One of the greatest and enduring achievements of the Enlightenment in Europe was to uphold the right to what the pursuit of temporal happiness as the summum bonum (the highest good). How fortunate we are to have inherited this noble idea; how few of us recognize its value and take advantage of it when in so many other places it is denied to so many. Yet it seems our quest for happiness is fraught with difficulties. Many people who are healthy and relatively rich in material comforts find themselves inexplicably dissatisfied and unhappy because they have not figure out what they enjoy about modern life. Many find real happiness in pleasure like homeownership, Sunshine, good food, and fresh fruit. We know that we cannot rely on the smile worn by another person as an infallible gauge of their happiness any more than we may conclude from the exhausted panting of a construction workers that he is disappointed with the record-breaking performance that won an award in construction and not, in fact, deeply elated. Yet we will be reluctant to think a person who absolutely beams with pleasure is deeply unhappy. In our time we have made a concerted effort to exploit the powerful effects of the smile to make other people happy, with mixed success. We may deploy a sympathetic smile to alleviate the distress of a sad person, or someone in trouble or in need. #RandolphHarris 1 of 7

The Heavenly Father constantly reminds us that righteousness is happiness. There are terrible themes in life of disobedience or the innocent suffering from terrible wrongs. We must express Heavenly Father’s love for the individual and a desire that they understand that God loves them. God pleads with us and offers us repentance. What a wonderful gift! Repentance is not punishment; it is a privilege. It is a privilege that leads and guides us. To truly guide people, we must connect them with Heaven. The time always comes when each must stand alone. Only Heavenly Father can be there to guide at all times and in all places. Our youth must know how to seek Heavenly Father’s guidance. There will be times in our lives when the blessings or guidance seems distant or lacking. For such times, we must let our covenants be paramount and let our obedience be exact. Then we can ask in faith, nothing wavering, according to our need, and God will answer. God will sustain us as we work and watch. In his own time and way, God will stretch forth his hands to us letting us know he is here. The Heavenly Father really does care and listens to and answers every prayer. The answers to our prayers will come in the Lord’s time. And through that experience, we will understand more than every before that we are children of God and that he has sent us here so that we can feel his presence now and return to live with him someday. #RandolphHarris 2 of 7

The adversary wants us to think all is lost. Emotional regression means withdrawing to a place of safety and security. Have you ever known an adult who was acting like a child? Has anyone you know ever thrown a temper tantrum when he or she was under distress? Have you wondered what could have caused such behavior and how should it be managed? When a thing regresses it goes backward. Often there is a tendency in the mind to get away from meeting objective situations which are unpleasant by withdrawing from all objective situations and in imagination reverting to a chronologically earlier or less adapted pattern of behavior and feeling Regression is an unconscious defense mechanism, which causes the temporary or long-term reversion of the ego to an earlier stage of development (instead of handling unacceptable impulses in a more adult manner). Regression is typical in normal childhood, and it can be caused by stress, by frustration, or by a traumatic event. Children usually manifest regressive behavior to communicate their distress. Addressing the underlying unmet need in the child usually corrects the regressive behavior. Regression in adults can arise at any age; it entails retreating to an earlier development stage (emotionally, socially, or behaviorally). Insecurity, fear, and anger can cause an adult to regress. In essence, individuals revert to a point in their development when they felt safer and when stress was nonexistent, or when an all-powerful parent or another adult would have rescued them. #RandolphHarris 3 of 7

