Each time I return to BYU-Idaho, I am struck by the transformation that has taken place. Striking new buildings and verdant landscaping combine to create a beautiful academic and spiritual setting. The new academic design with additional majors and courses, a large increase in faculty and students, more efficient use of the facilities, and full accreditation by the Northwest accrediting agency are little short of a miracle and reveal the creativity and diligence of the school’s leadership. Tributes are due President and Sister Bednar, the administration, the faculty, staff and the students for the marvelous changes that have occurred. I include the students because your willingness to adjust to a year-round program has been critical to the overall success. Also, one marvels at President Hinckley’s vision that gave impetus to the transformation and the Board of Education’s willingness to provide financial support to make it a reality.
While serving as president of Brigham Young University in Provo, commencements were among my favorite experiences for two reasons. First, they were an exciting time because they represented the successful completion of a long journey. Second, they were a family affair. The campus was filled with fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, spouses, and friends.
Commencement is a time for families to share in the accomplishments of their sons and daughters, wives and husbands, mothers and fathers. Family members are often major contributors to a student’s graduation. Today’s attendance suggests that BYU-Idaho commencements are family oriented as well. I commend parents, grandparents, spouses and all those who have contributed to the success of this graduating class.
I commend today’s graduates for achieving a major milestone—the reception of a certificate or a baccalaureate. This is a significant accomplishment because it suggests that a foundation has been laid for life-long learning. The purpose of a university is to provide students with the tools and incentives to continue the learning process. Our Father in Heaven designed mortality so that it could be an ever learning venture. The heavenly design of life’s experiences from early childhood to old age is ordered so that each person may acquire light and knowledge from birth to death. This is true both temporally and spiritually. The world is changing at an accelerating pace. The half-life of scientific information is three to four years. In almost all forms of employment, one must continue to learn or be left behind. In like manner, growth in spiritual understanding must not cease with a mission, or the last religion class, or when the children are gone and the nest is empty. Success in this world, both spiritual and temporal, requires that you endure to the end in acquiring “knowledge and intelligence” from study and from experience. Your future happiness depends on it.
Not only has each graduate acquired the tools for continued learning, but each has laid a foundation for a happy life. You have been and are committed to living the fundamental principles of the gospel. You know that happiness comes from righteous living. You understand that “wickedness never was happiness.”[1] Many have served missions and learned that true happiness also comes from service to others, from losing oneself in a cause greater than self.[2] Many have served in campus volunteer organizations and all have served in the Church. These experiences should help you understand the importance of service as a means of obtaining joy.
Happiness
My subject today is “Finding Happiness in a Mortal World.” The dictionary defines happiness as the satisfaction derived from “[being] well-adapted; [of acting] appropriately.”[3] In general terms, it refers to the good feelings that come from living true principles. It is important to know that “happiness cannot be given, induced or conferred.”[4] Parents cannot give or confer happiness upon their children although they can teach them how to live “after the manner of happiness”[5] Happiness must be earned. It is the byproduct of righteousness – of one’s thinking and behavior. Someone has said that “happiness is different things for different people.” But happiness does not come from “things” at all. It is not determined by “conditions, environment or possessions,” but stems from living one’s life in a manner consistent with the purpose of one’s creation.[6]
Today I wish to discuss with you the purpose of your creation and how you can find happiness given the critical decisions that lie ahead. I believe the period from 18 to 26 is one of the riskiest and most challenging times of life. It is a time filled with major decisions that will affect you through mortality and into the eternities. It is a time when many seem to lose direction and purpose. Although parents and friends still provide counsel, life’s major decisions are yours. The divine gift of agency is yours. Choices regarding further education, employment, marriage, children plus most other decisions will, in the final analysis, be made by you. Your presence at this graduation suggests that you have successfully navigated the first few years of this critical period. Still, many important decisions lie ahead and, hopefully, wisdom will prevail and you will continue traveling the path of happiness.
The scriptures clearly support the thesis that happiness comes from living a life congruent with the purposes of creation.[7] What are those purposes? Most people on this earth do not know. Fortunately, the restored gospel provides a clear set of answers. According to the prophet Abraham, the Lord created the earth so that we might be “added upon.”[8] What does that mean? I believe there are three overarching ways in which mortality adds to our stature.
