‘Lasting’ Happiness Under Construction.
When discussing happiness I prefer the metaphor of building, rather than that of finding. For me finding happiness seems too much like looking for lost keys when I am running late (very frustrating), or like unexpectedly stumbling into a secluded meadow high in the mountains that is full of beautiful wildflowers (random, outside of my control).
Building on the other hand is planned, deliberate and yields the added reward of seeing the results from personal effort. No matter which camp you find yourself in, building or finding I hope my thoughts will help you in your efforts to be truly happy in this life and in the eternities.
Recently I visited a hospital that was undergoing some significant remodeling. Much of the area was cordoned off with yellow tape and signs alerting, ‘Caution Construction Underway’ were everywhere.
Several lobbies in the hospital had large displays illustrating what the new hospital was to look like. There were even models to show what the finished project would be.
Provo Hospital Architectural Preview
But before the building could start, before the ground could be broken a plan was necessary, a blueprint. It’s difficult to imagine that anyone would undertake such a construction project without a plan. And this plan would include not only the sequence of building, (i.e. foundation before the walls, etc.), and a schedule (to help the different subcontractors coordinate their efforts), but also a detailed list including the specifications and quality of the materials to be used.
Happiness is something we all desire, not only on a personal level but for our families as well. If you think about it, doesn’t it seem a little risky or foolish to attempt to build happiness without a plan, without a schedule or timetable (goals), without a detailed list of materials (all things that will be needed throughout the building process) and without additional adjuncts to help us visualize our end goal.
In the summer of 1975 I worked in the San Fernando Valley for a printing company called Litton Reprographics. At the time Litton Industries had several aerospace engineering and manufacturing divisions in the valley and this small printing division was charged with providing all of their printed materials, schematics, drawings and blueprints. That summer I learned a lot about printing presses, collators, binders and even an enormous machine that used an ammonium solution to produce the large plans known as blueprints. These blueprints contained very detailed information describing how some part or another was to be built.
The following summer I worked with my uncle Bob in his construction business building custom homes. Again we used large rolled blueprints that consisted of multiple pages containing detailed instructions. There were separate pages for plumbing, electrical, framing, and air conditioning / heating, etc. I noticed that throughout the day, each and every day, the job foreman repeatedly referred to those blueprints so that he could ensure we were building the house exactly the way it had been designed.
Years later while on a service trip with my family to Paraguay we traveled to Bountiful, a remote indian village in the Chaco (a forested, unsettled region of Paraguay). As we pulled up in our bus, full of dental volunteers, I was surprised to see their chapel. It was new and bore a striking resemblance to our chapel back home. As we walked the halls and looked in on the classrooms and baptismal font I was reminded of another benefit of having detailed blueprints and that is no matter where we are in the world, so long as we carefully follow the plan, we can get the same result. In other words, a blueprint doesn’t only work in the United States or in english speaking countries. So long as you can get the needed building materials you can build and achieve the same result anywhere in the world.
Sadly, when it comes to building happiness many have no plan, or an incomplete plan, one that is lacking all of the steps, or includes building materials that are inferior or of lesser quality, in short an inadequate plan. Those who choose to have no plan at all are by default choosing to leave their eternal happiness to chance. But if you think about it isn’t no plan, still a plan in reality?
If you have visited or seen pictures of a favela in Brazil then you will be able to relate to building without a plan. This type of building results in a hodge podge of structures that provide minimum shelter from storms, minimum warmth in the winter and a minimum of security. Arguably these dwellings are better than nothing, but then again when building happiness whoever set their sites so low as to be aiming at nothing.
So now that I’ve belabored my point, let me return to the question at hand. At what stage in the construction process is your happiness? Do you have a plan? Is the plan you are following going to result in a shack, shanty or favela? Or does the blueprint you are using lead to eternal happiness, even a heavenly mansion.
The Savior said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” John 14: 2
So I repeat my question, do you have a proven, tried and tested blueprint for happiness? What do I mean by proven, tried and tested? Let me be perfectly clear, do you have a plan for happiness that will work whenever (in any generation) and wherever it is employed? In good times and in bad, in poverty and in wealth. A plan that will work even in the last days when wars and rumors of wars abound, when the allies of satan are relentlessly attacking all that is good in the world. Do you have a plan for your happiness that will work under any and all circumstances?
