Men are that they might have joy

As a missionary, you get to meet a whole bunch of people every single day. My experiences have led me to discover that there are a bunch of unhappy people in the world. I can't help but wonder why this is. The prophet Lehi in the Book of Mormon teaches simply that one of the reasons that God has put us on this earth is for us to be happy. "Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy." (2 Nephi 2:25)

So if one of the purposes of mortality is to be happy, why are tons of people completely miserable? To be sincerely honest, a lot of the time it's because they choose to be. The prophet Lehi also taught on the power and the lasting impact of our choices:  "Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself." (2 Nephi 2:27)

I love music. Music, no matter what language we all speak, touches all who hear and all who hear understand the message of what is being portrayed. One of my favorite composers is a man named Eric Whitacre. The video below is one of his songs entitled "Hope, Faith, Life, Love." This song has only eight words: hope, faith, life, love, dream, joy, truth, and soul. As you listen to this beautiful choral arrangement, focus on what word is focused on longest and is the most elaborated musically.

I know that we can choose to be happy. Life is going to hand you lemons sometimes. That's as real and unavoidable as death and taxes. The real question is what are you going to do with those lemons. Lemonade sounds good to me!