Saturday, October 26, 2013

The Key to Freedom and Happiness


When most people think of commandments, they think of restrictions or lack of freedom. When in reality our Heavenly Father created them for our happiness and freedom. In the Sept. 2013 New Era there was a wonderful article about the commandments, it's title was- "Steps to Happiness". I love this title because it is so true! The article compares the commandments to stairs, with each commandment we keep we have the opportunity to move upward.

Illustration by David Habben
 
When we keep the commandments we avoid feelings of guilt and  punishment- therefore we are generally happy. Jesus said: "If ye love me, keep my commandments". I think that it is pretty cool that Jesus doesn't ask anything grand or extra of us- He only asks that we choose the right and follow him. Check out these awesome quotes about obeying the commandments:


"The knowledge which we seek, the answers for which we yearn, and the strength which we desire today to meet the challenges of a complex and changing world can be ours when we willingly obey the Lord’s commandments."
                                                                                  -President Monson
 "It is my humble prayer that we may be blessed with the rich rewards promised to the obedient".
                                                                                                             -President Monson

 "They are not to restrict but rather to make possible—to allow us to achieve in this life and in the next—what we truly desire and what our Heavenly Father, who loves us, wants for us".
                                                                         -Elder D. Todd Christofferson 
What great and awesome promises these are! 
When we obey the commandments:
         -We can gain knowledge we have been seeking
         - We will be blessed with rich rewards
         - We are allowed to achieve what we and our Heavenly Father desire for our future
The 2 quotes above were said in an excellent conference address given by Thomas S. Monson titled "Obedience Brings Blessings" (This talk is truly awesome, but it also has a very funny story about him when we was a kid....) You can also read the wonderful article titled "Steps to Happiness" that was in the September 2013 New Era by Elder Christofferson. (If you don't know what the New Era is you can read the current issue here. I will post more about it later)
I know with all my heart that the key to happiness and freedom is keeping the commandments and that we can truly gain all the blessings promised by the General Authorities and the scriptures.
 

1 comment:

I'd love to hear from you! Pretty please with a cherry on top :)