My Thoughts

Alma 34:32

For behold, this life is the time 

for men to prepare to meet God; 

yea, behold the day of this life 

is the day for men to perform their labors.

If ever there was a frustrating aspect of my personality, this touches on it. I am lazy. I don't like to be, and I try quite often to overcome it, but thus far, I have been unsuccessful. "Cease to be idle" seems so incredibly impossible for me, and I don't particularly understand why. This aspect of my natural woman has such a strong grasp on me that my focus on this scripture this week has been a rather discouraging one. 

 

I know this is not right. I know in my mind that I can bring this weakness to Christ and He can make it a strength through His grace. But I am unsure specifically how to go about this right now. My parents are incredibly hard workers. I almost never see my Mother, but she is working, or serving, or planning to do so. And then there's me with my overwhelming inertia and seeming inability to move past it. Surely the advice to "just do it" or "take baby steps" or "do a bite at a time" shouldn't be so hard. And yet it is.

 

I believe I will need more time to work on this concept and overcoming this personal struggle. I know Christ is strong enough to help me with this, what I doubt is my own ability to come to Him and stay with Him and do my part adequately.   

I think I will pick a related scripture next week, and maybe for every week after until I feel like I am on my way to working through this.

In Context

Philippians 4:13

I can do all things through Christ

which strengtheneth me.

This verse comes near the end of Paul's Epistle to the Philippians. The epistle consists of four chapters with the general outline as follows: 

(excerpted from the Bible Dictionary)

1. Salutation, thanksgiving, and prayer on their behalf (1:1-11).

2. Personal: dealing with the progress of the missionary work (1:12-26).

3. Exhortation to unity, humility, and perseverance (2:1-18).

4. Paul's own plans, and those of Timothy and Epaphroditus (2:19-30).

5. Warning against false teachers (3:1--4:9).

6. Thanks for their assistance, and conclusion (4:10-23).

Other ideas of note in chapter 4:

Verse 4 - partial inspiration for hymn #66 "Rejoice the Lord is King!"

Verse 6 - requests to God through prayer and supplication with thanksgiving

Verse 7 - The peace of God passeth all understanding

Verse 8 - The admonition of Paul mentioned in the 13th article of faith

Verses 11&12 - Being content in whatsoever state, humility or abundance, hunger or fullness

Verse 19 - God will supply all needs

My Thoughts

Matthew 5:43-45

Ye hath heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt

love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless 

them that curse you, do good to them that hate

you, and pray for them which despitefully use 

you, and persecute you;

That ye may be the children of your Father which

is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the

evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just

and on the unjust.

 I think this may be the most difficult thing asked of us in this life. If we could master the principle of loving all God's children, especially our enemy, I think the rest of our spiritual priorities would fall into place. 

As I mentioned in an earlier post. I have those who have acted against me as an enemy, and I have in turn acted as an enemy against others. Some of these transgressions are such that it would take a real miracle to resolve them in this life. I am not confident that it will happen in every case, although I do hope that our enmity can be resolved, if not in this life, in the one to come. 

In the meantime, I feel it is my duty to do whatever part I can. I have attempted to apologize for times where I have not acted well, though I know it is probably too little, too late in several instances. How I wish I had exercised an ounce of prevention in the first place.

In doing what I can for my abusers, I want to become the type of person that prays for them. I want to be like the sons of Mosiah, who could not stand the thought that any human soul should perish. (Mosiah 28:3) 

These are my thoughts on abuse that I wrote down as I am attempting to write my personal history:

Life is hard. Bad things happen. Many if not most of us are hurting inside in one way or another. It affects us. We are changed from it. Maybe we make choices we shouldn't and pass the pain down the line. Whatever the cause, whatever the reason, we hurt and are hurt by each other, and I believe it's more common than anyone would let on.

I've spent some time working through my pain, sometimes productively, and sometimes in a less than healthy way. It's changed and affected me. I only hope when this is over I can say it's been for the better and that it's made me stronger, more compassionate, and wiser.

As wrong as some of the things we people do to each other are, I worry more about the damage the offenders are doing to their own souls than anything else. I would hope they have not damaged themselves beyond repair, because I know they are loved by a just, but also compassionate, God and that he weeps for their loss. 

I hope that when this life is ended and we all sit down before the throne of God that we can understand each other in relation to our pain, our poor choices, and mistakes. I hope the anger and bitterness will melt away and that we can say, "We were just mortals," in the same way in this life we sometimes say "We were just children." I hope that we can chalk it up to experience and learning and move forward in our eternal progression-lifting each other up rather than tearing each other down.

And I do mean that. But even if my enemies never change, never wish to repent, I still would not want to have the sin of anger in my heart either. Anger is exhausting. Once it gets hold, it is so difficult to overcome, and even when I think I am making progress, I get knocked back down and have to try all over again. 

It's a very humbling journey to try to overcome the natural man. I am glad that I have a perfect brother who was willing to pray, and then to atone, for my sinful soul. 