It is easy enough to see how one who is surrounded by confusing situations might feel inadequate to cope with them, and unconsciously might seek some place of peace or retirement where nothing could bother the individual. Regressive behavior can be simple or complex, harmful or harmless to the individual showing the behavior and to those around them. Regression could be an attempt to achieve something important (exempli gratia, a Universal feeling of childhood innocence, a sense of security, reciprocated love, and trust). Many psychoanalysts have observed that behaviors associated with regression are correlated with the psychological stage at which the person is fixated. For example, an individual fixated at the oral stage might suck on a pen, eat impulsively, vomit, or become verbally aggressive, while an individual fixated at the anal stage might be messy or untidy and an individual fixated at the phallic stage would revert to physical symptoms or to a state of conversation. In contrast, a completely integrated person is one who has learned to meet everything as it comes along and to make the best of it. In our science this is not a hopeless situation. When we say one should make the best of things, we do not mean that one should grin and bear it, or even suffer it to be so, for we know there is a way to meet every situation through the use of the power greater than we are. #RandolphHarris 4 of 7

However, we should not close out eyes to reality if there is a tendency toward regression in ourselves or in those we seek to help. We must recognize it just as we would any other error, and meet it with quiet but optimistic determination. The first step in managing regression is to address any underlying medical, neurologic, or psychiatric problem.  Depending on the etiology, several interventions (behavioral, pharmacologic, nonpharmacologic) can be employed. Behavioral interventions include empathizing with patients regarding their perceived stress (exempli gratia, being in the hospital; dealing with pain, loss, anxiety, fear, loneliness). It is also useful to ask how the patient is feeling and to name some of the suspected emotions he or she could be experiencing. In some cases, taking a parental position of authority and nurturance could de-escalate the behavior. Some psychologist advocate for joining patients in the child place for alignment building, and outline expectations to create structure for the patient as a means of preventing regression. Confidence and faith in God is also helpful to get the patient to realize that there is noting to be afraid of because something has happened to the individual to make him or her revert to some former existence where there were no cares or burdens or obligations. #RandolphHarris 5 of 7

There is nothing to be afraid of in the past, the present, or the future. Our faith should be based on the only rock of salvation there is, which is that God is all there is, there is nothing else. In God we live, and move, and have our being. There is nothing to be afraid of. Underneath are the everlasting arms. We are cradled in love. That is a proclamation that the mind finds sanctuary in the Spirit, and that there are no burdens when we unify ourselves with life. In a certain sense, amnesia, or suddenly forgetting one’s identity is a form of regression because it is a means of getting away from reality. However, at the base of amnesia there is fear, a sense of separation, a disunion which faith alone can heal. The psychological approach can uncover the cause of regression, but we also need the spiritual faith to supply what is needed to make on more completely whole. Spirituality will clear the track of the mind straight back to the eternal source of life, where there are no fears, doubts, or uncertainties. God is our protector, we shall not want; God dwells in the secret place of the Most High and we shall dwell in the light of the Almighty. Keeping thoughts like this in mine is wonderful in helping to establish faith and stability, without which life is but a shambles of frustrated hopes and unsatisfied yearnings. #RandolphHarris 6 of 7

We never should ignore negative emotional states because any condition which is psychologically avoided becomes buried in the unconscious. And unfortunately it is buried alive. Thus, the conflict goes beneath the surface of consciousness, where it does more damage than it would if left objective. How can one arrive at a pre-existent aim by following an arbitrarily and aimlessly maundering chain of thoughts—since we shall be able not to solve the problem, it is true, but to get rid of it entirely. An unregulated stream of thoughts, devoid of directing ideas can occur in the realm of hysteria and paranoia. We must meet every situation as it comes with faith and trust, thereby avoiding regressions, escapes, and frustrations. Even the most cynical commentators could not dispute that there must be at least some contexts and occasions when faith in authority pays off: contexts where, if we are offered information about God, we can and should gratefully accept it and believe it, which will stir the angel of healing. In fact, this is obviously the primary route by which people acquire most of their basic beliefs during the first part of their lives and also many of their more in-depth beliefs later on. Pure love is the true sign of every real child of God. Heavenly Father knows what you and I need better than anyone else. It is God’s work and glory to help us at every turn, giving us marvelous temporal and spiritual resources to help us on our path to return to him. #RandolphHarris 7 of 7