Danny Ricks, a faculty member in the Department of Religious Education at BYU-Idaho, shared a devotional message about the plan of salvation. He taught that when people accept God’s plan, it can bring them joy.
In an interview with BYU-Idaho Radio, Ricks said many people struggle to find joy because they focus on the things they lack in their circumstances.
“We live in this life where sometimes we’ll wish away the present, right? People are like, I’ll be happy when I get married. I’ll be happy when I graduate. I’ll be happy when we have kids. I’ll be happy when my kids leave. I’ll be happy when I retire. And that certainly cannot be the life that Heavenly Father wants for us, right?” Ricks said.
His devotional message invited listeners to instead shift their focus to an eternal perspective.
Ricks referred to a talk from the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints President Russell M. Nelson, who said, “The joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives.”
Ricks also talked about the importance of understanding the doctrine of the Church. He said understanding the true doctrine will help people view their situations in a different way.
“Doctrine has to be understood. If I understand the doctrine of the plan of salvation, I can have joy. And there are so many facets in the plan of salvation that lead us to just naturally viewing our situation differently, in a more godly light, that lead us to have this natural, holistic, genuine joy,” Ricks said in the interview.
Ricks shared Elder Boyd K. Packer’s three-act plan of salvation concept in his devotional, where premortal life is act one, mortal life is act two and postmortal life is act three.
Act two is often called “the complication act” in theatre, Ricks said. This is often when characters must confront conflict in the story. Similarly, people must confront conflict in their mortal lives, or during this second act.
“I know that we have a loving and supportive Heavenly Father and Savior to help us through this particular messy portion of the Plan. One of the challenges of Act Two is we try to make it what Act Two was never designed to be: free from troubles, trials and temptations,” Ricks said in the devotional.
However, Ricks said these troubles will not last forever, and there is power in knowing people can seek support from God and Jesus Christ.
BYU-Idaho devotionals broadcast live on KBYI 94.3 FM and KBYR 91.5/90.9 FM Tuesdays at 11:30 a.m. You can watch the live video at BYU-Idaho Devotionals | BYU-Idaho (byui.edu).