Cross Reference

Matthew 5:43-45

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt

love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless

them that curse you, do good to them that hate

you, and pray for them which despitefully use

you, and persecute you;

That ye may be the children of your Father which

is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the

evil and and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just

and on the unjust.

love:

D&C 112:11

neighbour:

TG Neighbor  

Love:

TG Love

enemies:

TG Enemies

TG Opposition

bless:

TG Retribution

curse:

TG Curse

good:

TG Benevolence 

hate:

TG Hate

pray:
Job 42:10
Acts 7:55-60
TG Pray

persecute:
TG Persecution

may be:
GR may become
Mosiah 5:7

children:
TG Sons and Daughters of God

rain:
Job 2:10 
2 Nephi 2:11
Alma 60:13
D&C 5:22
D&C 29:39
D&C 122:5-9


"Healing the Tragic Scars of Abuse" by Elder Richard G. Scott

excerpt:

"Forgiveness

During prolonged recovery from massive surgery, a patient anticipates complete healing in patience, trusting in others’ care. He does not always understand the importance of the treatment prescribed, but his obedience speeds recovery. So it is with you struggling to heal the scars of abuse. Forgiveness, for example, can be hard to understand, even more difficult to give. Begin by withholding judgment. You don’t know what abusers may have suffered as victims when innocent. The way to repentance must be kept open for them. Leave the handling of aggressors to others. As you experience an easing of your own pain, full forgiveness will come more easily.

You cannot erase what has been done, but you can forgive. (see D&C 64:10.) Forgiveness heals terrible, tragic wounds, for it allows the love of God to purge your heart and mind of the poison of hate. It cleanses your consciousness of the desire for revenge. It makes place for the purifying, healing, restoring love of the Lord.

The Master counseled, “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you and persecute you.” (3 Ne. 12:44; italics added.)

Bitterness and hatred are harmful. They produce much that is destructive. They postpone the relief and healing you yearn for. Through rationalization and self-pity, they can transform a victim into an abuser. Let God be the judge—you cannot do it as well as he can.

To be counseled to just forget abuse is not helpful. You need to understand the principles which will bring healing. I repeat, most often that comes through an understanding priesthood leader who has inspiration and the power of the priesthood to bless you."

My Thoughts

Helaman 5:12

And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is 

upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son 

of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when 

the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his 

shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his 

mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no 

power over you to drag you down to the gulf of 

misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon 

which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a 

foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.

I have had the experience of grieving for several people in my life who have chosen to leave the Church. In fact, I have had the experience of going through my own period of doubt and uncertainty and personal apostasy. It has taken me these experiences to really come to terms with the idea that the path of discipleship is not easy. It was not meant to be easy. It will never be easy. 

Helaman makes it clear in his admonition to his sons that they will experience profound adversities, that the "mighty storm [of the devil] shall beat upon you" and that absolutely nothing will preserve them from his grasp except being built upon the foundation of Christ. 

I am uncertain why this level of intense, sustained adversity escaped my expectation before. But I now know that it is only when we have faithfully passed through the temptations and adversities of the devil that we can truly be called disciples of Christ. If we are to follow Christ, we must pass through our own set of personalized trials, as he passed through His. 

Thankfully we will not be subject to the same depth and breadth as He was, but we will be asked to endure everything of which we are physically, emotionally, and spiritually able, knowing all the while that we will not be tested above our personal threshold (Alma 13:28 ; 1 Corinthians 10:13).

Satan has been called "the prince of this world."

“So powerful was he in the Master’s day that the Master referred to Satan as ‘the prince of this world,’ but he added, ‘the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.’ (John 14:30.) We must be able to say, though the power is evil on every side, ‘As for me and my house, we shall serve the God of this land.’ The prince of this world is coming to tempt every one of us, and the only ones who will stand through these evil days are those who have founded their houses upon the rock, as the Master said: when the storms descended and the winds blew and the rains came and beat upon the house, it fell not because it was founded upon the rock. That is what the Lord is trying to say to us today.” (Harold B. Lee in British Area Conference Report, Aug. 1971, p. 135.)

It is an interesting title "the prince of this world." I think sometimes we tend to imagine Satan as a nuisance who pops up and wreaks a little havoc when God is not paying attention. Then when we look around we are surprised and we ask, "How can a just and loving God allow this?" 

We are misinformed. 

We are here living under "the prince of this world," who, though unlawfully, has the (temporary) power, ability, and motivation to wreak his havoc openly. We are safe from him only to the degree that we align ourselves with the True King of Kings. It is after the trial is over that Satan will be bound and no longer reign upon the earth. Until then, we need to be aware of the very real danger we are in, and seek the appropriate shelter. 

We have been blessed though. He has not left us comfortless. Darkness cannot coexist with Light. When we maintain the companionship of the Holy Ghost, we have the strength and guidance to endure. Personal temptations are lessened and made bearable. Our mortal pains and difficulties are put into perspective. We are brought to Christ and made safe though him. 

Through the wind and the storm and the hail, we become stronger. We grow and improve. When we come unto Him, we also become like Him, in degrees, here a little, and there a little. We are able to not only endure, but to also become refined and better versions of ourselves.

"The journey of discipleship is not an easy one. It has been called a “course of steady improvement.” As we travel along that strait and narrow path, the Spirit continually challenges us to be better and to climb higher. The Holy Ghost makes an ideal traveling companion. If we are humble and teachable, He will take us by the hand and lead us home." ("What Lack I Yet?", by Elder Lawrence in the October 2015 General Conference)

"The journey of discipleship is not an easy one."

Be wary. Satan also coaxes, flatters, soothes and uses a flaxen cord (2 Nephi 26:22). He impersonates, and he counterfeits. His approaches are many, and though not all of them are loud, they are unrelenting.

Build your foundation in Christ. Only He can keep you and lead you safely home.