The Pursuit of Christ-like Happiness

One of my favorite movies is “The Lion King” by Disney, and of course my favorite song from it (which I love to sing) is “Hakuna Matata.” How great life must be for Timon and Pumbaa without a single worry, no pain, and not a single tear of sadness. Thinking over this motto of “Hakuna Matata,” I have come to realize that as attractive as this kind of lifestyle might be, I would not want to live it. I have come to realize that even through a life of worry, grief, and pain that I truly am becoming what I want to be, and that is happy.

How is it that we can be happy while we live in a world of rejection and offense, war and death, selfishness and corruption? There always seems to be something going on around us preparing to push us down into misery and woe. I remember people often making note of how happy a person I am. Why am I always smiling? What is it that makes me able to go through each day with an optimistic attitude? While sometimes I do fail to be optimistic, I don’t let it last long. Hopefully I can convey here some of what it is that has made me the person I am, happy at heart.

One of the most important ways that has helped to make me into a happy person is finding the good in what goes on around me. A key to success comes from the quote, “not every day is a good day, but there is something good in every day.” No matter the bad that may occur in life, in reality there is a lot of good to be taken out of everything, even the bad. All that we need to do is search for it. It can be hard at times, but with practice we become experts and life shines with a brighter hue. All it takes is a change in perspective and we find happiness in our surroundings.

Connected to finding the good that goes on around us is to look for the good in the people around us as well. Yes, we as humans can often be very selfish and offensive, but recognizing the problem is the first step in fixing it. Just because we do not always agree with someone, does not take away from our responsibility to be a friend to them. I've come to recognize that as we go out and serve and befriend those around us, we not only help to bring out the good in them, but in ourselves as well. President Thomas S. Monson shared a quick story in order to teach the importance of seeing people’s potential for good.

“During the 1940s and 1950s, an American prison warden, Clinton Duffy, was well known for his efforts to rehabilitate the men in his prison.

Said one critic, ‘You should know that leopards don’t change their spots!’

Replied Warden Duffy, ‘You should know I don’t work with leopards. I work with men, and men change every day.’”

As we learn to truly love those around us, even those that do us harm, we live a more happy life and help them to live a happier life as well.

One of the hardest yet most satisfying parts of living a happy life is being slow to be offended and angered, and quick to forgive. It is natural for us as humans to be offended and hold a grudge, but that is one of the best ways to live a life of grief. We choose not to forget the offense and hold it with us, letting that hard feeling fester inside of us like a wound, damaging our souls. I remember well as a youth growing up getting super angry at my little brother for even the smallest things. As I got mad, I would choose to stay mad, but I learned a great lesson from him. Although he would get mad as well, I can remember many occasions in which he truly felt sorry for what had happened and reached out with a greater show of love towards me soon after a fight or disagreement. I remember many times, that I would not accept his apology and would continue mad at him for a while. Over time, I came to see the big heart that my little brother truly had, and how unhappy I was with how I was living. I do not remember when I made the commitment, but I decided that I was going to change, because I wanted to be happy. So I did. It was not easy, but I worked with God and He helped me to change who I was. Looking back at my life then and looking at the now, being able to forgive easy and not become offended by what goes on around me has been a true blessing in my life. Instead of allowing the pain of anger to widen wounds, the power of love and forgiveness brings quick healing to the soul and happiness to the heart.

Finally, the most important part of living a happy life is related in one of my favorite scriptures, 2 Nephi 5:27, which reads, “And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness.” I love this scripture so much because it does not just say “we were happy,” but rather that the way they lived was what created happiness in their lives. They lived the gospel of Jesus Christ and applied His atonement in their lives. These are the foundation to a happy life. As we have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His power to bring us out of sin, pain, sickness, and anguish, we will be able to feel and see the many miracles of His love in order to overcome the sadness and bring in His happiness. As we strive to always repent of what we do wrong, we will find that we are happy through personal improvement. And as we live in accordance with His commandments, we will find happiness in the knowledge that we are living our lives right. God will empower us and fill our hearts, minds, and souls with happiness as we work to bring ourselves closer to Him.

As we work at applying what I have discussed, we will still pass through moments of sorrow and pain, but that is an important part of life. It is my hope that through the application of these things, the sad portions of our lives become smaller and easier to bear, and that we can all truly come to live happier lives. I know that we can do it, no matter the circumstance. All it takes is a choice, the choice to be happy.

