Greater Faith {generates} Greater Happiness

     This morning I submerged myself in a talk by Elder Wirthlin (November 2002) entitled, "Shall He Find Faith on the Earth?"

     First of all, I highly suggest the study of his words.  They are most touching and tender and simple.

     Secondly, I wish to quote a personal story he shares in this talk.  The symbolism is rich:

"Sometimes the world appears dark. Sometimes our faith is tried. Sometimes we feel that the heavens are closed against us. Yet we should not despair. We should never abandon our faith. We should not lose hope.

 "A few years ago, I began to notice that things around me were beginning to darken. It troubled me because simple things like reading the print in my scriptures were becoming more difficult. I wondered what had happened to the quality of the lightbulbs and wondered why manufacturers today couldn’t make things like they had in years past.

"I replaced the bulbs with brighter ones. They, too, became dim. I blamed the poor design of the lamps and bulbs. I even questioned whether the brightness of the sun was fading before the thought occurred to me that the problem might not be with the amount of light in the room—the problem might be with my own eyes.

"Shortly thereafter, I went to an ophthalmologist who assured me that the world was not going dark at all. A cataract on my eye was the reason the light seemed to be fading. This certainly gives you my age. I placed my faith in the capable hands of this trained specialist, the cataract was removed, and behold, light again flooded my life! The light had never diminished; only my capacity to see the light had been lessened.

"This taught me a profound truth. Often when the world seems dark, when the heavens seem distant, we seek to blame everything around us, when the real cause of the darkness may be a lack of faith within ourselves.

"Be of good cheer. Have faith and confidence. The Lord will not forsake you."

 

     Maybe happiness is directly related to the amount of our faith.

I think faith deems how we look at the world.  If our faith in Jesus Christ is strong enough to act in accordance to our complete trust in Him and accept His will knowing that He knows what's best for us, then there will always be sunshine in our lives--even if at times it is only a golden edge framing our clouds.  Nonetheless, in these circumstances, we will still perceive our lives as mostly happy...all because of our faith.

Happy Challenge:  Pray to increase your faith in Jesus Christ thereby increasing your happiness.

Already a Butterfly

Today I want to remember what it feels like to be happy...like a little child.  Remember the innocent, carefree days of bliss we enjoyed as children?  Our greatest concerns revolved around whether or not we had enough daylight to play.  We worried when we quarreled with our brothers or sisters.  We felt remorse when we were scolded for quarreling or not cleaning up our messes.  We had not yet learned that the world has greater worries and concerns than could be contained in all of the volumes of all of the books.  We had not yet experienced such painful things as death, heartbreak, sin, and discouragement.  Our pains came from scraped knees and lunch being postponed 20 minutes.  We had such perfect faith.  Like a rock.


What happened to those days?  I suppose there was a time when we all had to grow up.  The stark reality of unfulfilled dreams, shattered hopes, and heavy hearts then came into existence.  And yet, despite what we may think, we are still the same little person as we were so long ago.  Our spirits have only grown up unto greater maturity and understanding.  With this greater wisdom should come greater capacity to bear the trials we've been given, and still be happy anyway.  I think this is where we get confused.  We feel that because our lives are so hard and painful, we have the right to be sad and downtrodden.  But melancholy wasn't a word in our childhood vocabulary.  Yes our pains were of much less intensity, but for a child, they were still traumatizing.  Our capacity to bear was smaller, so the trials we faced were of the same intensity as the ones we face today.  And yet we were happy anyway.  


Cherie Call released her newest album, "Grace," not too long ago.  My sweetheart surprised me with her songs for my birthday.  I have listened and relistened and pondered on her songs much over the last few weeks.  There is a song that seems to perfectly express the sentiments I am feeling in my heart.  Listen to the words of the song "Already a Butterfly:"


You wore butterfly wings and your hair was in rings
and you thought a superman cape would be the perfect thing.
So we velcroed it on in an awkward way and it crumpled up your wings.
You said, "You don't need a cape if you're already a butterfly."


Butterflies fly through the sky without a care in the world.
I wish you could see as the years go by, no matter what you're still that little girl.


Take a look at those eyes and the smile on your face.
You will color this world in your butterfly ways.
'Cause you were never meant to be anyone else and you were truly made to fly,
And you don't need a cape if you're already a butterfly.

Butterflies fly through the sky without a care in the world.

I wish you could see as the years go by, no matter what you're still that little girl.

It's easy to believe you're beautiful when you're three years old

But when 15 comes around I hope that you still know--

That butterflies fly through the sky without a care in the world.

I wish you could see as the years go by, no matter what you're still that little girl.

You're still that girl.

