"A Higher Joy" - Mitch Peterson

Last updated on May 26th, 2024 at 04:34 pm

General Conference Applied

S3 E5 – Sunday, May 19, 2024 | “A Higher Joy” by Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf; April 2024 General Conference

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Podcast Episode Outline

Introduction

Doctrine: Marriage and Family: “Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ, such as faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities.”

Principle: Service: “When we serve others we gain important blessings. Through service we increase our ability to love. We become less selfish. As we think of the problems of others, our own problems seem less serious. We must serve others to gain eternal life. God has said that those who live with Him must love and serve His children (see Matthew 25:34–40).

“When we consider the lives of people who serve unselfishly, we can see that they gain more than they give. One such person was a Latter-day Saint named Paul who lost the use of both legs in an accident. Some men might have become bitter and useless, but Paul chose to think of others instead. He learned a trade and earned enough money to buy a house. There he and his wife made room for many homeless, unwanted children. Some were badly handicapped. Until his death 20 years later, he served these children and others. In return he was greatly loved, and his thoughts turned away from his crippled legs. He grew close to the Lord.”

Christlike Attribute: Hope: “As you center your hope in Christ, you have the assurance that all things will work together for your good (see Doctrine and Covenants 90:24). This assurance helps you persevere with faith when you face trials. It can also help you grow from trials and develop spiritual resilience and strength. Hope in Christ provides an anchor for your soul (see Ether 12:4).

“Hope gives you confidence that God will magnify your diligent, righteous efforts (see Doctrine and Covenants 123:17).”

Introductory Story

“It’s hard to believe it was only 120 years ago when Wilbur and Orville Wright first lifted off and flew over the sands of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Four short flights on that December day changed the world and opened the door to one of the greatest inventions in the world’s history.

“Flying was risky in those early days. The brothers knew this. And so did their father, Milton. In fact, he was so terrified of losing both of his sons in a flying accident that they promised him they would never fly together.

“And they never did—with one exception. Seven years after that historic day at Kitty Hawk, Milton Wright finally gave his consent and watched as Wilbur and Orville flew together for the first time. After landing, Orville convinced his father to take his first and only flight and to see for himself what it was like.

“As the plane lifted from the ground, the 82-year-old Milton got so caught up in the exhilaration of flight that all fear left him. Orville rejoiced as his father shouted with delight, ‘Higher, Orville, higher!’

“This was a man after my own heart!

“Perhaps the reason I speak about aviation occasionally is that I know something of what the Wrights felt. …

“The Wright brothers’ first flight, which happened a mere 37 years before my birth, opened doors of adventure, wonder, and pure joy into my life.

“And yet, as amazing as that joy is, there is an even higher kind of joy. Today, in the spirit of Milton Wright’s delighted cry, ‘Higher, Orville, higher,’ I would like to speak about this higher joy—where it comes from, how it enters our hearts, and how we can experience it in greater measure.”

What is the speaker inviting me to do, and how might I consider taking action?

Invitations

1: “If you feel there could be more of this kind of joy in your life, I invite you to embark on the journey of following Jesus Christ and His Way. It is a journey of a lifetime—and beyond. Please let me suggest a few beginning steps on this worthy journey of discovering pure joy.” …

“Draw near unto God. … I have learned that if we draw near to God and reach out to touch Him, we can indeed find healing, peace, and joy.

“Look for [joy]. …

“Bear one another’s burdens. … Like praying for someone with all our heart. Giving a sincere compliment. Helping someone feel welcome, respected, valued, and loved. Sharing a favorite scripture and what it means to us. Or even just by listening.”

Draw Near Unto God:
- Footnote 15: “If you have any concerns about whether or not your Father in Heaven will accept you and allow you to receive His joy, I invite you to prayerfully read Christ’s parable of the prodigal son (see Luke 15:11–32). In that parable, we learn how our Heavenly Father feels about His children and how He awaits and celebrates our return after we have strayed from Him! From the moment we ‘come to ourselves’ (see verse 17) and begin the journey home, He will see us, for He stands watching and waiting. And what is He waiting for? For us! As we draw near to Him, He will celebrate our return and call us His child.”
- 4 Nephi 1:15-18: “[15] And it came to pass that there was no contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people. [16] And there were no envyings, nor strifes, nor tumults, nor whoredoms, nor lyings, nor murders, nor any manner of lasciviousness; and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God. [17] There were no robbers, nor murderers, neither were there Lamanites, nor any manner of -ites; but they were in one, the children of Christ, and heirs to the kingdom of God. [18] And how blessed were they! For the Lord did bless them in all their doings; yea, even they were blessed and prospered until an hundred and ten years had passed away; and the first generation from Christ had passed away, and there was no contention in all the land.”
- “Prayerfully read Christ’s parable of the prodigal son” and journal on this topic: What does this parable teach me about my Heavenly Father?
Look for Joy:
- “The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology That Fuel Success and Performance at Work” by Shawn Achor: “You’ve probably heard the oft-told story of the two shoe salesmen who were sent to Africa in the early 1900s to assess opportunities. They wired separate telegrams back to their boss. One read: ‘Situation hopeless. They don’t wear shoes.’ The other read: ‘Glorious opportunity! They don’t have any shoes yet.’
  
