It has never been more important to seek personal peace.

Prior to Christ’s suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane

and on the cross,

He commanded His Apostles to

“love one another;

as I have loved you”

and subsequently comforted them

with these words:

“Peace I leave with you,

my peace I give unto you:

not as the world giveth, give I unto you.

Let not your heart be troubled,

neither let it be afraid.”

One of the most cherished titles

of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

is “Prince of Peace.”

Ultimately

His kingdom will be established including

peace and love.

Notwithstanding this vision of the millennial reign,

we know that

world peace and

harmony

are not prevalent in our day.

In my lifetime, I have never seen a greater lack of civility.

We are bombarded with angry,

contentious language and

provocative,

devastating actions that

destroy peace

and tranquility.

Peace in the world is not promised or assured

until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

The Savior instructed His Apostles

that His earthly mission

would not achieve

universal peace.

He taught,

“Think not that I am come to send peace on earth.”

Universal peace was

not part of the Savior’s initial mortal ministry.

Universal peace does not exist today.

However,

personal peace can be achieved despite

the anger, contention, and division

that blight and corrupt our world today.

It has never been more important to seek personal peace.

A beautiful and beloved new hymn,

written for today’s youth by Brother Nik Day,

titled “Peace in Christ” declares,

“When there’s no peace on earth,

there is peace in Christ.”

This hymn reflects in

a beautiful fashion

the aspiration for peace

and appropriately emphasizes that

peace is anchored in the life

and mission

of Jesus Christ.

President Joseph F. Smith declared,

“There never can come to the world that spirit of peace and love … until mankind will

receive God’s truth and God’s message …

and acknowledge his

power and authority

which is divine.”

While we will

never retreat from efforts to achieve universal peace,

we have been

assured that we can have personal peace,

as Christ teaches.

This principle is set forth in the Doctrine and Covenants:

“But learn that he who doeth the works of righteousness

shall receive his reward,

even peace in this world,

and eternal life

in the world to come.”

What are some of the “works of righteousness”

that will help us

deal with disputations and

lessen contention and

find peace in this world?

All of Christ’s teachings

point in this direction.

I will mention a few which I believe

are particularly important.

First: Love God, Live His Commandments, and Forgive Everyone

President George Albert Smith became

President of the Church in 1945.

He had been known during his years as an Apostle

as a peace-loving leader.

In the preceding 15 years before he became President,

the challenges and trials of a massive worldwide depression,

followed by the death and destruction of World War II,

had been anything but peaceful.

At the conclusion of World War II,

during his first general conference as President in October 1945, President Smith reminded the Saints of

the Savior’s invitation to love their neighbors

and forgive their enemies

and then taught,

“That is the spirit all Latter-day Saints should seek to possess

if they hope some day

to stand in his presence

and receive at his hands

a glorious welcome home.”

Second: Seek the Fruits of the Spirit

The Apostle Paul, in his Epistle to the Galatians,

sets forth the dichotomy between works of righteousness

that qualify us to inherit the kingdom of God

and works that can,

without repentance, disqualify us.

Among those that qualify us are the fruits of the Spirit:

“love, joy, peace,

longsuffering, gentleness, goodness,

faith, meekness, [and] temperance.”

Paul also includes

bearing one another’s burdens

and being not weary in well-doing.

Among those works that are

not righteous he includes

hatred, wrath, and strife.

One of the great lessons in the Old Testament period

relates to Father Abraham.

Abraham and Lot, his nephew,

were wealthy but found they could not dwell together.

To eliminate strife,

Abraham allowed Lot to choose the land he wanted.

Lot chose the plain of Jordan,

which was both well watered and beautiful.

Abraham took the less fertile plain of Mamre.

The scriptures read that Abraham then

pitched his tent and built

“an altar unto the Lord.”

Lot, on the other hand,

“pitched his tent toward Sodom.”

To have peaceful relationships, the lesson is clear:

we should be willing to

compromise and

eliminate strife with respect to matters that

do not involve righteousness.

As King Benjamin taught,

“Ye will not have a mind to injure one another,

but to live peaceably.”