Bring in the Light, and let happiness fill your soul.

Dream until your Dream come True

Around Christmas time I was going through some things from my childhood and having fun looking through many of my memories stored in binders and in books. I pulled out the first journal I ever owned and opened it up to the first page. It had pictures of friends and other items scattered about with chicken scratch writing underneath each item. My favorite color was blue, my favorite animal was the lion, and I wanted to be a police officer when I grew up. While many things had changed since I had first written in that journal, one thing stuck out to me more than the others. Growing up is full of choices, some small and some great, but what truly makes a difference in our lives is having dreams worth fighting for.

Dreams in our lives can often be fragile things, left to die without hope of ever achieving those goals that we truly want to accomplish. Our dreams die because the world wants us to think that we are not capable or that our dreams are not worth anything. In The Pursuit of Happyness, Christopher Gardner tells his son, “Don’t ever let somebody tell you… you can’t do something… You got a dream… You gotta protect it… If you want somethin’, go and get it. Period.” Gardner himself proved the power of having a dream by achieving the impossible of becoming a great entrepreneur and stockbroker despite the challenges of being homeless while raising his young son. The concept of protecting our dreams and going out and getting them is applicable to all people. We need to resist the urges to give in, despite how difficult it may seem to achieve our goals, because these goals fill our lives with meaning and help us to become better than we were.

As we protect our dreams, and fight for them, there are only two results possible; we achieve them or we don’t, but no matter what, we gain something better for having given it our all. Fighting for our dreams requires patience, determination, and sacrifice, and we are the only ones that can make the decision. Thomas S. Monson once shared:

“You are the fellow that has to decide

Whether you’ll do it or toss it aside. …

Whether you’ll try for the goal that’s afar

Or just be contented to stay where you are.”

Imagine a world where most people just tossed their dreams aside. We would live in a very mediocre place and many important things that we have now would not exist still. If people like Louie Pasteur had not fought for his dreams, our world would be without the vaccines that he helped to discover. If Alexander Graham Bell had thrown down the towel in his creation of the telephone when things got tough, communication as it is today would not exist. Can you imagine your life not being able to carry that smartphone with you wherever you go? There would be fewer doctors, less law enforcement, fewer technicians and engineers, etc. There would be a lack of all that we need for a nation to strive and progress happily, and all because people decided to not follow their dreams. But you can make a difference.

There is a young man that I know very well that grew up having a dream to be able to change people’s lives by serving a mission. He was one of those boys that sang “I Hope they Call Me on a Mission” with all his heart every chance he got. He grew up in a great household with loving parents that always supported the idea of him serving a mission. While in high school, most of his closest friends were not members of the LDS church, except for a select group. When the time finally came, he happily turned in his papers and waited for his mission call. During this time in which he waited for his call and after getting it, those around him began to bring doubts to his mind. “What about college?” “You've got a girlfriend! Are you willing to lose her for a bunch of people you do not even know?” “How can you just leave your family and friends behind for two years and almost not have any contact with any of them?” These and other things confronted him, trying to make him give up his dream of serving a mission. So he turned to the greatest source of strength that he had in order to keep moving forward strong towards achieving his dream. He turned to God. Through more devotion in prayer, scripture study, and church activity he kept the strength to go out on a mission. He returned from his mission not too long ago, and he was able to make a difference in hundreds of lives, he was able to accomplish his dream.

All it takes is a decision to fight for our dreams. Once that decision is made, go out and use the tools available to make sure that you accomplish what it is you set out to do. The little boy that wrote that he wanted to be a police officer when he grew up is still fighting for that dream, although now he wants to join the FBI. A dream may take time to accomplish, it may be very difficult, but as we rely on God and keep on taking the necessary steps forward, we will come out victorious.

Bring in the Light, then make yours dreams become a reality.

You're Not Alone

It happens to us at one point or another. It happens to the new missionary who finds himself in the unknown, to the couple separated by death, or in those moments where nothing seems to be going right in our life. Those feelings of loneliness which fill us with doubt and make us feel weak. I remember well those moments, both long ago and recent, but I also remember what brought me comfort in those times of need. It was the quiet reassurance that I am not alone.

This simple reminder was first sung to me time and time again by my father during those moments of loneliness as a young boy. I would lie in my bed and be crying and hear my bedroom door quietly open and my dad would close it behind him. And then would come the song to calm my fears, my doubts, and my sadness; Michael McLean’s “You’re Not Alone.”

