Home teachers

I am a fan of my home teachers. They are good guys. They were over this afternoon and spent an hour asking me questions about India, and another hour sharing the message for the month. My favorite insight was from a combination of the two hours.

From hour one, Chris asked me what, if anything I was scared about as I head off to India. And so I thought through the long list of things I could easily fear: challenging living conditions such as sleeping on a floor, no toilets or toilet paper, unfamiliar foods, illnesses, seeing beggars, dealing with pickpockets, viper season, disease ridden mosquitos, security issues, feeling alone in a foreign place with people who speak a language I don't know, educational challenges, etc. But as I was listing them off, I was aware that I wasn't genuinely worried about any of those things. I was excited for them.

Towards the end of hour two Chris shared a quote by President Lee. It's a familiar quote, but one that I love. It reads, "Happiness does not depend on what happens ouside of you but on what happens inside of you. It is measured by the spirit with which you meet the problems of life."

Hearing that, I thought back to the things that I could fear and I realized something. I recognize challenges, but I do not fear them. Read that last sentence again. I think that it is profound. I have faith that the Lord is in control of my life, therefore there is never really anything to fear, because it will all ultimately be for my good. It would be easy to measure happiness in conjunction with comfort, but really, you could take away all the comforts and familiarities that I now enjoy and happiness is still an option. I love that! True happiness comes from faith, obedience and an understanding of the Lord's plan and His dealings in our lives. It really is a good life. No external circumstance can ever change that. The key to success and happiness is living righteously so as to always have the Spirit to be with you, having faith, and maintaining an eternal perspective. Yay life.

Okay, I'll end with an inspirational quotation. This one is by Bruce & Marie Hafen. They wisely said, "Indeed, joy, like grace, usually comes in the midst of contrary experience, for it is a real part of life’s complex fabric. Joy is not an alternative to opposition, it is part of a compound that comes out of our coping with the challenges and conditions of mortality."

Joy and opposition and challenges and stresses can coexist. Joy is internally and eternally based. The rest is temporal and terrestrial. And that is why life is always good. And that is why every awkward or unpleasant sounding story or experience I might share is likely to be followed by the words "Good times". It's a good life. I am blessed.