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Living a Life of Peace, Joy, and Purpose - Ensign Feb. 2014 - ensign

Living a Life of Peace, Joy, and Purpose

By Elder Richard G. Scott
Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

From a commencement address giv en at Brigham Y oung Univ ersity on April 21 , 201 1 . For the full address, v isit speeches.by u.edu.

May the Lord strengthen your resolve, your exercise of faith, and your growing character so that you may be the instrument of good He wants you to be.

This world is in serious trouble. The fundamental v alues of the United States and other Western nations are being undermined. There is a continual crumbling of principle, v irtue, integrity , and religious v aluesthe foundation stones of civ ilization and definitiv e ingredients of peace and happiness. I will share with y ou as simply and as clearly as I am able a pattern for success and happiness in life despite these conditions. God has giv en y ou the capacity to ex ercise faith so that y ou may find peace, joy , and purpose in life. Howev er, to employ its power, that faith must be rooted in something secure. There is no more solid foundation than faith in the lov e Heav enly Father has for y ou, faith in His plan of happiness, and faith in the willingness and power of Jesus Christ to fulfill all His promises. Some of the principles upon which faith is based include: Trust in God and in His desire to prov ide help when needed, no m atter how challenging the circum stance. Obedience to His com m andm ents and a life that dem onstrates that He can trust y ou. Sensitiv ity to the quiet prom ptings of the Spirit and courageous im plem entation of the resulting im pressions. Patience and understanding when God lets y ou struggle to grow and when answers com e a piece at a tim e ov er
an extended period.

It will be helpful to y ou to understand and use the power of the interaction of faith and character. God uses y our faith to mold y our character. Character is wov en patiently from threads of doctrine, principle, and obedience. Character is the manifestation of what y ou are becoming. Y our character will be the y ardstick that God will use to determine how well y ou hav e used y our mortal life. Strong moral character results from consistent correct choices in the trials and testing of life. Such choices are made with trust in things that are believ ed and, when acted upon, will be confirmed as true.

Worthy Character
As y ou walk to the boundary of y our understanding into the twilight of uncertainty while ex ercising faith, y ou
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will be led to find solutions to the challenges of life y ou would not obtain otherwise. Ev en if y ou hav e the strongest faith, God will not alway s reward y ou immediately according to y our desires. Rather, He will respond a piece at a time with what in His eternal plan is best for y ou. Y our continuing ex ercise of faith will forge strength of character av ailable to y ou in times of critical need. Such character is not dev eloped in moments of great challenge or temptation. That is when it is used. The bedrock of character is integrity . Worthy character will strengthen y our capacity to recognize the direction of the Spirit and be obedient to it. Strong character is more important than what y ou own, what y ou hav e learned, or what goals y ou hav e accomplished. Y our consistent ex ercise of faith builds strong character. In turn, fortified character ex pands y our ability to ex ercise faith, thereby enhancing y our capacity and confidence in conquering the trials of life. This strengthening cy cle continues, for the more y our character is fortified, the more capable y ou are to ex ercise the power of faith. Wherev er y ou liv e, whatev er y our occupation or focus in life, y ou will be drawn into the battle for the souls of men and women. Be v aliant in that struggle. It is waged on the basis of character. Satan and his troops hav e defined their character by resolute opposition to the will of our Father and consistent v iolation of His commandments. Y our character is being solidified by consistent correct choices. Throughout life y ou will be rewarded from the efforts y ou ex pend to choose correctly . Neither Satan nor any other power can weaken or destroy y our growing character. Only y ou can do that through disobedience. That is why Satan is so intently focused on tempting y ou to make decisions that will undermine y our character. Satan is an accomplished master at making dev astating choices appear attractiv e, ev en reasonable. So be careful. At this critical time of life, y ou will be faced with many choices. The decisions y ou will make will profoundly affect life now and for eternity . Make them wisely and pray erfully .