“You're not alone,
even tho' right now you're on your own.
You are loved in ways that can't be shown;
You're needs are known;
You're not alone

And when you cry,
You're just letting go a heartache deep inside.
So tomorrow there'll be sunshine and sky -
and love close by;
You're not alone

And I know that it's not easy,
but I know that it won't last.
'Cause one who loves you more than I
is sending blessings fast

You're not alone,
say it one more time.
‘I'm not alone.’
And even when it's hard to find the words.
Your prayers are always heard
You're not alone.”

Ever since then, whenever I feel moments of loneliness, this song comes to mind to bring me a sense of calm and guide me to what I must do. He that loves me more than anyone else is waiting to hear my prayers and help me to know that I am not alone.

Last semester I was going through a very hard time as a recently returned missionary adjusting to life in an unknown community. Arriving home, I had expected to have the girl I dated before my mission to be at my side to help me adjust. While she was there when I first got home, things did not go as I had planned and she slowly disappeared from my life. I was confused and filled with even more loneliness, especially as I made failed attempts at fixing the friendship that had been so important to me. On Saturday, November 2, 2013, I decided to fast, asking God to help me in my situation. The next day I called her and was finally able to talk to her, only to hear the dreaded words, “Karsten, I have a boyfriend.” I was devastated. I was heartbroken. I was totally alone. I sat in a stunned state of sadness for a couple hours until I realized that there was only one thing to do. I got down on my knees, and poured out my heart to God. I do not know how long I knelt by my bedside, but I had an amazing conversation with my Father in Heaven. The more we discussed what was going on in my life, the more I began to feel a calm sensation enter into my soul. God filled me with his love and comforted me. At the end of my prayer, I no longer felt the sadness that had overcome me. He filled me with strength and determination to continue forward and to live happy. He let me know that I was not alone and never will be.

The power of prayer is such an essential part in overcoming the feeling of being alone. Fortunately for us, prayer does not have dead zones without service and there is no charge, no matter how long we decide to talk “long distance.” How great it is to have such a loving Heavenly Father that is not only willing to listen to all that we have to say, but speaks back as well. I have no idea how many times I have been able to kneel down in private and pour out my heart and soul to him and after he listens attentively, he fills me with peace and love and assures me that I am not alone. Whether kneeling in your room or sending out a silent cry for strength when out in the world, he will help to calm your fears and lift you up.

As we look to our Heavenly Father, He promises us that we are not alone while in his care. We can know of the truthfulness of this promise because He sent his beloved son Jesus Christ to suffer greatly for us. Jeffrey R. Holland, of the twelve apostles, said, “Now I speak very carefully, even reverently, of what may have been the most difficult moment in all of this solitary journey to Atonement. I speak of those final moments for which Jesus must have been prepared intellectually and physically but which He may not have fully anticipated emotionally and spiritually—that concluding descent into the paralyzing despair of divine withdrawal when He cries in ultimate loneliness, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Even the greatest of us all had to suffer total loneliness, so much so that He cried out to God asking as to why he had been forsaken. Christ’s suffering for having been left alone allows us to find hope. Christ suffered all so that “he may know according to the flesh how to [comfort] his people” (Alma 7:11-13). I know this to be true, for I have felt that comfort. He is our constant protector and our best friend. We are not alone, because Christ will never leave our side.

Bring in the Light, then be assured that you are not alone, for He will always be with you.

An Actitude of Gratitude

Happiness can come from a lot of sources. It can come from being with friends and family, taking part in a favorite hobby, receiving a gift, or even from a smile from a random stranger. While most causes of happiness come from outside sources, some of the greatest causes of happiness are those which come from within oneself. One of these great causes of happiness is that of gratitude.

We all know that being grateful is full of a lot of “thank you’s,” but what is a true sign of being gratitude? I do not want anybody thinking that saying thank you is not great, because words can truly go a long ways, but there is something better that we can all do. We can have, as I call it, an actitude of gratitude.

One of my favorite movies, which portrays this type of gratitude, is called “Pay it Forward.” It focuses on a boy, named Trevor, who has an idea of how to change the world. His theory is that if he helps three people, then those three people will also help three people, and it will cause a giant chain of good acts and happiness. Trevor truly knew what it meant to have an actitude of gratitude, as he, and many others, showed their gratitude not only through their words, but most importantly, through their actions.

