Hope

2 Nephi 31:20 says:

"Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life."

 There are some scriptures that are more difficult to write about.  This is one of them.  It is so perfect, so eloquent that it feels odd that I would attempt to expound upon its teachings with my own words.  However, that does not stop me from trying :)

I just wanted to record a few thoughts I had upon reading this scripture.  First of all, whenever I read the phrase "endure to the end" I think of a General Conference talk I once heard that said we should think of it more as "progressing to the end."  I can't find the talk or remember, with surety, who gave it, but I remember the message was one that spoke to my heart.  I thought of it like this--we are not supposed to merely endure, hanging on by our fingertips to our testimony as we ride through the ups and downs of life, but we are supposed to improve and build upon our understanding of the gospel as we are guided around and through the deep pitfalls and majestic summits we encounter during our time on earth.  As Elder Bednar would say--We are to act and not simply be acted upon.

The other thought I had when I read this wonderful scripture was how my understanding of hope has changed since I was young.  When I was a teenager, I distinctly remember trying to have hope.  I tried to will hope into my being much like I might try to strong arm a locked door to open, with about as much success too.  "Have some hope, Ambra."  I would tell myself whenever despair crept into my life.  It didn't really work and now I understand why.  I was trying to hope and then perfect myself.  I was reading the scriptures and going to church and trying very hard not to do anything wrong because to me when the scriptures said "repent" it sounded an awful lot like a chastising that I didn't want to be worthy of.  I didn't understand the Atonement.  I didn't understand that precious gift that Christ gave to us.  I didn't understand that the scriptures are continually urging repentance because everyone, prophets and apostles included, needs repentance because we can't perfect ourselves.  We must rely on Jesus Christ for our perfection.  We must come to trust him and love him and believe on his words if we want to live with Heavenly Father again.  It is when we do this that hope springs up in our souls like a wildflower, natural and lovely to behold.  It is through that hope that we come to love Christ more, trust him more.  It is a wonderful cycle that includes faith and charity in it.  I used to always marvel that a little thing like hope was included by Paul as one of the big three, as in "faith, hope, and charity."  Now, I see its worth, and feel it is a most grand concept.

2 Nephi 30

In 2 Nephi 30:12-18 it talks about when "the wolf [shall] dwell with the lamb; and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the young lion, and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them."

If you look at footnote a of verse 12 it refers you to Isaiah 63:25 and the Topical Guide under Earth, Renewal of.  Isaiah 65:25 says much the same thing as verse 12 with the wolf and the lamb feeding together instead of one eating the other one, then it says:  "They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the Lord."

I feel like sometimes we, as a society, want this to be true now.  We want everything to be marvelous and perfect, almost to the point of not accepting the realities of life.  Almost to the point of not putting the cycle of nature, as it is now, in it's proper perspective.  I have watched over the years as the commercials on TV that try to play on our sympathies and get us to donate money have gradually changed from asking for help for starving children into laying before us the plight of the polar bear.  It honestly feels like our society talks more about, and worries more about, the earth and the animals than people.  I'm not saying we shouldn't take care of our earth, but to me worrying so much over the polar bear seems to be one of Satan's distractions from what is really going on.  Satan can be a master magician, employing the art of distracting the audience with one hand as he performs the real tricky work with the other.

If you look under Earth, Renewal of in the Topical Guide it gives many references but the one I was checking for is one of the last.  It is Articles of Faith 10  "...the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory."  This is when "they shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain."  Until then we are stewards of this earth and have been very blessed to have food that comes from the earth and its animals.  We can take care of the earth, but know that things in nature have cycles that are natural.  We can worry less about that stuff and more about the things the prophets guide us to focus on.  Teaching our children, serving others, and studying the gospel.  These things will bring us happiness and peace.

The Testimony of Two Nations is a Witness

As I read 2 Nephi 29 this morning, I felt in my heart what a wonderful time in history this is to be alive.  I have heard people say that before but have never really felt it.  I remember President Hinckley saying it time and time again, and yet I always felt it was more scary than wonderful. 2 Nephi 29:1-2 speaks of the "marvelous work" the Lord will be doing as he remembers the covenants he has made unto the children of men by, among other things, bringing forth the words of the Nephites.  The Lord then goes on to say that people will reject the words because they feel they already have all the words of God in the Bible.  And so we see the scary and the wonderful together, but for some reason the wonder has won out for me today and for that I am grateful.