Don't you just love that song?  It brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it.  And I hope that I can internalize the message.  I am still that butterly.  I can still fly through my life without a care in the world, even despite the trials I am facing.  I still have wings.  They did not simply disappear when I grew up.  I just sort of forgot about them.  But I am exercising them now.  And guess what--they're starting to shine and sparkle again.  Today I will test out my wings.  Today I will choose to be happy.  And lest we ever forget, let me simply mention that we can fly because of One Man.  One Perfect Man who came to earth as the Savior of mankind.  It is He who has made our way possible.  It is through Him and His incomprehensible atonement that we can be happy...and fly.  I bear testimony of Him and His miraculous power.  He is real.  He lives.  And He loves us.

Faith and Trust produce Happiness and Peace

I have been soaking up and feasting on the words of General Conference for my personal study the last few weeks.  Today I stumbled across a line that struck me.  I was reading and listening to Elder Wilford W. Andersen:

"...hope and happiness and joy are not products of circumstance but of faith in the Lord."

Powerfully true.  Poignantly simple.  One more statement:

"...for most of us, sadness and fear begin to melt away and are replaced with happiness and peace when we put our trust in the Author of the plan of happiness and when we develop faith in the Prince of Peace."

Since God the Father created the plan of happiness--wouldn't it follow that putting our trust in the One who created happiness will naturally bring us happiness?  Since Christ is the Prince of Peace and has literally paved the way to peace, wouldn't it follow that if we follow Him and have faith in Him we will naturally be at peace?  It just makes sense.

Happy Challenge:
Develop faith in the Prince of Peace (Jesus Christ) and put your trust in the Author of the plan of happiness (Heavenly Father).  Watch your happiness and peace grow...

How is your faith?
How is your trust?
How is your happiness?

How is your peace?

Just Popped By...

One of the counselors in my Relief Society stopped by to wish me a happy birthday.  She brought a litle tootsie pop all wrapped up with a note:  "Just 'pop'ped by to wish you -- Happy Birthday!!"  Regardless of the fact that my birthday is tomorrow, my day was made.  It's nice to be remembered.  It's nice to be loved. It feels good to feel that someone thinks you're special enough to be cared about.  Is there someone's day that I can make?  Who needs me today?  Who knows but if my words, or embrace, or smile may be the only ray of sunshine...their only source of happiness today.  Can we seek?  Yes.  We must.

Find your Glow.

My one wish for you {and me} today is true serenity.  To worry, to fret, to stew, to be troubled, to doubt.  These states of mind are not our destiny or purpose.  We are here to have joy!  And joy comes to us when we are at peace with ourselves and with God.  No matter our environment, surroundings, or present circumstances, we can still have peace!  I believe this.  And this is how:

"Faith in the Lord is trust in the Lord.  We cannot have true faith in the Lord without also having complete trust in the Lord's will and in the Lord's timing...The exercise of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is always subject to the order of heaven, to the goodness and will and wisdom and timing of the Lord.  When we have that kind of faith and trust in the Lord, we have true security and serenity in our lives." -Elder Dallin H. Oaks, The Atonement and Faith, Ensign April 2010, p. 30

Did you catch that?  True serenity comes from having faith and trust in the Lord.  It's simple.  It's profoundly deep.  It's like this warm, glowing light in the middle of winter.  This warmth, this glow can be yours...if you allow the Lord to give you an overwhelming sense of peace and serenity that surpasses your fondest imaginations.  To think.  We can attain true peace and serenity no matter what happens around us or to us, IF we are willing to know that we are in the Lord's hands.  That's all it takes.  A paradigm shift.  A fresh mindset.  Trust Him.  He loves you.  Let that thought rest in your minds and see how many happifying droplets can be added to your cup.  You'll be amazed. 

{Happifying Droplets}

I've done a fair amount of thinking about how we remain (or become) happy when, in reality, we're painfully unhappy.  I think I've discovered a simple visual analogy to help us (definitely me included!)


Let me give you a gift:  it is a glass.  {Imagine it to look like anything you please.  Mine is fairly simple--much like the one you see to the left.  But yours can be as elaborate as you wish.  It can be tall or short, fat or skinny, a mug, or a vase.  It can even be any color as long as it's translucent enough to see through.}


Do you have your glass ready?  Now imagine yourself placing two flowers inside.  {You can choose any flower you like--preferably one of your favorites.  They can even be two different kinds of flowers if you like.}


Now take a pitcher and imagine yourself pouring crystal clear water into your glass.  Fill it about 1/3 of the way full.
Let the analogy begin!
The glass represents you. 
The flowers represent joy and happiness that you hold.  Now these flowers are magical.  They will never ever die...so long as you keep them properly watered.
The water represents the things in life (whether experienced or created) that bring you joy and happiness.


