How Great Shall Be Your Joy

To my daughter, 

               This week in the Come, Follow Me scriptures we learned about the people of the Lamanites who were converted through the preaching of the sons of Mosiah. This people who had been once very wicked and enemies of the Nephites became totally committed to the gospel of Jesus Christ and received a remission of their sins. Because of this, they obtained great joy, as did the missionaries who labored among them. Their king expressed his deep feelings of gratitude in these stirring words, “And I also thank my God, yea, my great God, that he hath granted unto us that we might repent of these things, and also that he hath forgiven us of those our many sins and murders which we have committed, and taken away the guilt from our hearts, through the merits of his Son…. And the great God has had mercy on us, and made these things known unto us that we might not perish; yea, and he has made these things known unto us beforehand, because he loveth our souls as well as he loveth our children; therefore, in his mercy he doth visit us by his angels, that the plan of salvation might be made known unto us as well as unto future generations. Oh, how merciful is our God!” (Alma 24:10,14-15) This people were full of joy because they obtained a remission of their sins and came to know the Lord personally. As they changed their ways and repented, they were filled with the light of God that brought them true happiness. 

                The missionaries who worked and suffered so much to bring them the gospel also were filled with joy at what happened to these Lamanites. Ammon expressed his feelings this way: “Behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God…. Therefore, let us glory, yea, we will glory in the Lord; yea, we will rejoice, for our joy is full; yea, we will praise our God forever. Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power, and of his mercy, and of his long-suffering towards the children of men?... Yea, I say unto you, there never were men that had so great reason to rejoice as we, since the world began; yea, and my joy is carried away, even unto boasting in my God; for he has all power, all wisdom, and all understanding; he comprehendeth all things, and he is a merciful Being, even unto salvation, to those who will repent and believe on his name. Now if this is boasting, even so will I boast; for this is my life and my light, my joy and my salvation, and my redemption from everlasting wo” (Alma 26:11, 16, 35-36). That is a lot of joy and rejoicing! Ammon was truly filled with joy because of his own redemption through Jesus Christ and because of how he witnessed the conversion of these Lamanites during his fourteen years of laboring among them. Their story highlights the great joy that can be ours as we live the gospel ourselves and as we share it with others.

               In our day the Lord has also emphasized that we obtain joy as we repent of our sins and help others to do the same. To Oliver Cowdery he said this: “Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;… And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth!” That means that God Himself also experiences joy as we repent and come unto Him. He continued, “And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!” As we seek to point people to Him and teach them the gospel, we can find great joy. I hope that you and I will always remember that we will have the most joy not in obtaining the things of the world but in helping the world obtain the things of God. Through your example and your kindness and your testimony of Jesus Christ and the Restoration, you can bring many people back to Him and find great joy.  

Love,

Dad