  “Odds are the same two salesmen would send back similar emails today if they were sent to Alaska to sell air conditioners or to the Gobi desert to sell swimsuits. The point, of course, is that when some people meet adversity, they simply stop looking for ways to turn failures into opportunities or negatives into positives. Others – the most successful among us – know that it’s not the adversity itself, but what we do with it that determines our fate. Some will sit helpless, while others gather their wits, capitalize on their strengths, and forge ahead.”
- “Jesus taught, ‘Seek, and ye shall find.’
  
  “I believe this simple phrase is not only a spiritual promise; it is a statement of fact.
  
  “If we seek reasons to be angry, to doubt, to be bitter or alone, we will find them too.
  
  “However, if we seek joy—if we look for reasons to rejoice and to happily follow the Savior, we will find them.
  
  “We rarely find something we are not looking for.
  
  “Are you looking for joy?
  
  “Seek, and ye shall find.” -Elder Uchtdorf
- “The Gap and The Gain: The High Achievers’ Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success” by Dr. Benjamin Hardy and Dan Sullivan: “Dan Sullivan has been teaching his entrepreneur clients to write down three ‘wins’ at the end of each day for decades. He even had an app created called WinStreak® where you simply enter three wins each day. …
  
  “At the end of each day, Dan writes his three wins for that day and the three biggest wins he’ll get for tomorrow.
  
  “As he explains:
  
  “‘I would go to bed feeling good, but excited about the next day. I would wake up the next morning excited. Then, that day, I’d go out and try to have those three wins. But oftentimes, what would happen is I’d have wins that were bigger than the three I had imagined the night before.
  
  “‘And then I’d come home and have the same exercise. And what happens out of this exercise—and this has been going on for 15 years with me—is I’m always winning. …
  
  “‘Regardless of whether there are any setbacks or there’s any disappointments, or there’s obstacles that I’ve run into during the day, it doesn’t matter. At the end of the day, I have my three wins. Tomorrow I’m going to have three wins. In a week, I’m going to have 21 wins. …
  
  “‘After a while, a couple of things start to happen. First, people start to get very excited. They get very happy. But on the other hand, they realize that it is their saying so that gives meaning to their past and their future. And that’s a phenomenal breakthrough to realize, that you’re telling the story about your life. The story you’ve already lived. And the story you’re going to live tomorrow. That ability can get stronger and stronger as you go on. …
  
  “‘You’ll notice with each winning day—which is every day—that your sense of pride, confidence, and excitement expands and accelerates.'”
- Utilize the WinStreak® app to record three wins every day.
Bear One Another’s Burdens:
- “The Virtue of Kindness“, May 2005 Liahona, Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin: “The Church is not a place where perfect people gather to say perfect things, or have perfect thoughts, or have perfect feelings. The Church is a place where imperfect people gather to provide encouragement, support, and service to each other as we press on in our journey to return to our Heavenly Father.
  
  “Each one of us will travel a different road during this life. Each progresses at a different rate. Temptations that trouble your brother may not challenge you at all. Strengths that you possess may seem impossible to another.
  
  “Never look down on those who are less perfect than you. Don’t be upset because someone can’t sew as well as you, can’t throw as well as you, can’t row or hoe as well as you.
  
  “We are all children of our Heavenly Father. And we are here with the same purpose: to learn to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbor as ourselves.
  
  “One way you can measure your value in the kingdom of God is to ask, ‘How well am I doing in helping others reach their potential? Do I support others in the Church, or do I criticize them?’
  
  “If you are criticizing others, you are weakening the Church. If you are building others, you are building the kingdom of God. As Heavenly Father is kind, we also should be kind to others.
  
  “Elder James E. Talmage, a man who is remembered for his doctrinal teachings, showed great kindness to a neighbor family in distress. They were complete strangers to him. Before he was an Apostle, as a young father, he became aware of great suffering at a neighbor’s home whose large family was stricken with the dreaded diphtheria. He did not care that they were not members of the Church; his kindness and charity moved him to act. The Relief Society was desperately trying to find people to help, but no one would because of the contagious nature of the disease.
  