We are all born with a certain amount of happiness...thankfully, we never start out dry!  However, as life progresses, plans are changed and dreams are shattered.  If we don't keep our supply of water at least somewhat full, our flowers start to wither.  We have all passed through these times.  The trick, I guess, is to add as much water as we can...to provide for ourselves as many happifying experiences as possible to keep our water high!


It can be challenging however.  Remember the pitcher at the beginning of the visualization?  That was only used to give you your starting amount.  We are given a mere dropper to keep our water high.

Drop by drop we fill our cups with the things that make our joy and happiness flourish.


But what do we do when our water dwindles and we feel ourselves sinking into despair?  There is no simple answer, but I have been striving to implement the "drop by happy drop" method and, miraculously, it seems to be working.


Look for the good.  And every time you find it, imagine yourself dropping another beautiful, crystal droplet into your cup.  Imagine your flowers perking up a little bit more with every drop.


There will be moments when you will feel your dropper can't keep up with the water flowing from it.  Your glass may even be brimming with happifying droplets.  At other times, you may only be able to squeeze out three precious drops a day.  But be grateful.  Those drops add up.
I repeat, look for those happifying droplets everywhere you go.  Look to the sky and be grateful for the sun.  Let your child's laughter add a drop.  Let a warm embrace add two maybe even three drops to your cup.  Provide drops for yourself by taking a few moments to wind down with something you enjoy--every day!  And most importantly, let the Savior add hundreds at the end of your day when you have done your best and you feel His words, "Well done thou good and faithful servant."


And on the days {or minutes} when everything seems to go wrong, find something good no matter how small.  I will illustrate with a personal example from last night.  Patrick was on his way home and the boys were helping me with dinner.  We had a pan of scrambled eggs going, along with a skillet of buttermilk pancakes, and a saucepan filled with syrup.  It all started with the pancakes....they were too runny.  As I hurried to get another cup of flour, I heard a deafening sizzling crackle, and looked over to see the syrup erupting from the saucepan, not unlike a volcano.  Sparks were glistening and I screamed, causing my boys to start crying.  I felt like crying myself.  My day had not been easy, but I had been adding drop by little drop and felt as happy as a small tulip just sprouting.  But I felt like a giant had just squashed me when I realized I would be spending the next hour cleaning up the sugary, sticky goo.  Some of my droplets were definitely used up right then and there, but I didn't let too many escape before I looked outside and saw the sun.  "At least it's still shining," I told myself.  That's all it took.


Now I realize that in theory this sounds wonderful, but in practice, is it possible?  If the visualization does the trick, perfect!  If not, you may be more like me and need something concrete in addition to visual.  I found myself a glass and found some of those clear gems you can get at the dollar store.  These will be my happifying droplets.  Every time the Lord sees fit to grant me a tender mercy, I will place a gem into my glass.


Your Happy Challenge for this week is to perform this visualization either imagined or real for one week.  Let me know if it worked for you, and I'll report back as well.

"Men are that they might have joy" and "For it must needs be that there is an opposition in all things"

Something said in the Sunday Afternoon session of General Conference struck a chord within me.  It is truth, I felt the spirit whisper.

"Throughout the world and among the membership of the church, there is great joy and great pain.  Both are part of the plan.  Without one, we cannot know the other.  'Men are that they might have joy,' and 'for it must needs be that there is an opposition in all things,' are not contradictory, they are complementary."
--Elder Donald L. Hallstrom


The words still linger as an echo in my mind.


In all my years of life, there has always been a paradox to me between these two verses found within the very same chapter! (2 Nephi 2:25, 11).  How can we be joyful if we experience such adversity?  Think of it this way.  Could we ever appreciate the rich, sweet taste of a fresh peach, if we've never tasted the duller, bland tastes in life?  Would we shift our faces to the skies of warm summer sun if we had never felt the bitter chill of winter wind?  In all reality, as President Uchtdorf so powerfully taught at the Young Women's broadcast, we need adversity in our fairy tales in order to receive our happily ever afters!


And when we are in the low valleys of our lives, it is good to close our eyes and recall the memories of happy times and look forward to equally joyful times in the future.  Even better still, we begin to appreciate what little good still exists in the bitter cups we are called to drink.  We remind ourselves, "Christ suffered so much more than I can ever know.  At least He lives.  At least He can offer me solace.  At least I still have such wondrous blessings..."  And then we allow our suffering to be swallowed up in the joy of Christ.


And yet, the question still remains...is there a way to feel joy even in the midst of our suffering?  Pure, sweet happiness on a daily, and even hourly basis?  I believe this requires greater exploration.


Ponder this and I will too until our next post brings us together again.