Never Alone

From Elder Holland's most recent General Conference address:

Against all odds and with none to help or uphold Him, Jesus of Nazareth, the living Son of the living God, restored physical life where death had held sway and brought joyful, spiritual redemption out of sin, hellish darkness and despair. With faith in the God He knew was there, He could say in triumph, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.”
... because Jesus walked such a long, lonely path utterly alone, we do not have to do so. His solitary journey brought great company for our little version of that path—the merciful care of our Father in Heaven, the unfailing companionship of this Beloved Son, the consummate gift of the Holy Ghost, angels in heaven, family members on both sides of the veil, prophets and apostles, teachers, leaders, friends. All of these and more have been given as companions for our mortal journey because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the Restoration of His gospel. Trumpeted from the summit of Calvary is the truth that we will never be left alone nor unaided, even if sometimes we may feel that we are. Truly the Redeemer of us all said, “I will not leave you comfortless. [My Father and] I will come to you [and abide with you].”

Patience and Diligence

This morning I read President Uchtdorf's talk in the Sunday morning session of this past April's Conference. It was simply awesome! I felt the Spirit so strongly, especially as I read the following:

A friend of mine recently wrote to me, confiding that he was having a difficult time keeping his testimony strong and vibrant. He asked for counsel.

I wrote back to him and lovingly suggested a few specific things he could do that would align his life more closely with the teachings of the restored gospel. To my surprise, I heard back from him only a week later. The essence of his letter was this: “I tried what you suggested. It didn’t work. What else have you got?”

Brothers and sisters, we have to stay with it. We don’t acquire eternal life in a sprint—this is a race of endurance. We have to apply and reapply the divine gospel principles. Day after day we need to make them part of our normal life.

Too often we approach the gospel like a farmer who places a seed in the ground in the morning and expects corn on the cob by the afternoon. When Alma compared the word of God to a seed, he explained that the seed grows into a fruit-bearing tree gradually, as a result of our “faith, and [our] diligence, and patience, and long-suffering.” It’s true that some blessings come right away: soon after we plant the seed in our hearts, it begins to swell and sprout and grow, and by this we know that the seed is good. From the very moment we set foot upon the pathway of discipleship, seen and unseen blessings from God begin to attend us.

But we cannot receive the fulness of those blessings if we “neglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment.”

Knowing that the seed is good is not enough. We must “nourish it with great care, that it may get root.” Only then can we partake of the fruit that is “sweet above all that is sweet, and . . . pure above all that is pure” and “feast upon this fruit even until [we] are filled, that [we] hunger not, neither shall [we] thirst.”

Discipleship is a journey. We need the refining lessons of the journey to craft our character and purify our hearts. By patiently walking in the path of discipleship, we demonstrate to ourselves the measure of our faith and our willingness to accept God’s will rather than ours.

It is not enough merely to speak of Jesus Christ or proclaim that we are His disciples. It is not enough to surround ourselves with symbols of our religion. Discipleship is not a spectator sport. We cannot expect to experience the blessings of faith by standing inactive on the sidelines any more than we can experience the benefits of health by sitting on a sofa watching sporting events on television and giving advice to the athletes. And yet for some, “spectator discipleship” is a preferred if not a primary way of worshipping.

Ours is not a secondhand religion. We cannot receive the blessings of the gospel merely by observing the good that others do. We need to get off the sidelines and practice what we preach.

I love these truths. We should always be in the process of being born again, of becoming more Christlike-- if we think we're finished, then we've got a lot further to go than we think! We need to make the small, simple choices day after day that will fortify us and our families in the long run. Simply stated, we need to endure to the end.

Abinadi

I'm always trying to read the Book of Mormon-- once I finish, I start right up again. It's funny-- if you ask me who my hero is in that marvelous book, which of the prophets or missionaries or warriors is my favorite, my answer changes depending on what part I'm currently reading. If I'm in Nephi, it's Nephi. If I'm in Alma, it's Alma. If I'm in Omni, it's Omni (just kidding on that one).

Whenever I read the middle chapters of Mosiah, I am always in awe of Abinadi. This guy was amazing! He gave his life as a testimony of the truthfulness of the Gospel-- when he was threatened because of the words he taught, he did not back down, and did not shy away. How many times do we in our own lives shy away from our covenants because of what other people say? Abinadi stood up for the truth, when nobody else would. What a wonderful example of faith and courage!

