here on earth with our families can be carried on even after death!  Families are life's greatest treasure and lasting happiness can be found therein.  The home is the best place to teach, learn and apply principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and it can be a place of refuge and safety.  It can be a place where the Spirit of the Lord can be to bless the family with peace.  Prophets have revealed God's plan of happiness for individuals and families in our day (See Preach my Gospel, 32). Here are some places you can find out more:

Plan of Salvation

The Family Proclaimation

Of things that Matter Most

Fun videos: Bad Hair Day, By the Hour

And here's a song I like just because: Truth Reflects Upon our Senses

Please share my blog (not because of my words, basically just for the links :).  The simple truths of the gospel are priceless.  There is nothing more important that you could share with your friends and families.  Hey, why not throw it out there and see what sweet blessings come flowing back to you.  Have a wonderful week!

Is there a God?

Is there any more important question to humankind than this?   Do you believe in God?  And if so, what do you believe He is like?

Most beliefs about God are that He is a supreme being, all-knowing, perfect, a father of our spirits.  What many religions disagree about is what form He takes on.  Is He a spirit, have a body, or reside in all things at once?

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS church) teaches that God is our Heavenly Father and that we are His spirit children.  He has a body of flesh and bone that is glorified and perfected.  He loves us and weeps with us when we suffer and rejoices with us when we make good choices.  We can communicate with him through sincere prayer.
(Preach my Gospel, 31-32).

How can the LDS church claim to know the truth? 

To answer this question is going to take a whole post in and of itself but to answer briefly; it is because the truth has been revealed to prophets in our day.

Why is it important that I believe in God?

If there is no God, than there is no good or evil.  If there is no good or evil than why be kind or help anyone besides myself?  Throughout our history civilizations have gone through cycles where the people become agnostic followed by their destruction.  That's what we're headed for unless we start to think more seriously about God and our relationship to Him.

Why are we here on earth?  What's the purpose?

We chose to come here so we could have the opportunity to learn from our trials and grow spiritually, showing whether or not we would trust in our Heavenly Father and obey His commandments.  Disobedience   creates distance between us and God, making it more difficult to receive spiritual promptings.  We all make mistakes, however, so Jesus Christ chose to come to earth and be our redeemer from sin because He loves us.  His suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the cross provided a way for justice and mercy to exist together, allowing us to repent and return to live with our Heavenly Father.  How beautiful is the truth that we can be free from our burdens of sin!  Without that load to carry we can have the faith and strength  to face our everyday trials.

Why does God allow horrible things to happen?

Our earthly existence is not easy to say the least.  There is much sorrow and grief that we must pass through.    Does God joy in our pain?  No.  He sorrows with us.  However, this life is like a refining fire. It either strengthens or breaks us.  If we turn to God we will be strengthened and be able to pass through our trials and be stronger because of them.  Also important to note is that a lot of suffering we go through is the natural consequence of sin, or disobeying God's commandments.  So you can make life a lot easier on yourself and just be obedient...even if it means denying yourself of something you want.  It's hard, but it will be far better for you in the end!

To learn more about the nature of God the Father and Jesus Christ you can study these scriptures from Latter-Day scriptures the Book of Mormon and Doctrine and Covenants, from the Bible, watch a video and listen to inspirational songs:
1 Nephi 17:36
2 Nephi 9:6
Mosiah 4:9
3 Nephi 12:48
3 Nephi 14:9-11
3 Nephi 27:13-22
D&C 38:1-3
D&C 130:22
Moses 1:39
Matthew 5:48
John 3:16-17
Acts 17:27-29
Romans 8:16
Hebrews 12:9
1 John 4:7-9

For God so Loved the World Bible video

God Loved Us, So He Sent His Son
I Stand All Amazed

Or study more beliefs from these websites: Mormon.org and Lds.org.

Pray about these things to know if they are true, and have faith that God will answer you.  He will help you feel if it is true.  My three year old son says it feels like his heart is fluffy :)  Others say it's a burning within, or a peaceful feeling.

Please share your thoughts about God, especially if you have an experience in your life where you have felt God's power and love.  

If you would like to learn more you can:
Meet with missionaries.
Find a meetinghouse.  Everyone is welcome to attend.
And stay tuned for upcoming blogs each Saturday morning :)

Thanks for reading!