“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.”[1]

In this fallen world, we often gleefully see so many fun and exciting things to do. And we readily see things that appeal to our pride, our vanity, our ambition, and to our physical wants and desires. These are things that may give us happy moments but do not give us lasting inner peace and happiness. And they certainly do not give us what the Lord so aptly refers to as a fullness of joy.

“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…”[2]

Jesus has declared that we do not receive a fulness of joy until “ye shall be even as I am.” In other words, we must become something entirely different from who and what we are until we become even as Christ is, if we too would receive a fullness of joy. Clearly, a mighty transformation needs to take place.

In the meantime, we find that our joy and happiness increase commensurate with our taking upon ourselves the divine nature of Christ. As we grow in light and truth, as we improve, as we choose goodness and shun evil, and as we become even as Christ is, we will find that we are living “after the manner of happiness.”[3]

“For behold, my brethren, it is given unto you to judge, that ye may know good from evil; and the way to judge is as plain, that ye may know with a perfect knowledge, as the daylight is from the dark night. For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God.”[4]

We are to follow the Spirit of Christ, which is the Light of Christ, the voice of conscience, in discerning good from evil: that which yields the most value, versus that which yields lesser value. That which yields the most value will testify of Christ, encourage us to follow Christ, and help enable us to follow Christ in all things: these things will yield the greatest value. These things will enable the greatest improvement, which is the way of living after the manner of happiness.

Unfortunately, for most people making decisions based on what will improve them is counterintuitive. Most people evaluate their decisions based on what they think will make them feel good.

For most people, their decision-making process is centered around sensual stimulation, fun, excitement, ambition, self-gratification, self-aggrandizement, and personal affirmation. Most people want to receive the maximum amount of pleasure and self-gratification with a minimum amount of effort. Similarly, most people are not nearly as interested in self-improvement as they are in stability, security, enjoying themselves, and easy living. Of course, in our modern era we often also see the “work hard, play hard” mantra; but that, too, is centered around the same useless pursuit of self-gratification.

We would be so much better off if we simply followed the example of Jesus who “doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world…”[5]

The way to peace and happiness is often counterintuitive. Our physical natures drive us toward the pursuit of physical pleasures and worldly affirmation. We live in a mortal, physical, fallen world, surrounded by a million fun things to do, that appeal to our physical yearnings and appetites. It is easy to become self-absorbed and selfish. If we are ruled by the desires of the flesh, our flesh is gratified for a few moments, and maybe even a few months or years, but the spiritual laws governing inner happiness and joy are not fulfilled and are very often instead violated, causing great hurt and damage to our souls, and to others as well.

As humans, our happiness is primarily predicated on improvement. We are to work to improve ourselves and others. As we do this, we form bonds of love and joy which ultimately lead to that fullness of joy the Lord speaks of.

As it turns out, our spirits require reciprocal, edifying, and affirming bonds of love with family, friends, and with all others willing to reciprocate in light and truth. When God offers us light and truth, He experiences great joy commensurate with how we reciprocate. As we become beings of light and truth, we glory in the mutual reciprocation of light and truth. We glory in faithfulness, sacrifice, love, and by honestly embracing all truth. And we desire the joyful society of others who do likewise.

We are designed to love and be loved in all righteous ways. We are designed to edify and be edified in all righteous ways. True joy, true peace, and true happiness come through nurturing these bonds through loving acts of selfless service and sacrifice. When we fail to nurture these bonds, when we hurt and violate these bonds, and when we violate the laws and commandments of God that are calculated to benefit and nurture all mankind, we experience loneliness and pain. This is contrary to the nature of happiness.

One of the tests of mortality is that we sometimes feel hurt and betrayed by family and friends and those we trust and love the most. Feeling abandoned, shunned, rejected, and discarded is typical of mortality. In such times as these, we can take great comfort in the love of our Heavenly Parents, our Eternal Father and Mother, and their beloved son, Jesus Christ, whose love for us is unconditional and infinite. Even when our earthly loved ones fail to love and value us, we can rest assured that we are always loved and valued by our Heavenly Parents, and by their beloved son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. We can find great peace and comfort in their presence in our lives.

We are all interconnected in ways we scarcely realize. Our spirits need to be fed by the love of God and the love of others through these interconnecting spiritual bonds. The commandments of God are calculated to provide and maximize this love, through these interconnecting bonds of love, again in ways we scarcely realize.