Abinadi boldly testified of Christ to a group that didn't believe in Him. The wicked king and his priests lived how they wanted, and professed to believe that salvation came through the law of Moses (which they certainly did not keep). But Abinadi had this to say:

Behold I say unto you, that whosoever has heard the words of the prophets, yea, all the holy prophets who have prophesied concerning the coming of the Lord—I say unto you, that all those who have hearkened unto their words, and believed that the Lord would redeem his people, and have looked forward to that day for a remission of their sins, I say unto you, that these are his seed, or they are the heirs of the kingdom of God. For these are they whose sins he has borne; these are they for whom he has died, to redeem them from their transgressions. And now, are they not his seed?

Therefore, if ye teach the law of Moses, also teach that it is a shadow of those things which are to come— teach them that redemption cometh through Christ the Lord, who is the very Eternal Father. (Mosiah 15:11-12, 16:14-15)

Scripture of the Week: Mosiah 2:41

This has always been my mom's favorite scripture:

And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it.

These words of King Benjamin are jam-packed with hope! Not only are the righteous "immediately" blessed by the Lord (see Mosiah 2:24) with temporal and spiritual blessings, but, if they endure to the end, they are brought back to Heavenly Father's presence in a state of never-ending happiness.
Doesn't that sound so awesome?

Nephi's Thoughts on the Book of Mormon

I finished reading 2 Nephi today. I'm always amazed by the strength of Nephi's testimony and how powerfully he writes (even though he humbly claims to have written "in weakness"- 2 Ne. 33:4). He's definitely one of my heroes-- someone I'm truly looking forward to meeting (or reuniting with?) someday.

Anyway, I was just impressed by his thoughts on what he was writing. Check this out:

And now, my beloved brethren, and also Jew, and all ye ends of the earth, hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ, and he hath given them unto me; and they teach all men that they should do good. (2 Ne. 33:10)

It's amazing what Nephi recommends for the Book of Mormon skeptic: believe in Christ. If you do, then there's no way you can deny what the Book of Mormon teaches, because it is the word of Christ.

What does the Book of Mormon teach? It teaches all men that they should do good. That's what Christ taught (and did). What a wonderful message.

Opposite Goals

Today I was reading in 2 Nephi 24 (where Nephi quotes Isaiah 14), and a couple of things stood out to me: Obviously Satan seeks to gain followers. But we know from the scriptures that Satan will not support those who support (or obey) him (see Alma 30:60). So what is his goal? He is out to drag as many people as possible down to as low a point as he is at (sorry to end a sentence with a preposition). He wants to make everybody as miserable as he is (see 2 Nephi 2:27).
On the other hand, we know fully well what the Lord's work is (see Moses 1:39). He wants to bring as many people as possible to be where He is. He wants us to be with Him. He wants us to share in His joy and His blessings. He wants us to be like Him, to be with Him, and to have what He has. It shouldn't surprise me, I guess, but God and the devil have completely opposite goals. I guess it's just never hit me quite so hard.

Thoughts from Elder Cook's Talk

I just read Elder Quentin L. Cook's most recent Conference talk. I really enjoyed it. Here is an excerpt from it that hit me hard:

A reporter for the Washington Post visited one of our Church meetings in Nigeria. The reporter interviewed one new member and told of his conversion. The reporter states:

“[He] said . . . he jumped off a city bus and walked into the [LDS Church building]. . . . He immediately liked what he heard inside [the chapel], especially that no one preached that people of other faiths were going to hell.” This echoes the feeling of numerous converts to the Church since its organization.

Our leaders have consistently counseled us “to live with respect and appreciation for those not of our faith. There is so great a need for civility and mutual respect among those of differing beliefs and philosophies.”

It is equally important that we be loving and kind to members of our own faith, regardless of their level of commitment or activity. The Savior has made it clear that we are not to judge each other. This is especially true of members of our own families. Our obligation is to love and teach and never give up.

I need to be more kind to everybody. I am really quick to judge--not so much those of other faiths, but those of my own who don't seem to be doing all they can. But it's not my place to judge; I just need to show unconditional love and charity, and do my best to make sure I'm keeping my own covenants.