Another important point in having an actitude of gratitude is that we do not need to be the recipients of any kind act in order to act in gratitude. It is enough to know that Christ, our Savior and Redeemer, suffered all so that we may be free to find true happiness. Due to Him suffering not only for our sins and temptations, but also for all sickness, grief, and pain possible to man, He is able to raise us up in any situation and push us forward towards eternal progression. As we show our gratitude for this eternal sacrifice, I know that we can find joy in every day through an actitude of gratitude.

Bring in the Light, then share the joy through an actitude of gratitude.

Be Strong and of Good Courage

Life is hard. There are so many decisions to make every single day. Some are big while others are small, but each has its consequence, whether or not we may see it. Often we are filled with doubt and fear as to moving forward and acting upon those decisions. Having come home from my mission just a little over five months ago, I was filled with that fear. The decisions I would be making would make all the difference in how my life would turn out. Unfortunately, I let that fear control my actions, or rather, prevent action even with what I cared most about. There was only one way to conquer and to move forward. I had to find courage.

In the midst of fear, when nothing seems to be going right in our world, how do we find the courage to act? I look to the example of Captain Moroni when he first became chief captain over all the Nephites at the young age of 25. I thought my problems were big enough, but Moroni had the responsibility to protect a whole nation. Nerve wracking? I think so. Did he have doubts as to his ability to lead knowing that the lives of thousands rested upon his shoulders? I am sure he did. Yet, despite his fears, it did not stop him from accepting the responsibility. So how did Moroni do it? He had a purpose, he was prepared, and he trusted in God.

 His courage came from purpose. He went forward with the knowledge that he would be fighting for liberty, for family, and for God. As we sit down and ponder over our lives, there are certain things that we fight for. We should not worry about all the possible outcomes, but rather the certain outcome that we desire. We need a “why” in those decisions that is powerful enough to give the courage that propels us forward.

He received courage as he went forward prepared. Moroni had a battle plan and provided the best armor and weapons for his soldiers. Once there purpose, it is time to figure out what we need to do in order to reach the desired outcome. Take the time to figure out each step and gather the necessary “armor and weapons.” It is also important to get some previous practice in, if possible, before going through with the final parts of your plans. Some plans will be more in depth than others, but they will all help in finding courage.

He found courage as he relied on God and not on his own strength. He and his soldiers cried unto God and desired to follow as He would have them do. Faith in God is the most important part of finding our courage. He does not desire to see us fail, and as we turn to Him, he will provide for us what we lack. In 2 Timothy 1:7 it says, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” When we seek God’s help, he will provide for us the courage we desire in order to overcome.

As we strive to have purpose, preparedness, and faith in the face of fear, we will find the courage we seek. It worked and continues to work for me. God did not send us to Earth to watch us fail due to fear. As we face the trials of every day, we can stand true and push forward in spite of fear. We can find our courage, we can succeed.

Bring in the Light, and let courage overcome your fear.

Peace Be Unto You

I was taking my normal route back from BYU campus on Thursday in between classes and I happened to focus more on the journey rather than just arriving at my destination. The sun was shining, the sky was a beautiful clear blue, patches of snow and ice glittered, and there was not a sound outside of nature to be heard. As I took this all in, I felt peace in my heart. I was without worry, without stress.

I pondered then on this feeling of peace and why I often could find moments of peace throughout every week. Now some may think what I am about to say is foolish, that what I believe is absurd, but that does not matter. For what came to mind was the influence that the gospel of Jesus Christ has had in my life and the great peace I can find in it. There is nothing in the world that has brought me more peace or happiness than living the Gospel.

Why is that? It is because man did not create the Gospel and its laws; God did. The Gospel is eternal as are its blessings. No matter the changes that happen on Earth among men, they will not be able to change God's eternal truths to match modern morals. If this were to happen, peace would diminish and true freedom be lost. I fight to keep that peace. I choose to live His gospel. As I, and anyone else does so, God helps us to become better than we were. He helps us to be at peace and full of joy. That is His promise to us, and much more.

Following His laws may not be easy. There are times that we think that there is no way that we can survive another trial in our lives. We feel alone and full of anguish. And so, we remember His comforting words when He said, "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). He suffered all and conquered all, even death, so that we may feel that peace and, with His help, overcome. He conquered and so it becomes easier. He conquered and so we have the strength to become better through our trials. He conquered and so he changes our anguish to peace with His love. We are never alone.

Look to the Light, and let peace fill your soul as it does mine.