Post 25: The Six Questions That Lead to Lasting Joy—What Matters Most

Discover six questions that focus your life on eternal priorities—stewardships, choices, and the Savior. Build on Christ and experience lasting joy through every storm.

Lasting joy flows from the questions you ask—and whether your choices reflect what matters most to God.

The Eternal Weight of Today’s Choices

Your choices today ripple into eternity. They shape not only who you become but the joy you experience—now and forever.

President Russell M. Nelson taught:

“Your choices today will determine three things: where you will live throughout all eternity, the kind of body with which you will be resurrected, and those with whom you will live forever.”

These three outcomes reveal the path to joy. They point to the things that matter most—the things that bring peace, happiness, and fulfillment. But how do you ensure your choices align with God’s plan?

In a prior post, I introduced six divine stewardships taught by President David O. McKay. These stewardships guide us to focus on what truly matters. When they are prioritized, joy becomes the natural result.

Avoiding Misplaced Focus

The world offers distractions, fleeting pleasures, and empty pursuits. Many build their lives on sand—seeking comfort, recognition, or temporary gains. But when trials come, these foundations crumble, leaving only emptiness.

True joy cannot be found in misplaced focus. It flows from aligning your heart and actions with God’s will. It comes from magnifying the stewardships He has entrusted to you.

The Six Questions That Reveal Eternal Priorities

President David O. McKay taught six questions that reveal what we value most:

1. Becoming like God
   Have you become one with your spouse, serving her as your eternal partner? Are you building a union that prepares you to become an exalted couple in the Lord?
2. Raising your family in truth
   Have you brought joy to your children by guiding them to discover their divine identity and fulfill their purpose?
3. Magnifying your gifts
   Have you discovered, developed, and shared the talents God gave you? What record will your resurrected body hold of the good you created?
4. Joining the Lord’s work
   Have you used your talents to build His kingdom and bring harmony and salvation to His children?
5. Laboring with integrity
   Have you honored godly principles in your work, offering it to Him with purpose and diligence?
6. Spreading God’s love
   Has the pure love of Christ, which blesses your family, flowed outward to lift your community, your nation, and the world?

When you focus on these stewardships, joy becomes inevitable. President Nelson declared:

“The joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives.”

Preparing to Be Perfected in the Lord

To think celestial is to focus on Him. It is to turn your heart and mind to the things of eternal value. When you care for the stewardships He has given you, you align with His will, inviting His grace to perfect you.

Being perfected in the Lord is not about worldly perfectionism. It is about allowing His light to refine you—one choice at a time. It is growing in humility, love, and grace as you fulfill the measure of your creation.

Ask yourself:

• Are you focusing on your stewardships—your spouse, your family, your gifts, and your service?
• Are you preparing to stand confidently before the Lord, knowing you have magnified what He has entrusted to you?

If you feel you lack a stewardship, begin seeking. Ask the Lord to guide you to those who need your care and talents. Stewardships come as you seek them, and joy follows as you magnify them.

Joy That Endures Every Circumstance

When you focus on these six stewardships, joy fills your life—not because trials vanish, but because your foundation is secure. You are built on Christ, the rock that cannot fail.

You will find:

• Joy in unity with your spouse as you become one.
• Joy in raising your children in light and truth.
• Joy in magnifying your talents to bless others.
• Joy in building His kingdom and laboring with purpose.
• Joy in spreading His love to lift and inspire those around you.

This is the joy President Nelson promised. It begins now, as you align with God’s will, and grows forever as you prepare for eternity.

“If ye do this, ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God.” (Mosiah 4:12)

Turn your tent toward Him. Focus on what matters most. Build your life on Christ, and He will guide you to peace, purpose, and joy.

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Originally published December 17, 2024.