The Twenty Eigth Day Christmas Celebration

"True happiness comes only by making others happy-- the practical application of the Savior's doctrine of losing one's life to gain it.  In short, the Christmas spirit is the Christ Spirit, that makes our hearts glow in brotherly love and friendship and prompts us to kind deeds of service.  It is the spirit of the gospel of Jesus Chrsit, obedience to which will bring 'peace on earth,' because it means--good will toward all men" (Pres. David O. McKay, Gospel Ideals, 1953, 551).   

I think that sometimes we misunderstand the meaning of quotes like this and we begin to think that we need to please everyone.  When that mentality comes upon us, we begin to fret and worry about trying to please everyone.  We begine to do things or plan things that in the end really just take away people's agency.  Trying to help someone be happy and trying to please everyone are two different things.  Heavenly Father does not try to please everyone.  He has provided a way for us to choose to be happy, but He doesn't try to please everyone, and the only person Jesus ever tried to please way His Father.  Let us not mix the two up. 

Let me pose an example.  Someone plans a Christmas party or program and is trying to please everyone.  But because all the people involved are so different, the person doing the planning ends up concerned more about what all the people will think and feel rather than what Heavenly Father would inspire that planner to do. 

Heavenly Father might inspire someone to plan an activity a certain way.  I can guarentee that His way is the best way, and the way that will lead to the greatest happiness.  However, not everyone will always choose to be happy with that way.  That is thier choice, but we shouldn't concern ourselves with that as much as "what would please my Heavenly Father".  We musn't get in the way of letting them choose that (to be unhappy), letting them use thier agency.  If they don't like what an inspired person has done and it didn't make them happy, we shouldn't shoulder that burden.  If we pleased our Heavenly Father, then we did the right thing. 

This Christmas season let us not worry about trying to please everyone.  Let us in inspired ways try to help people find the greatest happiness and we can do that by pleasing Heavenly Father.

The Releif Society is having a Christmas Party tonight at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building.  I signed up to bring a dessert.  I am not sure which one I will bring, but I love that I can share some of the things that I have made.