The first is the opportunity to continue the learning process. Pre-mortal life was filled with learning. It was a world in which one acquired light. Faithful choices led some spirits to acquire more light than others.[9] We proved our willingness and ability to acquire light through righteous choices in that first estate and, thus, earned the right to come here and progress further. The divine intent is for us to continue the learning process on earth and have “glory added upon [our] heads for ever and ever.”[10]
The second purpose is to receive a physical body—to obtain a tabernacle for our spirit. That is, we were to be added upon physically. As will be noted later, the body is a very important addition and is key to our ultimate destiny.
The third purpose is to initiate an eternal family—for us to become creators, to build an eternal unit and enjoy the close, intimate relationships that are an inherent part of family life. The family provides an opportunity for parents and siblings to participate with Deity in Their mission to assist sons and daughters, and brothers and sisters achieve “immortality and eternal life.”
Our happiness in this life and in the life to come depends on the degree to which we fulfill these grand purposes. Therefore, let us examine each in more detail and suggest some principles by which one may achieve the ends desired.
Spiritual Growth
Light is an attribute of Deity. The Apostle John states that “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all."[11] Jesus stated that he was “the light of the world.”[12] The gospel is a message of light.[13] A key, mortal objective for all of God’s children is the acquisition of light—to become more like Him. In the Lord’s words, we were to “prove” ourselves through obedience to His commandments.[14] The reward was added glory or light. The scriptures teach that “The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth.”[15] Spiritual growth is the acquisition of intelligence or light and truth. One should know, however, that the Lord’s definition of intelligence is more than the capacity to acquire and apply knowledge. It includes one’s ability to distinguish between right and wrong and the power to choose the right. The scriptures state that “light and truth forsake that evil one.”[16]
The Lord has provided two sources of light to aid His children in finding truth. The first is the Light of Christ. It is given to every person born on earth.[17] According to Moroni, the “Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God.”[18] This light, known as our conscience, provides order in the universe, teaches people right from wrong; and, if listened to, guides people to Christ and additional light.[19]
An additional light is the Gift of the Holy Ghost which is given to the faithful who enter into covenants with the Lord. This, even more intense than one's conscience, is conditional and depends on one’s faithfulness in living the commandments.[20] The Lord, speaking to the Prophet Joseph Smith, said:
"Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection.
"And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come.
"There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated—
"And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated."[21]
Growth is also a function of experience, and the knowledge acquired early in life becomes a foundation to learn from later experiences. Experiential learning is spread throughout life and comes in small parcels. Nephi understood this principle well when he said that the Lord gives:
"line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have."[22]
Now what can you do to assure future spiritual growth. First, make a commitment to pray and study the scriptures daily. Prayer and scripture study bring the Spirit. The Lord told the Prophet Joseph Smith that when we read the scriptures, we may hear his voice.[23] In another place, He states that his “voice is Spirit.”[24] Consistent prayer and study of the word will aid the Holy Spirit in speaking to “your mind and . . . your heart.”[25] When the righteous thoughts of the mind connect with the righteous feelings of the heart, the result is power and testimony.
I also recommend that you have a secular reading program. Make a list of some great books. Devote some time daily to increase your understanding of things "in the earth . . . things which have been, things which are, things which must shortly come to pass; things which are at home, things which are abroad; the wars and the perplexities of the nations, . . . and a knowledge also of countries and of kingdoms."[26]
Those who develop a well-rounded reading program and understand world developments will be more effective servants in the Lord’s kingdom.
Also, determine that you will be a servant to others. Reach out to other people and befriend them. Never turn down a calling in the Kingdom. Perform quiet acts of service. If you learn of someone in need, do what you can to assist them.
In the Alma, chapter 44, Captain Moroni explains to the leader of the Lamanites that the Nephite army’s strength comes from living according to the “sacred word of God” and then adds “to which we owe all our happiness.”[27] Your future happiness is dependent on your spiritual health, and one’s spiritual health is determined by the nourishment that comes from prayer, study and service.