Making Decisions Based on Eternal Truths

There are two patterns for making decisions in life: (1 ) decisions based upon circumstance and (2) decisions based upon eternal truth. Satan encourages choices to be made according to the circumstances: What are others doing? What seems to be socially or politically acceptable? What will bring the quickest, most satisfy ing response? That pattern giv es Lucifer the broadest opportunity to tempt an indiv idual to make decisions that will be harmful and destructiv e ev en though they may appear most appealing when a decision is made. With this approach there is no underly ing set of v alues or standards to consistently guide decisions. Each decision is made for what appears to be the most attractiv e choice at the moment. One who chooses this path cannot ex pect the help of the Lord but is left to his or her own strength and that of others who want to help. Sadly , most of Gods children make decisions this way . That is why the world is in such turmoil. The pattern of the Lord is for His children to make decisions based upon eternal truth. This requires that y our life continue to be centered in the commandments of God. Thus, decisions are made in accordance with unchanging truths aided by pray er and the guidance of the Holy Ghost. In addition to y our own strength and capacity , y ou will enjoy div ine inspiration and power when needed. Y our actions will be predictable and bless the liv es of all in the circle of y our influence. Y ou will hav e a meaningful life of purpose, peace, and happiness. There is no guarantee that life will be easy for any one. We grow and learn more rapidly by facing and ov ercoming challenges. Y ou are here to prov e y ourself, to dev elop, and to ov ercome. There will be constant
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challenges that cause y ou to think, to make proper judgments, and to act righteously . Y ou will grow from them. Howev er, there are some challenges y ou nev er need to encounter. They are those associated with serious transgression. As y ou continue to av oid such tragedy , y our life will be simpler and happier. Y ou will see others around y ou who dont make that choice, who do things that are wrong and ev il and bring sadness. Thank y our Father in Heav en that y our pattern of life is different and that y ou hav e been helped to make choices guided by the Holy Ghost. That prompting will keep y ou on the right path. The gospel teaches us to make decisions based upon eternal truth. Please nev er allow y ourself to make an ex ception to that pattern of life to gain a temporary , appealing adv antage or to participate in an ex perience y ou know to be unworthy . I hav e seen so many y oung couples and indiv iduals fumble the ball of life because they look to the wrong sources for how to liv e. They become distracted from true principles by being tempted to compromise just a little bit to gain influence, position, or acceptability . They justify those dev iations, rationalizing that later a greater good could be accomplished. In the long run that pattern of life will take y ou where y ou definitely do not want to be.

Keeping Your Resolve

How can y ou keep y our resolv e to liv e worthily ? How can y ou be sure that determination in y our heart will not be eroded by the pressures around y ou? If y ou are blessed to be married, rejoice in that companionship with y our spouse and y our children. Let there be absolutely no secrets kept from each other. That will prov ide powerful insurance for continuing righteousness and happiness. Decide issues together. Keep the gospel light burning brightly in y our home through scripture study , pray er, and the other things y ou know how to do. Honor and liv e temple cov enants as y ou receiv e them. Drink deeply from the fountain of the rev ealed word of God. Hold fast to His word. Keep the Sabbath day holy . In short, continue to do what y ou know y ou should do. Wherev er y ou go, stay tightly connected to the Church and consistently serv e in it. While single, keep these same objectiv es as they apply . As an ex ceptional son or daughter of God, y ou are sorely needed. There is an urgent need for more men and women like y ou who will stand for principles against the growing pressures to compromise those v ery principles. Men and women are needed who will act nobly and courageously for what the Lord has defined as rightnot for what is politically correct or socially acceptable. We need indiv iduals who hav e the spiritual, righteous influence that will motiv ate others to liv e honorably . We need statesmen with integrity , businessmen who are honest and morally clean, attorney s who defend justice and the legal sy stem, and gov ernment officials who preserv e principle because it is right. Abov e all, we need mothers and fathers who will preserv e the sanctity and safety of the home and the integrity of the family in which faith in God and obedience to His commandments are taught as the foundation of a productiv e life. Y ou can be an essential part of that shining light, that righteous influence to increase the moral fiber of y our nation and its homes. Many of y our friends liv e their life for the moment. They do not understand the need for principles, eternal laws, and truth. They hav e been brought up in an env ironment in which decisions are made on the basis of today s circumstances or tomorrows opportunities for gain. Show them a better lifea better way . There are some things that are wrong because God decreed they are wrong. Truth is not determined by what men think, no matter how influential they may be. Truth was determined by an Almighty God before the Creation of this earth. Truth will ex ist unchanged forev er.
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Oh, there can be transitory euphoria from power, influence, or material wealth, but true, lasting happiness, the kind that is felt in the early hours of the morning when y ou are truly honest with y ourself, is won only by obedience to the teachings of God. Y ou must hav e honesty , integrity , chastity , v irtue, and a willingness to forgo something attractiv eev en apparently desirable for the momentfor a greater good in the future. I speak of our willingness when circumstance demands to lay ev ery thing on the altar to follow true principles.

