Living The Gospel does not always result in
immediate happiness, especially when I look at my life with a day to day
perspective. But when I look at
my
whole life and ask what it would
look like today if, in the past, I had followed my own path instead of the
Saviors, I realize how much happiness living the Gospel has allotted me. Without
the Gospel in my life in the past, today I would probably be a lesser happy
version of Sam; a version that would still have my same personality and maybe
some of the same friends, but definitely not a Sam with the recognition of
self-worth that I have today. Because of lessons I’ve learned from living
obediently in the past, I know today that the Lord lives and that He wants me
to be triumphant over sin. Living the Gospel is a long-term process that helps
me understand my self-worth or eternal value. Gospel teaches me, repeatedly
(thankfully), that I am a Child of God and that I belong to a heavenly family.
This helps me understand that I am worth something to someone. And, not just
anyone, I am worth something to God; the very Creator of the universe and all
things in it.
On those days that I don’t
want to live the Gospel, I just remind myself that one bad day cannot (or at
least should not) stop me from a life-time goal of wanting to live with
Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ again. In fact, those days that are the
hardest kind of help me know that I am on the right path because the Savior’s
life was hard and it was filled with days that I am sure He did not want to experience.
And sometimes I am happiest on those days that are hardest to live the Gospel
because, on those days, I am more likely to turn to the Savior and seek His
guidance and protection. Therefore, I choose to follow the Savior Jesus Christ
every day because I know that doing so will bring me true happiness, whether
that happiness is experienced right away or later on.
Samuel W. Platt
(photos taken by Samuel)