The Physical Body
The second way in which mortality adds to our being is the addition of a physical body. The scriptures teach that the body is not only important for this life but also for eternity. In fact, the body is so important that Christ gave His life to overcome physical as well as spiritual death. In doing so, he made possible a resurrection for everyone and the restoration of the body to the spirit forever.[28]
In contrast, most of Christianity believes that physical matter, including the body, is evil and that the body will be discarded at death. This idea, adopted from the Greeks, is one of the heresies of the Great Apostasy. The true doctrine is that the physical body is one of the great gifts of life. This truth is illustrated by the story in Matthew in which the Lord called evil spirits out of the men in Gergesa, and they chose to enter the bodies of a lowly herd of pigs in order to obtain a tabernacle for their spirits.[29]
Joseph Smith said: “We came to this earth that we might have a body and present it pure before God in the celestial kingdom. The great principle of happiness consists in having a body.”[30]
The Body: An Instrument for the Mind
Why is the physical body so important? How does the body relate to our happiness here and hereafter? What are its divine purposes? I believe there are at least three. First, the body is a tabernacle for the mind and spirit. It is also an instrument of the mind. President Boyd K. Packer taught this concept in a CES satellite broadcast two years ago. In a physical world, the body, directed by the mind, is able to perform physical acts. Many acts of love, kindness and service require the physical body. When appropriately directed, physical acts are a means for blessing others and produce great joy. No doubt, a personage of spirit is able to do many things to help others, but the physical body increases the range of activities that can be performed. In fact, President Joseph F. Smith, in his vision of the spirit world, learned that “the dead . . . looked upon the long absence of their spirits from their bodies as a bondage.”[31]
When we enter the spirit world we will learn just how important the body is and will yearn for the resurrection and the freedom it brings. On resurrection day, when our body and spirit are inseparably connected, it will be possible to experience a fulness of joy.[32]
The Body: A Receptacle for Light
Second, the body is a receptacle for light. Both the spirit and the body can receive and hold light. Alma states that “their souls were illuminated by the light of the everlasting word.”[33] The Lord, in speaking to the Prophet Joseph Smith, states “And if your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light.”[34] Those who live the gospel have light added to their being while in mortality. Their countenances are brighter than those who do not keep the commandments.
Resurrected bodies also differ with respect to the amount of light within. In Section 76 of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord states: “These are they whose bodies are celestial, whose glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all.”[35] Speaking of the honorable men and women of the earth who do not fully accept the gospel, the scriptures state: “Wherefore, they are bodies terrestrial, and not bodies celestial, and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun.”[36]
The Apostle Paul makes clear that resurrected bodies will differ in terms of the amount of light or glory they contain. He said:
"But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? . . .
"All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.
"There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.
"There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory.
"So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:
"It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power."[37]
The glory or light and the type of body received in the resurrection will be based on one’s faithfulness and will differ in terms of light or glory. A celestial body will be filled with more light than a terrestial or a telestial body. For the faithful, those who enter into appropriate covenants and ordinances and live accordingly, the Savior’s atoning power will cleanse and sanctify their souls and raise their physical bodies from the dust incorruptible, in celestial glory and with celestial power.
The Apostle Paul confirms the importance and sacredness of the physical body when he states: “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.”[38]
Not only is the body sacred because it houses our spirit, it is sacred because it has the potential to be a tabernacle for the Holy Ghost. As a personage of spirit, He can administer directly to our spirit and add light and truth to our soul.[39]
The Body: The Sacred Powers of Creation
Third, the body houses the sacred powers of creation which allow us to have children and begin an eternal family. In mortality, we have that power for a limited period of time. We are tested in the use of it. It is important that the spirit learn to control the body and use this power within the bounds set by our Heavenly Father. If we prove worthy, the power will be returned to us in the resurrection. So many people on this earth treat these powers lightly. They allow their animal instincts to overpower the signals sent by the Light of Christ. Alma told his son, Shiblon, that it was important to “bridle all your passions, that ye may be filled with love.”[40] Appropriate use of the powers of creation brings love into one’s life. Inappropriate use causes a loss of light and love. Love is a primary source of happiness.