Success in Following the Plan

I would like to suggest 1 0 specific things to help y ou be successful in the plan the Lord would hav e y ou follow in y our life. First, establish a set of principles by w hich you w ill guide every aspect of your lifein your home, in your Church service, in your profession, in your community. Many people try to compartmentalize their life and hav e a standard for Church and another standard for what they do in business and in other aspects of their life. I v ery strongly counsel y ou not to do that. There really is only one set of standards that makes sense. Those are the teachings of Jesus Christ, which signal to us the importance of faith, serv ice, obedience, and integrity . Second, dont make exceptions to your standards. Nev er compromise them. One of the way s the Lord protects us is to giv e us guidance in life. One of the way s Satan tries to destroy us is to subtly lead us away from what we know is centrally important in our life. I liv ed in Washington, D.C., for much of my life, and I recall on occasion men coming to that city who had been elected as representativ es of the gov ernment and who were members of the Church. Some of them used the teachings of the Sav ior throughout their careers and became great serv ants. Others early in their careers began to reason, If we were better friends with others and were better understood, we would receiv e positions that would put us in a place where we could serv e better. They began to make small ex ceptions to the standards by which they knew they should guide their liv es. Few ev en remember them. They lost because they made ex ceptions to standards. Dont make that mistake. Be loy al to the teachings y ou hav e receiv ed from y our parents and Church leaders. They are the things of greatest worth. If y ou integrate y our formal education with what y ou know about the teachings of the Lord and the ex amples of those worthy people who are role models to y ou, y ou will hav e a solid foundation. Y ou will be productiv e and do things that are worthwhile for others. Third, be loyal. Be loy al to y our parents and y our lov ed ones. Abov e all, be loy al to Jesus Christ, the Sav ior. Success comes when y our actions are consistent with the teachings of the Lord. When y ou seek work, find something that challenges y ou, that raises y ou to higher lev els of performance. It may be harder, but y ou will grow, dev elop better, and contribute more good. Y ou really hav e no idea y et who y ou are and what y ou can accomplish in life. Y ou hav e great potential far bey ond what y ou can imagine today . Fourth, live so that the Lord can guide you to w here He w ants you to be and to serve. He can do that if y ou liv e His commandments worthily and striv e in ev ery way to be obedient to His teachings. Fifth, serve others. Sharing what y ou know with others will bring y ou happiness and bless their liv es. Sixth, smile. I dont mean that y ou need to be cracking jokes ev ery day , but a good joke now and then is an escape v alv e. Life is not all that bad. Y ou will soon learn that ev ery body has problems and nobody wants to hear about y ours. Put those things aside and smile. Hav e a good sense of humor, as the prophets do. I wish I could tell
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y ou some of the things that we talk about. Not flippant things, not things that are inappropriatejust a good sense of humor. I will tell y ou a secret of how to wake up in the morning with a smile on y our face no matter how y ou feel: go to bed with a coat hanger in y our mouth. Remember, a good sense of humor helps y ou greatly . Seventh, dont complain. Life isnt alway s fair. Thats a fact. But its alway s charged with marv elous opportunities if y ou know how to find them. I remember once when I was working as hard as I knew how. I happened to be working for a man who took all of the ideas and suggestions and work that I did and passed them on to his superior as though they were his own suggestions. For a while I was really upset about that. As I pondered it, a thought came to me, and I decided from then on I would write reports to him of ev ery thing that I was doing or try ing to do, and I sent a copy to his boss. He didnt like that, but it worked beautifully . Eighth, alw ays have a Church assignment. I dont mean that y ou should ask for a particular calling, but wherev er y ou go in the world, wherev er the Lord takes y ou, alway s offer y our serv ice to the presiding authority . Leav e it to that authority to decide where and how. Be connected with the things of God and the way s to serv e Him. The last two are the most important. Ninth, go to the temple. Carry a current temple recommend. There may be a few y oung adults who will want to wait to go to the temple for their endowment when they go with their companion to be sealed. But v irtually ev ery one can obtain and keep a temple recommend. It will keep y ou spiritually in tune, will allow y ou to remember the most important things of life, and will encourage y ou to giv e great serv ice to others. Tenth, use the Savior Jesus Christ as your example for life. Use His teachings as y our handbook for life. Nev er make ex ceptions to them. Will y ou pray erfully consider the things we hav e discussed? There are many willing to be led by y our righteous ex ample. Because y ou hav e been enlightened, y ou owe to those who follow y ou the best ex ample y ou are capable of giv ing. Not only will they be blessed, but y our life will be enriched as well. Come to know of the great influence for good that flows from indiv idual acts born of conscience and principle rooted in truth. Resolv e that each moment of y our life will reflect y our determination to humbly be an ex ample of righteousness, integrity , and conv iction. With such a life y ou will surely succeed in the purpose for which y ou came to earth.

