I have had the great blessing of speaking at general conference for three decades now. During that time, I have been asked questions relating to these messages by many around the world. Lately, one particular question keeps coming up. It usually goes something like this: “Elder Uchtdorf, I listened carefully to your last talk, but … I didn’t hear anything about aviation.”

Well, after today, I might not hear that question for a while.

On “the Tumbling Mirth of Sun-Split Clouds”

It’s hard to believe it was only 120 years ago when Wilbur and Orville Wright first lifted off and flew over the sands of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Four short flights on that December day changed the world and opened the door to one of the greatest inventions in the world’s history.

Flying was risky in those early days. The brothers knew this. And so did their father, Milton. In fact, he was so terrified of losing both of his sons in a flying accident that they promised him they would never fly together.

And they never did—with one exception. Seven years after that historic day at Kitty Hawk, Milton Wright finally gave his consent and watched as Wilbur and Orville flew together for the first time. After landing, Orville convinced his father to take his first and only flight and to see for himself what it was like.

As the plane lifted from the ground, the 82-year-old Milton got so caught up in the exhilaration of flight that all fear left him. Orville rejoiced as his father shouted with delight, “Higher, Orville, higher!”

This was a man after my own heart!

Perhaps the reason I speak about aviation occasionally is that I know something of what the Wrights felt. I too have “slipped the surly bonds of Earth and danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings.”

The Wright brothers’ first flight, which happened a mere 37 years before my birth, opened doors of adventure, wonder, and pure joy into my life.

And yet, as amazing as that joy is, there is an even higher kind of joy. Today, in the spirit of Milton Wright’s delighted cry, “Higher, Orville, higher,” I would like to speak about this higher joy—where it comes from, how it enters our hearts, and how we can experience it in greater measure.

Where do you find YOUR greatest joy?

The Whole Aim of Human Existence

It probably goes without saying that everyone wants to be happy. Nevertheless, it also goes without saying that not everyone is happy. Sadly, it seems that for many people, happiness is hard to find.

Why is that? If happiness is the one thing we humans desire most, why are we so unsuccessful at finding it? To paraphrase a country song, maybe we’ve been looking for joy in all the wrong places.

See my blog ‘How can I Be Happier?’

Where Can We Find Happiness?

Before we discuss how to find joy, allow me to acknowledge that depression and other difficult mental and emotional challenges are real, and the answer is not simply “Try to be happier.” My purpose today is not to diminish or trivialize mental health issues. If you face such challenges, I mourn with you, and I stand beside you. For some people, finding joy may include seeking help from trained mental health professionals who devote their lives to practicing their very important art. We should be thankful for such help.

Life is not an endless sequence of emotional highs. “For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things.” And if God Himself weeps, as the scriptures affirm He does, then of course you and I will weep as well. Feeling sad is not a sign of failure. In this life, at least, joy and sorrow are inseparable companions. Like all of you, I have felt my share of disappointment, sorrow, sadness, and remorse.

Elder Matthias Held, also at the April 2024 General Conference said:

“Now, there is one additional principle that is especially important. Lehi said that there “must needs be … an opposition in all things.”[ 2 Nephi 2:11 emphasis added.] This means that opposites don’t exist apart from each other. They can even complement each other. We would not be able to identify joy unless we had also experienced sorrow at some point. Feeling hungry at times helps us to be especially grateful when we do have enough to eat again. We would not be able to identify truth unless we had also seen lies here and there.”

Promise

However, I have also experienced for myself the glorious dawn that fills the soul with joy so profound that it can scarcely be kept in. I have discovered for myself that this peaceful confidence comes from following the Savior and walking in His Way.

The peace He gives us is not like what the world gives. It’s better. It’s higher and holier. Jesus said, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

No matter how daunting the challenges in our lives or in the world around us, we know we can have peace through the power of the infinite Atonement because Christ overcame the world. The hope of deliverance and the expectation of a better world to come are fostered through faith in Jesus Christ and in His Atonement. Christ has the ability to cure both people and countries. His Atonement enables sins to be forgiven and sets individuals free from illnesses and addictions. His teachings contain the keys to living in peace individually and as a world. 

The gospel of Jesus Christ is truly the “good news of great joy”! It is a message of matchless hope! A message of yoke-bearing and burden-lifting. Of light-gathering. Of heavenly favor, higher understanding, holier covenants, eternal security, and everlasting glory!

Joy is the very purpose of God’s plan for His children. It’s what you were created for—“that [you] might have joy”! You were built for this!

How does the gospel of Jesus Christ help you to find joy?

Our Father in Heaven has not hidden the path to happiness. It is not a secret. It is available to all!

In the footnotes to his talk, Elder Uchtdorf says:

‘If you have any concerns about whether or not your Father in Heaven will accept you and allow you to receive His joy, I invite you to prayerfully read Christ’s parable of the prodigal son (see Luke 15:11–32). In that parable, we learn how our Heavenly Father feels about His children and how He awaits and celebrates our return after we have strayed from Him! From the moment we “come to ourselves” (see verse 17) and begin the journey home, He will see us, for He stands watching and waiting. And what is He waiting for? For us! As we draw near to Him, He will celebrate our return and call us His child.It is promised to those who walk the path of discipleship, follow the teachings and example of the Savior, keep His commandments, and honor covenants they make with God. What a remarkable promise!’

God Has Something More to Offer

We all know people who say that they don’t need God to be happy, that they are happy enough without religion.