  “When he arrived, James found one toddler already dead and two others who were in agony from the disease. He immediately went to work, cleaning the untidy house, preparing the young body for burial, cleaning and providing for the other sick children, spending the entire day doing so. He came back the next morning to find that one more of the children had died during the night. A third child was still suffering terribly. He wrote in his journal: ‘She clung to my neck, ofttimes coughing [germs] on my face and clothing, … yet I could not put her from me. During the half hour immediately preceding her death, I walked the floor with the little creature in my arms. She died in agony at 10 A.M.’ The three children had all departed within the space of 24 hours. He then assisted the family with the burial arrangements and spoke at their graveside services. This he did all for a family of strangers. What a great example of Christlike kindness!”
- “‘Be With and Strengthen Them’“, April 2018 General Conference, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland: “Last January 14, a Sunday, just a little after 5:00 p.m., my young friends Brett and Kristin Hamblin were chatting at their home in Tempe, Arizona, after Brett’s day serving in the bishopric and Kristin’s busy day caring for their five children.
  
  “Suddenly Kristin, a seemingly successful survivor of breast cancer the previous year, fell unresponsive. A call to 911 brought an emergency team trying desperately to revive her. As Brett prayed and pleaded, he quickly placed just two other telephone calls: one to his mother requesting her help with the children, the other to Edwin Potter, his home teacher. The latter conversation in its entirety went as follows:
  
  “Edwin, noting caller ID, said, ‘Hey, Brett, what’s up?’
  
  “Brett’s near-shouted response was ‘I need you here—now!’
  
  “In fewer minutes than Brett could count, his priesthood colleague was standing at his side, helping with the children and then driving Brother Hamblin to the hospital behind the ambulance carrying his wife. There, less than 40 minutes after she had first closed her eyes, the physicians pronounced Kristin dead.
  
  “As Brett sobbed, Edwin simply held him in his arms and cried with him—for a long, long time. Then, leaving Brett to grieve with other family members who had gathered, Edwin drove to the bishop’s home to tell him what had just transpired. A marvelous bishop started immediately for the hospital while Edwin drove on to the Hamblins’ home. There he and his wife, Charlotte, who had also come running, played with the five now-motherless Hamblin children, ages 12 down to 3. They fed them an evening meal, held an impromptu musical recital, and helped get them ready for bed.
  
  “Brett told me later, ‘The amazing part of this story isn’t that Edwin came when I called. In an emergency, there are always people willing to help. No, the amazing part of this story is that he was the one I thought of. There were other people around. Kristin has a brother and sister less than three miles away. We have a great bishop, the greatest. But the relationship between Edwin and me is such that I felt instinctively to call him when I needed help. The Church provides us a structured way to live the second commandment better—to love, serve, and develop relationships with our brothers and sisters that help us move closer to God.’
  
  “Edwin said about the experience, ‘Elder Holland, the irony in all of this is that Brett has been our family’s home teacher for longer than I have been theirs. Over that time, he has visited us more as a friend than by assignment. He has been a great example, the epitome of what an active and involved priesthood bearer should be. My wife, our boys—we don’t see him as one obligated to bring us a message at the end of each month; we think of him as a friend who lives just down the street and around the corner, who would do anything in this world to bless us. I am glad I could repay just a little bit of the debt I owe him.’
  
  “Brothers and sisters, I join with you in saluting every block teacher and ward teacher and home teacher and visiting teacher who has loved and served so faithfully throughout our history. Our prayer today is that every man and woman—and our older young men and young women—will leave this general conference more deeply committed to heartfelt care for one another, motivated only by the pure love of Christ to do so. In spite of what we all feel are our limitations and inadequacies—and we all have challenges—nevertheless, may we labor side by side with the Lord of the vineyard, giving the God and Father of us all a helping hand with His staggering task of answering prayers, providing comfort, drying tears, and strengthening feeble knees. If we will do that, we will be more like the true disciples of Christ we are meant to be.”
- Be the type of ministering brother or ministering sister, neighbor, friend, or family member who others think of when they are in distress.

2: “During the coming days, weeks, and months, may I invite you to:

-“Spend time in a sincere, full-hearted effort to draw near to God.
-“Seek diligently for everyday moments of hope, peace, and joy.
-“Bring joy to others around you.

“My dear brothers and sisters, dear friends, as you search the word of God for a deeper understanding of God’s eternal plan, accept these invitations, and strive to walk in His Way, you will experience ‘the peace of God, which passeth all understanding,’ even in the midst of sorrows.”

“Life is not an endless sequence of emotional highs. ‘For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things.’ And if God Himself weeps, as the scriptures affirm He does, then of course you and I will weep as well. Feeling sad is not a sign of failure. In this life, at least, joy and sorrow are inseparable companions. Like all of you, I have felt my share of disappointment, sorrow, sadness, and remorse.