Do What Is Right
I began this message indicating that I hav e v alidated in my personal life the truth of the principles shared. There hav e been times when my choice to stand for principle against strong forces implied that there would be significant personal loss by taking that action. But that did not deter me. I was determined to do what was right. The anticipated loss, howev er, nev er came. Somehow, doing what was right in time opened far greater and more meaningful opportunities. I testify that y ou will nev er go wrong when y ou trust in the Lord and in His promises, no matter how sev ere the challenge. May I share an ex perience with y ou? I serv ed in the U.S. Nav y with Admiral Hy man G. Rickov er, a v ery demanding indiv idual. When I was called to be a mission president, he tried to dissuade me from going. When I said it was a prophet of God who had called me, he said, If thats the way Mormons are, Im not going to hav e any of them working in my program. I knew there were many families in Idaho, USA, depending on work in that
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program, and I was concerned about it. As I pray ed, a song came to my mind: Do what is right; let the consequence follow (Do What Is Right, Hymns, no. 237 ). I did that. I couldnt see how some of the challenges we faced would be worked out the way I hoped they would be with the indiv idual who would come to replace me, but do what is right; let the consequence follow. It all worked out v ery well. When Admiral Rickov er knew I was going to leav e on a mission, he had said he nev er wanted to see me again and nev er wanted to talk to me again. On the final day of my working with him, I asked for an appointment. The secretary gasped, ex pecting that there was going to be an ex plosion. I went in, and he said, Scott, sit down. What do y ou hav e? Iv e tried ev ery way I can to change y our decision. What is it that y ouv e got? I handed him a copy of the Book of Mormon and said, Admiral, I believ e in God. And I believ e that when we do the best we can, He will help us. Then Admiral Rickov er said something that I didnt ev er ex pect to hear. He said, When y ou finish y our mission, I want y ou to come back and work with me. Do what is right; let the consequence follow. May the Lord strengthen y our resolv e, y our ex ercise of faith, and y our growing character so that y ou may be the instrument of good He wants y ou to be. I testify that He liv es. As y ou worthily seek His help, He will guide y ou in y our life. I testify of that with ev ery capacity I possess. Jesus Christ liv es. He guides His work on earth. As Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ, we hav e ex periences that are v ery sacred that allow us to bear our testimony of His name and of His power. I do that with deep conv iction. Jesus Christ lov es y ou. He will guide y ou in y our life. In times of great challenge, when y ou are perplex ed about which turn to take, kneel down and ask y our Father in Heav en to bless y ou and let y our faith in the Sav ior and His Atonement be the rock and foundation of y our successful life.

To Succeed in Life
1 . Establish principles to guide y our life. 2. Dont m ake exceptions to y our standards. 3. Be loy al. 4. Liv e so that the Lord can guide y ou. 5. Serv e others. 6. Sm ile. 7 . Dont com plain. 8. Alway s hav e a Church assignm ent. 9. Worship in the tem ple.
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1 0. Follow the Sav iors exam ple.

Officia l W eb sit e of T h e Ch u r ch of Jesu s Ch r ist of La t t er -da y Sa in t s 2 0 1 4 In t ellect u a l Reser v e, In c. A ll Rig h t s Reser v ed

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