There is something truly horrifying which occurs when we cause hurt to others. When we violate others, and when we hurt their spirits, we lacerate and sicken our own spirits as well. When we violate and hurt others, we unintentionally (or intentionally) violate and hurt ourselves, and we damage and even sever the bonds of love which could have and should have been the channels for giving and receiving great joy and light.

Not all bonds are righteous or positively empowering. As we sin, we forge bonds with demonic entities that attach themselves to us, embed themselves within us, control us, darken us, and seek to destroy us. This is contrary to the nature of happiness.

We should all be very wary of bonds forged between ourselves and nefarious agents of evil disguised as agents of goodness and light. Very often malevolent religious, political, and institutional leaders will connive ways to forge such emotional bonds to captivate and control others. Even malevolent family and friends do this to manipulate and control us. This is a very real thing. Be wary.

It is important to note that the most egregious sins are those that cause the most damage for ourselves and others. Sins such as murder and fornication are massively harmful in so many ways. There is a reason why soldiers who return from war having committed horrific atrocities are so mentally, emotionally, and spiritually damaged. Their spirits are lacerated, sickened, and haunted by demonic entities. Perpetrators and victims of abuse are similarly damaged and are often afflicted by demonic entities that attach themselves during and after such horrific acts.

Satanists and blatant agents of evil are encouraged to perpetrate and participate in horrific acts of evil as a method of initiation, and attracting demonic spirits, to gain power from them, and to be changed into demons and devils and sorcerers themselves. These are very real things. We should be wise and very careful in how we approach people and things representative of these horrible realities. But neither should we be ignorant of such things. But we should be wary in how we learn of such things lest we become seduced and enamored with evil as well.

We all make choices. We should make choices that result in the greatest benefit and the greatest value. Agents of God will make choices inspired by God for the benefit of all mankind. Agents of evil will not.

Of course, even if we make all the right choices, seeking the best value, this does not stop those around us from making wrong and hurtful choices. And this does not negate the reality that there must needs be opposition in all things.[6] We are here, after all, to be tested and tried. We are here to see if we will keep the commandments of God and do what is right, even in the midst of our being tempted and experiencing opposition in all things.

When we deny our carnality by doing what is right, keeping the commandments of God, nurturing others through selfless acts of service and sacrifice, growing in light and truth, doing good and improving as we are guided and blessed by the Father, we find we are living according to the nature of happiness.

On this wise, Jesus said:

“If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it, and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”[7]

“In my Father’s house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Then saith Thomas unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”[8]

Clearly, he who is named “the way, the truth, and the life” is telling us that the mansions (or rewards) we desire, namely peace and joy with Him, are only to be obtained by following Him, by doing what He has done, and by becoming as He is, and not by following any other way. The mansion we receive is commensurate with the light we receive and the law we keep.

We must be willing to sacrifice all things, withholding nothing, placing our lives and wills entirely in God’s hands. Having done this, we will have chosen the better part.[9] We will have chosen that which provides the best value. We will have entered in by the gate that eventually yields all the blessings of God.

“The kingdom of God is within you.”[10] This is true because the voice of God is within you. If you follow that voice, you will eventually be enabled to identify God’s kingdom, the laws of God’s kingdom, and then learn what you must do to comply with the laws of God’s kingdom, become a part of it, and to enter into it. Then the kingdom of God is most truly within you.

The reality is that you cannot have peace, joy, and happiness as you are now. You must change. You must improve. You must be filled with light and truth. You must transcend your current sinful nature and become something else entirely; you must become edified through correct knowledge and teachings, you must be empowered through faith in Christ, you must be cleansed and redeemed through complete repentance, and you must be sanctified by the gift and power of the Holy Ghost, which fills and empowers you with light and truth. These are the principles and laws which govern the nature of happiness. If you desire these blessings, then you must learn and apply the associated true doctrine, which is the doctrine of Christ, which will be carefully explained later in this book.

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[1] Book of Mormon | Mosiah 2:41

[2] Book of Mormon | 3 Nephi 28:10

[3] Book of Mormon | 2 Nephi 5:27

[4] Book of Mormon | Moroni 7:15 – 16

[5] Book of Mormon | 2 Nephi 26:24

[6] Book of Mormon | 2 Nephi 2:11

[7] Matthew 16:24 – 26

[8] John 14:2 – 6

[9] Luke 10:42

[10] Luke 17:21

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