Given the importance of the physical body, one must manage carefully its cleanliness inside and out. Modest dress is one way we can show respect for it. Avoiding the ingestion of harmful substances is another. Proper diet is a third. Those who understand the magnitude of the gift will not plaster it with graffiti. Those who desire happiness will treat it as the sacred gift that it is.
An Eternal Family
Marriage between a man and a woman for time and eternity is the basis of an eternal family—the third great purpose of creation. In a civil marriage, the relationship established is bilateral—between the man and the woman. The temple covenant which forms the basis for an eternal family is triangular in nature. It not only involves the relationship between the man and the woman, but one between the man and the Lord, and another between the woman and the Lord. If the man and the woman abide by the promises made, the family unit becomes eternal in nature and extends beyond the grave.
I believe that the greatest happiness in life comes inside the family unit. The love between a man and a woman and the close, warm relationships between parents and children help people become well-adapted and truly fulfilled.
Most of you will marry within the next few years. As you look for a companion, the following suggestions may be of help. First, do not expect perfection. It doesn’t exist. This is mortality, not eternity. Rather, look for a person who will be your best friend. Look for a person with whom you can easily converse. The two of you should have a few things in common, but not all things. Differences create opportunities to learn and grow together. Look for a person who has a sensitivity to sacred things and a strong, personal testimony of the Savior. Engage in a number of different activities before commitments are made. In this way you will see each other under different circumstances and will be able to gauge how each responds to different stimuli. Finally, look for a peaceful feeling in your hearts as you contemplate life together.
For those who do not marry for one reason or another, become engaged in your siblings’ or friends’ families. Become a great uncle or aunt. Learn to enjoy children and take every opportunity to teach them the lessons you have learned. My wife and I have a dear friend who did this with our family when the children were younger. Whenever she came to our home, she came prepared with books to read, games to play and witty conversation. The children loved her and looked forward to her visits. She was an integral part of our family until an accident took her life.
Brothers and sisters, happiness is found in spiritual growth, in the blessings of a physical body, and in the family unit. At this graduation, you stand at a crossroad in life. Happiness lies ahead if you will do your best, indeed your “very best” with the following: continue to study the gospel, pray with even more earnestness, extend yourself in service to others, treat your body with great respect, and deeply commit to the creation of an eternal family. May the Lord bless you to this end is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
[1] Alma 41:10
[2] Matthew 10:39
[3] The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, American Heritage Publishing Co. and Houghton Mifflin Co., N.Y., N.Y., 1969, 599
[4] D. Brent Collette, “Spiritual Health Made Simple,” unpublished manuscript
[5] 2 Nephi 5:27
[6] Ibid
[7] 1 Nephi 8:10; Mosiah 2:41; Alma 3:26, 40:12-17; Doctrine and Covenants 93:34
[8] Abraham 3:26
[9] Abraham 3:18-19
[10] Abraham 3:25-26
[11] 1 John 1:5
[12] John 8:12
[13] Doctrine and Covenants 45:9
[14] Abraham 3:25
[15] Doctrine and Covenants 93:36
[16] Doctrine and Covenants 93:37
[17] John 1:9; Doctrine and Covenants 84:46
[18] Moroni 7:16
[19] Doctrine and Covenants 88:7-13
[20] Doctrine and Covenants 130:18-20
[21] Doctrine and Covenants 130:18-21
[22] 2 Nephi 28:30
[23] Doctrine and Covenants 18:34-36
[24] Doctrine and Covenants 88:66
[25] Doctrine and Covenants 8:2
[26] Doctrine and Covenants 88:79
[27] Alma 44:5
[28] 1 Corinthians 15:19-22
[29] Matthew 8:28-32
[30] Joseph Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, sel. Joseph Fielding Smith [1976], 181
[31] Doctrine and Covenants 138:50
[32] Doctrine and Covenants 93:33
[33] Alma 5:7
[34] Doctrine and Covenants 88:67
[35] Doctrine and Covenants 76:70
[36] Doctrine and Covenants 76:78
[37] 1 Cor. 15:35, 39-43
[38] 1 Cor. 3:16-17
[39] Doctrine and Covenants 130:22
[40] Alma 38:12