Don't get me wrong. I feel like I am a cheerful person. However like many of you, I feel life's burdens and I often wonder, am I really happy? When my organic chemistry deadlines hit, what seems like everyday, when I am told that my father now has type 2 diabetes, and even when I was assigned to do this blog post, despair comes setting in and I begin to question again—am I really happy?
Through my quest for what makes me happy I have discovered a few things. The first, and what I believe to be the most important, is the choice to be happy. This probably sounds cliché to many of you because sometimes it is those cliché things put into action that do the most good. I can remember one day thinking, "Wow, I just really want to be happy. Starting tomorrow that is exactly what I am going to do." I am not perfect at doing this but I can honestly testify of the truthfulness of this. Alma 41:5, which is from another book of scripture called the Book of Mormon, states that those who are happy in the resurrection are so because of their desire to be so.
Another way I personally discovered to find happiness in everyday life was finding ways to serve others in everyday life. For me when I know that I have helped other people and made their life easier it makes me happy. Somehow in the mix of doing service I often forget about what was preventing me from being happy in the first place. Plus King Benjamin, a prophet from The Book of Mormon, said, "When you are in the service of your fellow man you are only in the service of your God." (Mosiah 2:17)
Lastly I would like to share what my final thoughts are about happiness. Happiness is a day to day endeavor. We are all going to have trials everyday and I believe that the purpose of this life is being able to be happy and to find it amidst adversity and trials.
A modern day apostle, Elder Richard G. Scott, offers some great advice on the subject in this Mormon message as well.
I really liked the idea about how happiness is a choice. That doesn't mean that an easy life is a choice, but I believe that in Heavenly Father's plan he has provided a way so that we can have peace and even joy through the hardest of times. This is a peace and a joy that comes only from heaven. The source is Jesus Christ.
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