Finding Peace and Joy

What does the Book of Mormon teach us about how we can find peace and joy in our lives? I'm going to study some of the words of the prophet and king, Benjamin in Mosiah 2 and Mosiah 4.

King Benjamin taught his people "to keep the commandments of God, that they might rejoice and be filled with love towards God and all men" (Mosiah 2:4). This shows the connection between obedience to God's commandments and joy (rejoicing). Remember the greatest commandments, according to Jesus Christ, are to love God and to love our fellow-man. This creates an interesting cycle: we must love God and all men to keep the commandments, and keeping the commandments will fill us "with love towards God and all men." We here a lot about sin and pride cycles, so it's refreshing to see a righteousness and love cycle where the more obedient we are the more we'll love God and others, and the more our love increases, the more obedient we will become. That's a joyful cycle that will lead us to become more like our perfect exemplar, the Savior.

King Benjamin tells his people, "as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, or if ye have known of his goodness and have tasted of his love, and have received a remission of your sins, which causeth such exceedingly great joy in your souls" (Mosiah 4:11). So what caused the "exceedingly great joy" in their souls? Coming to know God, knowing His goodness, tasting of his love, receiving forgiveness (repenting) of our sins. That is an inspired recipe for "exceedingly great joy."

He then gives his people another formula for joy and peace in Mosiah 4:11-13. To summarize:
If

• We remember the greatness and goodness of God and his patience towards us
• We humble ourselves into the "depths of humility"
• Pray daily to God
• Stand steadfastly in the faith of that which is to come

Then

• We shall always rejoice,
• Be filled with the love of God
• Be forgiven of our sins
• Grow in the knowledge of the glory of God and that which is just and true
• We will not injure one another
• We will live peaceably
• We shall treat everyone fairly

In connection with this if/then promise, King Benjamin tells parents to provide for their children, teach them to keep the commandments, not quarrel, and not worship/follow Satan. Parents should "teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another" (Mosiah 4:14-15).

This verse is one of my favorite scriptures and powerful wisdom shared by Benjamin:

"And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it." (Mosiah 2:41)  

Those who obey God's commandments are blessed and happy; in fact, they are "blessed in all things." If they endure to the end faithfully, then they receive a state of never-ending happiness. Who in this world does not desire happiness in this life and in the life to come? The way to achieve it is obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Find out more about God's plan of happiness here: http://mormon.org/plan-of-happiness/.

Rest Unto Your Souls by Per G Malm

The full text of the talk can be found here.

"To find rest unto our souls includes peace of mind and heart, which is the result of learning and following the doctrine of Christ, and becoming Christ’s extended hands in serving and helping others. Faith in Jesus Christ and following His teachings give us a firm hope, and this hope becomes a solid anchor to our souls. We can become steadfast and immovable. We can have lasting inner peace; we can enter into the rest of the Lord."

Don't we all want peace of mind and heart? I agree with Elder Malm that we must follow the doctrine of Christ and be instruments in His hands to serve those around us.

"Along our way we are aided in our choices through the sustaining influence of the Spirit. Now, if we choose to act contrary to the light and understanding that we have, we will experience a bad conscience, which of course does not feel good. But a bad conscience is a blessing in that we immediately are reminded that it is time to repent. When we are humble and desire to do what is right, we will be anxious to act promptly to change our ways, while those who are proud and who may seek “to become a law unto [themselves]” (D&C 88:35) will allow Satan to lead “them by the neck with a flaxen cord, until he bindeth them with his strong cords forever” (2 Nephi 26:22) unless the spirit of repentance enters their hearts. To follow evil influences can never result in a feeling of peace simply because peace is a gift from God and it only comes through the Spirit of God. “Wickedness never was happiness” (Alma 41:10)."

My previous post was about having the Gift of the Holy Ghost. This influence can guide us to make right choices; however, none of us our perfect and at times we slip up. As much as we hate a guilty conscience, it really is a blessing to us if it leads us to sincere repentance. But if we are proud, then Satan will lead us in a downward spiral that can be difficult to escape. Just as the prophet Alma taught in the Book of Mormon, truly "Wickedness never was happiness."

"When we learn to handle the small and simple daily things in a wise and inspired way, the result is a positive influence that will solidify harmony in our souls and build up and strengthen those around us. This is so because everything which invites us to do good “is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore [we] may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God” (Moroni 7:16)."

Choose the right and you'll always have the peace you seek. Wear yourself out in the service of others and your soul will find the rest it seeks. It may sound counter-intuitive, but it's true! I learned that it's true on my mission.