How do you respond to such people?

I acknowledge and respect these feelings. Our beloved Father in Heaven wants all His children to have as much happiness as possible, so He has filled this world with beautiful, wholesome pleasures and delights, “both to please the eye and … gladden the heart.” For me, flying brought great happiness. Others find it in music, in art, in hobbies, or in nature.

By inviting everyone and sharing the Savior’s good news of great joy, we do not discount any of these sources of joy. We’re simply saying that God has something more to give. A higher and more profound joy—a joy that transcends anything this world offers. It is a joy that endures heartbreak, penetrates sorrow, and diminishes loneliness.

In his October 2019 General Conference talk, Elder D Todd Christofferson talked about the joy of the Saints that comes from three sources:

• the joy of keeping Christ’s commandments
• the joy of overcoming through Christ
• the joy of serving as Christ serves.

What is joy? Is it different to happiness or pleasure?

Notice that each of these sources of joy spring from Christ in some way. Worldly happiness, by contrast, does not last. It cannot. It is the nature of all earthly things to grow old, decay, wear out, or become stale. But godly joy is eternal, because God is eternal. Jesus Christ came to lift us out of the temporal and replace corruption with incorruption. Only He has that power, and only His joy is perpetual.

Invitation

If you feel there could be more of this kind of joy in your life, I invite you to embark on the journey of following Jesus Christ and His Way. It is a journey of a lifetime—and beyond. Please let me suggest a few beginning steps on this worthy journey of discovering pure joy.

How is Jesus Christ the ultimate source of joy?

Draw Near unto God

Do you remember the woman in the New Testament who endured a bleeding illness for 12 years? She had spent all she had on physicians, but things only grew worse. She had heard of Jesus; His power to heal was well known. But could He heal her? And how could she even get near Him? Her sickness made her “unclean” according to the law of Moses, and therefore she was required to stay away from others.

Approaching Him openly and asking for healing seemed out of the question.

Still, she thought, “If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.”

At last, her faith overcame her fear. She braved the censure of others and pressed toward the Savior.

Finally, she was within reach. She extended her hand.

And she was healed.

Aren’t we all somewhat like this woman?

In what ways are we all somewhat like this woman?

There may be many reasons why we hesitate to draw near to the Savior. We may face ridicule or condemnation by others. In our pride, we may dismiss the possibility of something so simple being of so much value. We may think that our condition somehow disqualifies us from His healing—that the distance is too great or our sins too many.

Promise

Like this woman, I have learned that if we draw near to God and reach out to touch Him, we can indeed find healing, peace, and joy.

Is this something that you have experienced personally?

Look for It

Promise

Jesus taught, “Seek, and ye shall find.”

I believe this simple phrase is not only a spiritual promise; it is a statement of fact.

If we seek reasons to be angry, to doubt, to be bitter or alone, we will find them too.

However, if we seek joy—if we look for reasons to rejoice and to happily follow the Savior, we will find them.

We rarely find something we are not looking for.

Are you looking for joy?

Seek, and ye shall find.

President Lorenzo Snow said, “The Lord has not given us the gospel that we may go around mourning all the days of our lives.”

‘My dear brothers and sisters, the joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives.

When the focus of our lives is on God’s plan of salvation, which President Thomas S. Monson just taught us, and Jesus Christ and His gospel, we can feel joy regardless of what is happening—or not happening—in our lives. Joy comes from and because of Him. He is the source of all joy.’ (President Russell M Nelson, General Conference, October 2016)

Bear One Another’s Burdens

Jesus taught, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

Can it be that in our search for joy, the best way to find it is to bring joy to others?

Promise

Brothers and sisters, you know and I know this is true! Joy is like a barrel of flour or a jar of oil that will never run out.True joy multiplies when it is shared.

It doesn’t require something grand or complicated.

We can do simple things.

Like praying for someone with all our heart.

Giving a sincere compliment.

Helping someone feel welcome, respected, valued, and loved.

Sharing a favorite scripture and what it means to us.

Or even just by listening.

“When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God,” and God will repay your kindness generously. The joy you give to others will return to you in “good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over.”

When have you felt joy through serving others?

“What Shall We Do Then?”

Invitation

During the coming days, weeks, and months, may I invite you to:

• Spend time in a sincere, full-hearted effort to draw near to God.
• Seek diligently for everyday moments of hope, peace, and joy.
• Bring joy to others around you.

Promise

My dear brothers and sisters, dear friends, as you search the word of God for a deeper understanding of God’s eternal plan, accept these invitations, and strive to walk in His Way, you will experience “the peace of God, which passeth all understanding,”  even in the midst of sorrows. You will feel a greater measure of God’s unsurpassable love swelling within your heart. The dawn of celestial light will penetrate the shadows of your trials, and you will begin to taste the unspeakable glories and wonders of the unseen, perfect, heavenly sphere. You will feel your spirit lifting away from the gravity of this world.

And like good Milton Wright, perhaps you will raise your voice in rejoicing and shout, “Higher, Father, higher!”

May we all seek and find the higher joy that comes from devoting our lives to our Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son. This is my earnest prayer and blessing in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Which of Elder Uchtdorf’s promises or invitations struck a chord with you?

NB: Passages in italics are direct excerpts from Elder Uchtdorf’s talk.

You can watch Elder Uchtdorf’s talk here.

If this post has been helpful to you please leave a ‘like’ or a comment!