Obedience Helps Us Be Happy

By Elder L. Whitney Clayton

Of the Presidency of the Seventy

“And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God” (Mosiah 2:41).

When I was young, my family was not active in the Church. My parents were good people, and they taught my brothers and me to make good choices. We always knew they loved us and wanted us to be happy.

In my home, my parents expected us to obey. Every Saturday was “work day.” Dad was a doctor, so he got up very early to go check on his patients. Before he left, he wrote a list of chores on our big chalkboard. Every week we tried to do the chores as fast as we could. But somehow the chores always lasted the whole day!

It wasn’t terrible, though. We liked spending time together. Mom made us lunch, and Dad came home to eat with us. We all took a break and sat outside together. We were happy when we obeyed.

When I was 11, Dad decided that we needed to go back to church. At first I went only to obey Dad. But soon I gained my own testimony of Jesus Christ. I had a good feeling when I was at church. I realized later that this feeling was from the Holy Ghost.

I learned that obeying Heavenly Father makes us happy. When I went to college, I met a lot of different people. I noticed that those who were active members of the Church and followed Jesus Christ seemed happier in some ways than those who did not follow Jesus Christ. I could see the difference in their lives. I knew I wanted to be happy.

I know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is true. Living the gospel will help you be happy. If you do the good things that your parents and Church leaders teach you, the Holy Ghost will guide you and help you feel peace. You will still have tough times. But you will skip the sadness that comes from not following the commandments. Life won’t be perfect, but it will be wonderful.