Peace and Joy

Earlier this month I wrote "Peace and Joy" on the whiteboard to help me remember to focus on those qualities during this Christmas season, and look for opportunities to feel peace and joy. A few days later I was reading in the new church handbook and was struck by a paragraph that mentioned peace and joy; it also mentioned love. The paragraph was on the duty of the ward council to help new members stay strong. It says "They [the ward council] counsel about ways to help new members feel the love of other members, the joy of serving in the Lord's kingdom, and the peace that comes through living gospel principles." If we truly want to feel joy, we need to serve others, and if we want to feel peace, we need to be obedient to God's commandments. It's that simple. I'm so grateful that I have plenty of opportunities to feel love and joy and peace, particularly at Christmas, but all throughout the year as well.