Joy Versus Pleasure

I don't know about you guys, but I grew up learning that joy and pleasure were two different things.  When I went to look them up in the dictionary, I was a bit surprised:

Joy: a very glad feeling; happiness, delight
Pleasure: a pleased feeling; delight; one's wish, will or choice

Wait, so...They mean the same thing?  What do you think of when you hear the word pleasure though?  What about joy?

When I think of pleasure I think of coming home from a hard day of work, kicking my feet up on the coffee table, sinking into the couch, and biting into a spectacular chocolate bar.  Or maybe sliding into a hot bubble bath after being out in a rainstorm and hearing the rain pounding against the windows while I sit enveloped in warmth.  Or maybe getting kissed on the cheek while laughing.  Those things bring me pleasure.  Maybe for you it's watching your sports team pull out the winner from a neck-and-neck game.  Or driving your motorbike super fast down a freeway.  Or singing along to your favorite song in the car.  Pleasure is awesome.

When I think of joy I think of looking into The Man's eyes on our wedding day and knowing that I would be spending eternity with the man that I love.  I think of my parents' house on Christmas day, with my millions of siblings  (ok, 8 siblings) ripping open presents and hugging each other and laughing and getting excited about giving gifts to each other.  I think about what it will feel like to hold my own child in my arms for the very first time (and the thousands of times after that).  I think about late nights spent talking with friends, the feelings I get at church, and hugging.  Joy feels different to me.

At church today one of the speakers put it into much better words that I ever could have: Pleasure is about me and now; joy is about us and forever.

Looking back at what brings me pleasure, I can totally agree.  Pleasure is a personal thing.  It's about getting what you want at that moment.  Even the definition kind of agrees with me there: one's wish, will, or choice.  Pleasure isn't really about making other people happy, it's about making yourself happy.  And there is nothing wrong with that at all.  We should definitely get pleasure out of life.  Life would be a whole lot less fun without moments of pleasure.

However.  "The kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost" - Romans 14:17.  "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith" -Galations 5:22.  "Men are, that they might have joy" -2 Nephi 2:25.  We're not here for fleeting moments of pleasure; we're here for joy.  The joy of family, the joy of friends, the joy of service, the joy of knowing that you are loved and important and necessary.

I believe joy is garnered from growing positive relationships with each other, serving people who need our help, recognizing your blessings, and being grateful for the good instead of focusing on the negative.  Joy is that feeling that we've found a little bit of Heaven on Earth.  Joy is an almost overwhelming feeling where you can almost feel God's arms wrapped around you.  Joy is so much more than pleasure.  Joy, to me, is God showing us a tiny fraction of how much He loves us.

If you've felt true joy, you know exactly what I'm talking about.  Eating an amazing chocolate bar will NEVER be as great as holding your newborn child.  I'm not saying the chocolate isn't wonderful, I'm just saying the child is so much more so.

Are you ready for today's challenge?  Bring joy into your life.  Foster meaningful relationships.  Help someone out.  Call up your parents or siblings or children and tell them you love them.  List the blessings in your life and thank God for all He has given you.  I promise you that if you actively try to bring joy into your life it will come, and it will change you for the better.