2 Nephi 29:7-9 is a direct response to those who reject additional scriptures given to us by our Heavenly Father.  It says:

"Know ye not that there are more nations than one?  Know ye not that I, the Lord you God, have created all men, and that I remember those who are upon the isles of the sea; and that I rule in the heavens above and in the earth beneath; and I bring forth my word unto the children of men, yea, even upon all the nation of the earth?  Wherefore murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word?  Know ye not that the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God, that I remember one nation like unto another.  And when the two nations shall run together the testimony of the two nations shall run together also.  And I do this that I may prove unto many that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever..."

These are great and logical scriptures.  I love the clarity of the reasoning laid out for us about why the Bible and Book of Mormon were written and given to us--"two nations is a witness" and "I do this that I may prove unto many that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever."  I marked them, excitedly thinking of my friend, who kindly handed back the Book of Mormon I had given her, explaining that she believes the Bible to be the only scriptures given to us by God.  I didn't argue with her, but I felt sorry that she was missing out on so many powerful testimonies.  I think, maybe, if the same thing happened again tomorrow, I could put the Lord's reasoning into my own words and speak a little bit about it.  I do realize that you can never convince someone through logic and reasoning.  Spiritual things are taught by the spirit, but if I keep a prayer in my heart perhaps next time the spirit can convey something to the heart of my friend when given more to work with than my silence.

Counsel vs Command

2 Nephi 28:30 says:  “I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have.”

I enjoy this scripture.  I have read it before but this time a scripture in the Doctrine and Covenants came to mind as I pondered on verse 30.  It seems unrelated in any way except that the two scriptures pop into my head every now and then.  I’ve just never thought of them together before.

Doctrine and Covenants 58:26-28 says:  “For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.  Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;   For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves.  And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.”

I have been thinking about how much we learn when we open ourselves up to the guidance of the Holy Ghost and how much more we can do with our lives.  I have been feeling that Heavenly Father has so much He wants me to learn.  He wants to help me with all aspects of my life, and I am grateful for that.  Yet, I wonder about how D&C 58:26 comes into play.  I feel like, in the past, I have ventured to do things on my own without praying as often as I should partly because I don’t want to be an unwise servant, needing to be compelled in all things.  This has been rattling around in my brain for days as I’ve rushed about and gotten only short bits of scripture studying in.  I have many reasons and excuses, some better than others, for letting my hour of scripture study reduce to mere minutes but the truth is I have felt the difference in my life.  I am happy things have calmed down, and the internet is working again, so this morning I determined to study and pray a little more diligently about this question so I could write a post about it.

The answer I got is this:   There is a difference between the word “counsel” and the word “command.”  As I read Doctrine and Covenants 58, I could see that in verse 25, right before the Lord says it is “not meet that I should command in all things,” he instructs those to whom he is speaking to “counsel between themselves and me (meaning the Lord).”  It seems to me that in section 58 the Lord is saying that he shouldn’t need to give an official “commandment” about everything.  A commandment, received through the prophet and given to the people as something to strictly follow, is not needed in all cases.  However, to counsel with the Lord and ask for personal revelation to guide us as we strive to be anxiously engaged in a good cause is what our Heavenly Father would have us do.  He wants us to learn "line upon line…and lend an ear unto [his] counsel.” (2 Nephi 28:30)  He wants us to take the instructions and commandments he has given us through the scriptures and seek to receive more.  Not just in the sense that every General Conference address adds to the word of God or that the Doctrine and Covenants added to the standard works, or even that there are more scriptures out there that we have not yet been given.  He wants to “give more” to us now as we seek to counsel with Him day by day, hour by hour.  How grateful I feel to Him for helping me understand so very quickly something that I could not “logic” through, even when I thought about it for days.     

Would You Hold My Baby?

2 Nephi 27 is an Isaiah chapter that talks about the coming forth of the Book of Mormon.  Verses 19 and 20 address specific events that Isaiah wrote about years and years before they happened.  Still, with all that significance hoovering around those verses, they are most meaningful to me because they remind me of the strength and power of the Lord and how it can work in our lives.  2 Nephi 27:19-20 reads:

"Wherefore it shall come to pass, that the Lord God will deliver again the book and the words thereof to him that is not learned; and the man that is not learned shall say:  I am not learned.  Then shall the Lord God say unto him:  The learned shall not read them, for they have rejected them, and I am able to do mine own work; wherefore thou shalt read the words which I shall give unto thee."

I can remember specifically many, many times in my life when events occurred, or callings were given to me that I felt completely and utterly unequipped to handle.  I remember vividly the Lord's hand in my life during those times, helping me, not only to manage, but to flourish.  I am blown away by the Lord's attention to seemingly insignificant matters that weigh upon my mind and the mind of others around me.