“However, I have also experienced for myself the glorious dawn that fills the soul with joy so profound that it can scarcely be kept in. I have discovered for myself that this peaceful confidence comes from following the Savior and walking in His Way.

“The peace He gives us is not like what the world gives. It’s better. It’s higher and holier. Jesus said, ‘I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.'” -Elder Uchtdorf
followHim Podcast – Mosiah 11-17 – Dr. Ryan Sharp: [Dr. Ryan Sharp] “Hank, I know you were recently on the Y Religion podcast, and shared some of your experiences which were beautiful and moving, talking about how the sting of death has been swallowed up in Christ in your experiences. I want to share one from a member of my stake where they had a son who had relatively recently come home from his mission. He was going to school up at BYU Idaho. He was home, and he had to leave for work early in the morning. One of those crazy snowstorms that we sometimes get here in Utah comes in, and this young man, as he’s driving, ends up getting hit by a truck. It puts him in a coma for several days. First of all, I cannot imagine what that would be like, the fear and concern and the questions and all of those emotions.

“In the midst of all of this, while their son is in a coma, and they don’t know if he’s going to make it or not, his mom sent an email to me and then to some others in the stake. I just want to read part of what she wrote in this email. She wrote this to her daughter who was serving as a missionary at the time. So, this daughter wasn’t even home to help with all of this. Then she forwarded the email to several of us. She said, ‘There are two types of miracles. We are all praying for a miracle.’ She said, ‘The first is the kind where you get what you want.’ Where miraculously, in this case, their son and brother is miraculously healed. He comes out of this coma, and goes on to live an incredible mortal life, but she said, ‘The second type is maybe when that miracle doesn’t happen, but you feel peace, even though the first kind of miracle doesn’t happen. He can give us peace even when things don’t turn out the way we want.’

“She said, ‘I’m trying to stay positive. I know miracles are possible. I also know that with the number of wonderful people praying for [our] son, there is plenty of faith for a miracle to happen. And if it’s meant to happen, it will, but we also have to be willing to accept the second kind of miracle if that is in God’s plan.’ The second kind of miracle, again, is, ‘Can I somehow have peace if my son or brother or friend passes away? Can the sting of death truly be swallowed up in the atonement of Christ?’ In this case, he ended up passing away a few days later. I was at the funeral, and I heard this same woman share her testimony with positive confidence, grieving obviously, hurting clearly, but the sting of death was swallowed up in Christ because of the second kind of miracle that they found peace and hope in the atonement of Jesus Christ and in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”
Read each general conference address seeking to answer this question: ‘How does this address deepen my understanding of God’s eternal plan?’ Ask this same question each time you face a challenge in life.

3: “May we all seek and find the higher joy that comes from devoting our lives to our Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son.”

“Jesus Christ – Gifts and Expectations“, December 1988 Ensign, President Ezra Taft Benson: “Men and women who turn their lives over to God will discover that He can make a lot more out of their lives than they can. He will deepen their joys, expand their vision, quicken their minds, strengthen their muscles, lift their spirits, multiply their blessings, increase their opportunities, comfort their souls, raise up friends, and pour out peace. Whoever will lose his life in the service of God will find eternal life.”
“It probably goes without saying that everyone wants to be happy. Nevertheless, it also goes without saying that not everyone is happy. Sadly, it seems that for many people, happiness is hard to find. Why is that? If happiness is the one thing we humans desire most, why are we so unsuccessful at finding it? To paraphrase a country song, maybe we’ve been looking for joy in all the wrong places.” -Elder Uchtdorf
Identify one way in which you can more fully devote your life to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, and then take action.

A Note About Happiness

“Magnificent Desolation: The Long Journey Home from the Moon” by Buzz Aldrin and Ken Abraham: “How could I have gone almost overnight from being on top of the world to feeling useless, worthless, and washed up? I wanted to resume my duties, but there were no duties to resume. There was no goal, no sense of calling, no project worth pouring myself into. Although I didn’t realize it at the time, I had started drinking more. Life seemed to have lost its luster. On some days I couldn’t even find a reason to get out of bed. So I didn’t. Something was wrong; something within me was beginning to crack. I only hoped that I could figure it out before I broke down completely.”
“The Gap and The Gain: The High Achievers’ Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success” by Dr. Benjamin Hardy and Dan Sullivan: “You’re in the GAP every time you measure yourself or your situation against an ideal. … Being in the GAIN means you measure yourself backward against where you were before.”
Our Savior is the ideal. Make it a priority to measure yourself backward monthly or quarterly.

Take Action

How will you take action on the invitations extended in this General Conference address?

Additional Content

Previous Podcast Episode (“Motions of a Hidden Fire” by President Jeffrey R. Holland)

Next Podcast Episode (“Be Still, and Know That I Am God” by Elder David A. Bednar)

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