True Happiness

This is a paper I wrote for my New Testament class. By taking a couple teachings that I have adapted as best as I can into my life, I have tried to portray what this gospel means to me. We can forever be happy.

Happiness

            “Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again … 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” (John 4:13-14)

            This simple promise makes a world of difference. Early in Christ’s ministry, He traveled from Jerusalem and came through Samaria where He stood at Jacob’s well. In the middle of the day, He waited for his disciples to return when a woman approached the well. When Jesus asked for a drink, she addressed Him as a Jew and was taken aback; Jews never asked Samarians for anything. Jesus went on to explain who He was and how if she understood, she would be asking Him for water.

            What does that mean? This woman was the one with the water from the well, yet she should be asking for water. What Christ was referring to was the living water that would satisfy her thirst forever. This water was not the physical liquid compound that is essential to life here on earth, but rather a spiritual gift; the gospel of Jesus Christ.

            This woman, unlike a vast majority of others at this time, was able to humble herself and truly believe with faith that what this man was saying was a greater truth (Hughes), eventually addressing Christ as Messiah and other holy names as opposed to “Jew” just minutes before in the conversation. The woman was able to understand through the Holy Ghost.

            The living water is the gospel of Jesus Christ; its communicator is the Holy Ghost (Hughes). By being obedient and truly understanding this gospel, we are able to partake and thirst no more for the living waters.

            Many people within and outside of this gospel suffer from trials in their own lives. Some deal with health issues for themselves or loved ones, possibly going through something as advanced as cancer or simple as a cold; some people deal with the loss of loved ones to age or accidents; some are left as single parents to raise and support several children on their own; and some face something as common as a fear for the well-being of their children as they face the temptations of Satan head-on in their lives. I, myself, have been faced with challenges as cliché as heartbreak and anger. All of these events keep us from embracing the joy this life has to offer due to our human natures. Within this gospel, we are able to have a joy of all things. “And for this cause ye shall have fulness of joy; and ye shall sit down in the kingdom of my Father; yea, your joy shall be full, even as the Father hath given me fulness of joy; and ye shall be even as I am, and I am even as the Father; and the Father and I are one” (3 Nephi 28:10).

            I have a friend who is very dear to me serving our Lord up in the great state of Alaska. Every week, I am able to hear updates about the people he is growing to love and the experiences the spirit gives to him. He has shown to me through his written letters and the spirit that he sends with them a pure happiness and appreciation that we can only achieve through partaking of the living waters. He wrote: “[Alaska] truly is a beautiful place. You will all have to make it up here sometime; it is really something to see.” While he didn’t go into a vast amount of detail, he shows gratitude for where he is and what the Lord has given to him; real beauty. Whether or not he or I fully understand the concept of living water, we are on the right track. Being able to look in the direction you’re facing and say with a sincere heart “this is beautiful” is just one example of finding joy in the journey. President Gordon B. Hinckley told us that our generation will live in “perilous times” (Hinckley), and as Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin taught “come what may, and love it” (Come What May).

            Let’s take the principles that we have just learned and put them together. Looking at the council before us, we have “come what may, and love it”; and “drink of the living waters”. You may be asking why these are so important. Think back to a time when you were struggling with happiness. Perhaps it was a time that was previously mentioned; something heavy that tested your faith. Why did you let your faith dwindle? Pride and inattention of your surroundings can do that (Hughes).  We are truly happy spirits and want nothing more than to be loved and to love. We all are unique in that category when it comes to understanding what being loved and to love means, but I haven’t yet met someone that hasn’t been looking for that satisfaction in one way or another. Being happy doesn’t mean that everything is perfect. It means that you’ve decided to look beyond the imperfections. We must partake of the living water in order to understand the mission of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Plan of Salvation has other names, such as the Plan of Happiness, for a reason.

The advice given to us in the form of “Come what may, and love it” says a lot about the character of a person if they are willing to follow this phrase. Look past the imperfections of this world and see the potential that our Father in Heaven sees in us. “David saw himself as a shepherd, but the Lord saw him as a king of Israel; Joseph of Egypt served as a slave, but the Lord saw him as a seer; Mormon wore the armor of a soldier, but the Lord saw him as a prophet” (Abundant Life). We only have a small grasp on what we are able to accomplish as compared to our Father in Heaven. Joseph B. Wirthlin once said “We see ourselves in terms of yesterday and today. Our Heavenly Father sees us in terms of forever. Although we might settle for less, Heavenly Father won’t, for He sees us as the glorious beings we are capable of becoming” (Great Commandment). Let us rise to that challenge to see just as Father does. We are commanded to do so.

The Apostle Paul has taught us a lot through the New Testament. He gave us the Great Commandment which says “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” (Gal. 5:14). Growing up, my parents always told me to treat others the same way I’d want to be treated. As it was drilled into my mind for twenty years by verbal communication and physical example, my parents taught me that great commandment. What does it mean to love, anyway? Our world these days is quite distorted; good things are called bad, bad things are called good (Isaiah 5:20). Hollywood has a very swallow means of what love is by practicing sacred events that are not meant to be recreational. Every once in a while, we catch a glimpse of what love should mean, as far as I understand it anyway. Love has always been sacrifice. Back in high school, Brad Henning, a public speaker on teens and relationships described love as “choosing the highest possible good for the other person”. Members of Jesus Christ’s true church see this as grasping the gospel of Jesus Christ; the living waters.

Love also involves understanding. Growing up, I had a good friend that had a deeper understanding of love and friendship than many our age did. He was fiercely loyal to those he cared for, sacrificing material objects, brain power, and time for them. Those he cared for didn’t return the favor, though. On my friend’s 18^th birthday, three of what he thought to be his closest friends ran out the door without saying goodbye, leaving for the night, after being invited in for a free meal and good company. I was so appalled by this group’s actions that I asked my friend why they did that. He simply replied, “They probably had something else to take care of”. You could see it in his eyes; he was sad, but he wasn’t angry and he wasn’t resentful. Rather, the very next day he was driving them around town using his own resources yet again. His strength, compassion, and understanding have inspired me to become a better person. Actually, this friend of mine was the person that introduced me to this church, taught me the principles and doctrine, and then baptized me before leaving on his two-year mission. He truly harkened onto the advice “treat others as you would want to be treated”, rephrased into deeper doctrine as “love thy neighbor as thyself”. 

Love, understanding, and faith have changed the hearts of many people throughout the world. The Holy Ghost is able to communicate with us through our hearts about the truth of this gospel. The living waters give us satisfaction and peace, as the gospel of Jesus Christ is here for us. May we be happy as we strive to fulfill the potential we have in all of us.  “The Lord has not given us the gospel that we may go around mourning all the days of our lives” (Snow). Fulfill the great commandment; and come what may, and love it.

Works Cited

Hinckley, Gordon B., The Times in Which We Live, Liahona, January 2002, 83-86

Hughes, Kathleen H., Blessed by Living Waters, Liahona, May 2003, 13-15

Wirthlin, Joseph B., The Abundant Life, Ensign, May 2006, 99-102.

Wirthlin, Joseph B., Come What May, and Love It, Ensign, November 2008, 26-28

Wirthlin, Joseph B., The Great Commandment, Ensign, November 2007, 28-31

Teachings of Lorenzo Snow, ed. Clyde J. Williams (1996), 61.