You may ask, does such a plan really exist?
The answer? A resounding YES.
Now you say, Okay. But where can if be found?
Let me show you. The plan / blueprint for happiness is contained in the Book of Mormon. And one of the many valuable truths found therein is that we can build happiness in the midst of trials, tribulations and even during life’s most difficult times.
Sometime after arriving in the promised land, Nephi was warned by an angel to take his family and disassociate themselves from his brothers Laman, Lemuel and their families. Imagine the disappointment and sadness he must have experienced knowing his brothers not only rejected his beliefs and his God, but also that they were desirous to once again take his life.
In addition consider the difficulties, stress and anxiety experienced as they hastily left their homes and crops. We can imagine, from accounts of the hardships experienced by Latter-day Saint pioneers, the additional trials and challenges his people faced starting anew.
Yet, a short time after relocating we read, “And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness” (2 Nephi 5:27 emphasis added).
Further examination of this chapter reveals how this was possible and sets the framework for how we too can build happiness amidst trials and tribulations.
In verse 16 of 2 Nephi 5 we read, “And I, Nephi, did build a temple; and I did construct it after the manner of the temple of Solomon” (emphasis added). What does the word manner in this verse mean?
I believe that it is synonymous with either blueprint or pattern. For example the verse could just as easily read, “I did construct it (the temple) following the blueprint of the temple of Solomon.” Or, “I did construct it (the temple) using the pattern of the temple of Solomon.” Either would make perfect sense.
Now let us return to verse 27 in the same chapter and substitute the synonyms. It would then read, “We lived following the blueprint of happiness.” Or, “We lived using the pattern of happiness.” These too make perfect sense. After all, we often refer to the plan of salvation as the plan of happiness. If the synonyms of blueprint or pattern don’t resonate with you personally you could also just as easily plug in the word recipe. What are the special ingredients necessary to make lasting happiness.
Reading through 2 Nephi 5 we can find many elements that are included in the this blueprint / pattern / recipe for happiness. They include:
1— v. 10, “We did observe to keep the judgments, and the statutes, and the commandments of the Lord in all things.” Strict obedience to God and His laws;
2— v. 11, “And the Lord was with us.” They felt gratitude as they recognized the hand of God in their blessings and prosperity;
3— v. 12, They used the scriptures and the Liahona to guide them spiritually and physically;
4—v. 17, They worked hard, and were encouraged to be “industrious and to labor with their hands.”
Even in the midst of their trials, which were often daunting, they didn’t merely get by. The happiness experienced by Nephi and his people was epic—tremendous, you might even say it was legendary. More than 500 years later, in Alma chapter 50 we read about the Nephites, who by this time had been caught up for years in war with the Lamanites. Many husbands, fathers and sons had been killed in the raging conflicts. In addition there had been strife within their government, resulting in dissensions and battles pitting Nephite against Nephite.
Notwithstanding all of these difficulties we read in verse 23, “But behold there never was a happier time among the people of Nephi, since the days of Nephi.” In the preceding verses we can identify the same elements that are part of the blueprint/pattern of happiness:
1—v.v. 14 & 15, They were industrious building many new cities;
2— v. 19, They were grateful, recognizing (remembering) God’s merciful blessings;
3— v. 19, They studied the scriptures and knew of God’s promises;
4— v.v. 20-22, They had a testimony that they would blessed if they were faithful and obedient to God’s commandments .
In short the people of Nephi were living Christ centered lives. The last sentence in 2 Nephi 9:39 along with the acronym S.M.I.L.E., reminds us that to be Spiritually Minded Is Life Eternal.
In conclusion each of us should, from time to time, pause to check our progress on this most important building project. Frequently, perhaps several times a day, ask yourself, “who’s plan am I following? And what building materials am I using?” If happiness is the object and design of your life, and you are desirous to have that happiness last into the eternities, then you must choose to follow God’s blueprint, His plan of happiness.
If instead you choose to seek after manmade, temporal blueprints, using inferior or inadequate materials (i.e. mud v. mortar), things (objects) that moth and rust doth corrupt, then you should not be surprised when life’s tempests erode the very foundation of your happiness.
Note to all builders: Even when you build with quality materials, if your assemblage is in not in accordance with heavenly building codes, then the seismic events in this life may topple your happiness or move you completely off its foundation.