Finding Joy in the Journey

President Thomas S. Monson

Let us relish life as we live it, find joy in the journey, and share our love with friends and family.

"This is our one and only chance at mortal life—here and now. The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief. Opportunities come, and then they are gone. I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non-existent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey—now."

Have you ever sat in conference and heard something that sounded familiar, almost instinctual. Like Captain Moroni's Title of Liberty. It is in the words that truth is just there, its in you, always. Spiritual witness is born as you read the words or hear them and you know, as well, that you had felt the words all before. Maybe it's a replay of the pre-existence. Maybe it is just divine nature extending itself to your heart.

So here is the interpretation according to S, and please remember, I don't speak for the church, I speak for my truths which I believe align in there own unique way to the gospel.

The one with the most money at the end of his earthly journey isn't the winner. This life is not all about work and pressure and spiritual suffering. You must find Joy in this journey. STOP, smell the roses. Gather your families, your friends, those that bring happiness into your life and SHARE your journey. Share laughter, adventure, my gosh, share your life and just take the time to reassure you loved ones they are loved.

I felt for so long that my life was out of control. Is was all about the end. Everything was about what we would have to leave the kids. Even the kids didn't care, they just wanted peace, laughter, happiness to exist within our home but all we were doing was pursuing future leadership, future security, future future.

It wasn't until M's Dad remarried and all this argument happened about the future and about expectations that I took myself out of the race in an unhealthy way. I finally stopped and thought that I just wasn't heading in any kind of sensible direction. Our family was self destructing under the mounds and mounds of expectations we had for ourselves and that others were forcing on us, especially the children. We needed a time out, to refocus, re evaluate and find a healthy, acceptable and peaceful solution to FIND THE JOY IN THE JOURNEY that we had so lost.

Redefining that Joy would take compromise. Well, the history is written on that. It didn't and couldn't happen. So the happiness was redefined a bit different that expected but WOW, is it ours to have now. What I love most of all about my life now is just how many flowers there are to stop and smell. Sure, we have pressures, look at the economy, we still have outside, unrealistic expectations hammering at us, but we are having JOY in this journey.

Last night, I got home from a beautiful wedding, and picked up the Big D at a birthday party. We came home, ordered a Pizza and ate it in the family room (we might have even spilt some....OHHHHH) while we had a heart to heart about his attraction to quirky girls, the loss of his D and change. Even in pain you can find Joy!

So what am I on about.

FOLLOW THE PROPHET! In this there is safety, in this, there is peace!