But on conduct relating to righteousness

and doctrinal imperatives,

we need to remain firm and steadfast.

If we want to have the peace

which is the reward of the works of righteousness,

we will not pitch our tents toward the world.

We will pitch our tents toward the temple.

Third: Exercise Agency to Choose Righteousness

Peace and agency are intertwined as

essential elements of the plan of salvation.

As described in the Gospel Topics article “Agency and Accountability,”

“Agency is the ability

and privilege

God gives us to choose and to act for ourselves.”

Thus, agency is at the heart of the personal growth and experience that bless us as we follow the Savior.

Agency was a principal issue in the

premortal Council in Heaven and

the conflict between those who

chose to follow Christ

and the followers of Satan.

Letting go of pride

and control

and choosing the Savior

would allow us to have

His light and His peace.

But personal peace would be challenged

when people exercised their agency in

harmful and hurtful ways.

I am confident

that the peaceful assurance we felt in our hearts

was strengthened by the knowledge we had

of what the Savior of the world would accomplish in our behalf.

“As we rely on the Atonement of Jesus Christ,

He can help us endure our trials,

sicknesses,

and pain.

We can be filled with joy,

peace,

and consolation.

All that is unfair about life

can be made right through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.”

Fourth: Build Zion in Our Hearts and Homes

We are children of God

and part of His family.

We are also part of the family into which we are born.

The institution of the family is the

foundation for both

happiness and peace.

President Russell M. Nelson has taught us—

and during this pandemic we have learned—

that the home-centered,

Church-supported religious observance can

“unleash the power of families …

to transform [our] home[s] into a

sanctuary of faith.”

If we have this religious observance in our homes,

we will also have the Savior’s peace.

We are aware that many of you

do not have the blessings of

righteous homes and

contend regularly with those who

choose unrighteousness.

The Savior can provide

protection and peace

to guide you ultimately

to safety and

shelter from life’s storms.

I assure you that the

joy, love, and fulfillment experienced in

loving, righteous families produce both

peace and happiness.

Love and kindness

are at the center

of having Zion in

our hearts and homes.

Fifth: Follow Admonations of Prophets

We can “feel enduring peace and joy, even during turbulent times, as we strive to become more like our Savior, Jesus Christ."

Russel M. Nelson

When we repent daily to receive the Lord’s

cleansing, healing, and strengthening power.

then worship our Heavenly Father

and our Savior, Jesus Christ,

and are ministered to

by the Holy Ghost.

I testify and provide my personal apostolic witness that

Jesus Christ,

the Savior and Redeemer

of the world,

can lead and guide us.

His life and atoning mission are the

true

source of

peace.

He is the

Prince of Peace.

I bear my sure and solemn witness that

He lives.

In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Peace I leave with you,

my peace I give unto you:

not as the world giveth, give I unto you.

Let not your heart be troubled,

neither let it be afraid.

John 14:27

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:

and the government shall be upon his shoulder:

and his name shall be called

Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God,

The everlasting Father,

The Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6

Peace in Christ

Words and music by Nik Day

There is peace in Christ
When we learn of Him.
Feel the love He felt for us
When He bore our sins.
Listen to His words.
Let them come alive.
If we know Him as He is,
There is peace in Christ.

He gives us hope
When hope is gone.
He gives us strength
When we can’t go on.
He gives us shelter
In the storms of life.
When there’s no peace on earth,
There is peace in Christ.

There is peace in Christ
When we walk with Him
Through the streets of Galilee
To Jerusalem.
Mend the broken hearts.
Dry the tear-filled eyes.
When we live the way He lived,
There is peace in Christ.

He gives us hope
When hope is gone.
He gives us strength
When we can’t go on.
He gives us shelter
In the storms of life.
When there’s no peace on earth,
There is peace in Christ.

He gives us hope
When hope is gone.
He gives us strength
When we can’t go on.
He gives us shelter
In the storms of life.

When there’s no peace on earth,
There is peace in Christ.
When there’s no peace on earth,
There is peace in Christ.