When Isaac was born, I was serving as a Relief Society teacher in my ward.  When it came time for me to teach on my first Sunday back, I needed to ask someone to hold Isaac for me.  Mat was working, or teaching, or something, and so he wasn't available.  I don't remember why, but I was nervous about who I should ask.  It probably had something to do with my extra concern for him when he was a baby because of his Down syndrome and maybe the fact that I had already noticed that certain people were more at ease around him than others.  It was worrisome enough to me that I decided to pray about it.  A name immediately came to mind, and I felt I had my answer.  As I went to call the sister, I felt nervous.  Would she think I was weird to worry so much that I would call ahead of time to ask her to simply hold a baby?  I took a deep breath and called.  I explained my nervousness and how I hoped she could watch him, so I could be at ease during my lesson.  She began to cry.  Not just a little bit--a lot.  She thanked me profusely for calling and said she would love to do it.  She tried to explain to me to me a little, with halting sentences, why it meant so much to her.  I remember never fully understanding her words, but I knew one thing, Heavenly Father understood her.  He knew what she needed, and what I needed.  He does use us here on earth to answer each others prayers and do His work, but it is a privilege we can choose to take part in or not.  Sometimes it can really stretch our faith to believe we can accomplish something he has asked us to do, but that is how faith grows, by stretching it.

2 Nephi 22

My favorite Isaiah verses are both in 2 Nephi 22.  The first is verse 2:

"Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid; for the Lord JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also has become my salvation."

The second is verse 5:

"Sing unto the Lord; for he hath done excellent things; this is known in all the earth."

Verse 5 makes me smile.  So simple.  I love it.

2 Nephi 18:11-14

In chapter 17 of 2 Nephi, another Isaiah chapter, Ephraim and Syria wage war against Judah (as the chapter heading states). Verse 2 says "Syria is confederate with Ephraim." (That will be important to know as we continue.) Now, skip ahead to chapter 18:11-14 and we read:

"For the Lord spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying: Say ye not, A confederacy, to all to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid. Sanctify the Lord of Hosts himself, and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling, and for a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem."

To help me clarify what I thought this was saying, I looked up some words that I felt I knew the meaning to already, but things weren't totally clicking for me, and I was hoping for some help understanding it exactly.

Confederacy: an alliance between persons, parties, states, etc., for some purpose.

Sanctify: to entitle to reverence or respect.

Sanctuary: any place of refuge.

Gin: a trap or snare for game.

So--I feel like the Lord was telling Isaiah that he needs not be caught up in the fear of his day. Isaiah shouldn't let the fear and upheaval surrounding them in the world, with the war going on, be what occupies him. Isaiah should be more concerned about what the Lord thinks, by what the Lord wants, and by what the Lord is asking Isaiah to do.

That's what I think it says, but I'll admit that I'm wondering if I am just projecting what I have been feeling about our own political climate of the day. I think there is something to it though. Reading Isaiah this time, I see that Nephi is writing scriptures that can be an example for us. It says in the chapter heading of 2 Nephi 20 that the "destruction of Assyria is a type of destruction of wicked at the Second Coming." It's very interesting to me.

I sometimes feel as if I should be doing more politically. I hear President Hinckley's words echo in my mind, "All that is required for evil to win is for good men to do nothing." While looking for that quote, I found a quote that supports the next thing I was going to say, what luck.

So, sometimes, I feel like I should be doing more and yet in that same moment I feel like I am doing something. I'm striving to be a righteous mother to my children. I'm trying to teach them what Heavenly Father let me know is the most important thing. When Kimball was a toddler and I prayed and asked for help in prioritizing his learning, I received the answer to put scripture reading and family prayer first. Those are the most important things I can devote myself to in regards to my family. And wouldn't that also be good for the world? The quote I found was attributed to Gordon B. Hinckley and states:

"A prominent judge was asked what we, as citizens of the countries of the world, could do to reduce crime and disobedience to law and to bring peace and contentment into our lives and into our nations. He thoughtfully replied, 'I would suggest a return to the old-fashioned practice of family prayer.'"

I suppose that is what I have learned through Isaiah's words. We need to always be more concerned about what Heavenly Father thinks than what the world is consumed with, no matter what is happening. We need to make sure we are doing as He wishes to the best of our ability. How do we know what Heavenly Father thinks?  How do we know what He wishes? We study his word given to us by ancient and modern-day prophets, and by doing so we not only learn, but we open our hearts up so that the Spirit can guide us in our lives full of chores and co-workers and family. He can help us with our everyday problems, big or small. Whether it be a child that feels like he is becoming too distant, a huge problem at work, or a broken pair of glasses that we really need fixed, right now, He is there for us. Always.