Really Believe

3 Nephi 14:21 says:

"Not every one that saith unto me Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven." (emphasis added)

 This scripture reminds me of the reason I enjoy sign language so much.  This scripture reminds me of the sign for "believe."  In order to say "believe" in sign language you touch your index finger to your forehead and then bring that hand down to clasp your other hand in front of you.  I remember it easily because to me the sign says more than the spoken word.  To me is says belief starts in your mind but needs to continue to your hands, or in other words, your actions to really make a difference.

Questions Are Marvelous Things Part 2

As I prepared for my Relief Society lesson last week, I was searching for a quote by Elder Neal A. Maxwell and stumbled on a very fun part of the lds.org website.  You can bookmark talks and article as well as highlight quotes and keep them by signing in with your regular password.  There is room for comments and journal entries too.  So fun!  I'm sure you can do the same for the scriptures too. I just haven't tried it yet.

Anyway, I found a quote that I really liked because it went along with what I was saying about questioning being a good, maybe even necessary, way to learn the gospel.  Elder Maxwell said:

"Puzzlement, for instance, is often the knob on the door of insight. The knob must be firmly grasped and deliberately turned with faith."  (Endure It Well, General Conference April 1990)

 Of course Elder Maxwell said it better and more succinctly than I did.  I love his use of the word "puzzlement" because it suggests the moving around of pieces of knowledge until you see the bigger picture.  And it is true that faith must be demonstrated.  Without it some of the questions we have that are not answered right away can become the things that drive us away from our Father in Heaven.

Amazing

3 Nephi 13:7-8 says:

"But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen, for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.  Be not ye therefore like unto them, for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him."

I have thought a lot about this counsel as I have taught my children to pray.  When my oldest son first began to talk, I helped him say his prayers. They were simple.  They had to be because he could not say a great many things, but without me realizing it, his vocabulary grew while the prayers stayed simple.  Then, one day I realized he said the same thing every night.  I was appalled that I had unwittingly taught him to pray from his memory instead of from his heart.  I have taught many a Family Home Evening lesson on prayer to try to help my children learn what prayer is actually for, but every once in a while I realize that one of them, or even I myself, has gotten into a rut.  The funny thing is that it usually starts out very meaningful, like when the Stake Presidency asked all the primary children to pray for the Ft. Collins temple.  The kids remembered more than I did to pray for that.  I'm not sure when a prayer that is repeated often becomes just words, with little thought behind it, but it seems to happen unless we are really paying attention.

Prayer is a direct line to our Father in Heaven.  It is a truly amazing thing that a being of such great power really cares about all of our little bumps and bruises, about all our hopes and dreams, and takes the time to answer all of our questions if we will take the time to ask and listen.  When we pray we have Heavenly Father's undivided attention (so to speak), but do we give him ours?  I must admit at times I'm thinking about the family schedule, or the fact that I'm tired and cant' wait to get into bed, while I offer up a distracted prayer.  Or perhaps worse, I poor out my heart with questions, or plead for help with a specific things and then get up and wander away shaking my head with thoughts of how hard life can be.  I didn't even give Him a chance to answer me!

It reminds me of a friend I had in high school.  She would often ask me questions and then forget to listen for an answer.  It floored me when she would do this and this practice quickly got a prominent place on my Pet Peeve's List.  It saddens me to think of how often I have done that to my Heavenly Father.  I'm grateful He is such a loving, forgiving, and patient being.

One day, as a frazzled mother of young children who was trying to do everything right, I counted up the number of prayers we are counseled to have on any given day and realized that it as at least seven.  (Morning and night personal and family prayer = 4 plus 3 mealtime prayers...I'm not even going to mention that 'have a prayer always in your heart' counsel)  It seemed an impossible number to me.  I still don't know how often I actually reach that number, but I know that I am grateful for the reminders to reach out to a Father who loves me and is willing and able to help with whatever I have to say as long as it comes from my heart.

Questions Are Marvelous Things

It seems ludicrous that my computer and laptop have such a hard time with this blogging website, but it is true.  They periodically fritz out and won't let me post.  I think I have figured out what is causing it though so hopefully I can blog a little more regularly.  Yay me!

Previously I had tried to pace my Book of Mormon reading with my ability to blog but I have given that up now that it gave me trouble so often and so long, but I marked things and recorded things as I pondered and prayed.  Writing the blog posts often help me get things more clear in my mind so I'm going to treat this blog a little differently now.  Instead of it being a journal that follows what I'm currently reading in the scriptures, I am going to use it as another place to ponder things (hopefully posting at least once a week) because I do want to finish recording things I have learned from studying the Book of Mormon.  If it is helpful to anyone else that would make me smile.  If not, well, I'm sorry it didn't turn out to be the kind of blog I set out for it to be.

On that note I would like to look at 3 Nephi 12 today.  This is still the Savior's visit to the Nephites.  He is teaching them about the higher law when he says in 3 Nephi 12:25:

"Agree with thine adversary quickly while thou art in the way with him, lest at any time he shall get thee, and thou shalt be cast into prison."

This was a rather confusing scripture to me until I read the New Testament and discovered how very helpful footnotes can be.  The footnote next to "agree" in this scripture refers us to Matthew 5:26-26 which says pretty much the same thing as is found in 3 Nephi, but the footnote of that verse is quite helpful.  It gives a Greek translation which informs us that the scripture really means to say:

"Quickly have kind thoughts for, or be well disposed toward, thine adversary..."

 It makes a lot more sense to me that way.  Still, being me, I have plenty more questions to ponder on with this verse.  It warns of being cast into prison.  Why does it use that reference?  Is it warning against the fact that holding a grudge will keep me from spirit paradise?  Does it mean that if I'm not well disposed toward my adversary, an argument could lead to real physical violence or trouble that would actually get me thrown in jail?

Now, I'm more inclined to believe this scripture is referring to spiritual matters just because of the context of the chapter that it is in, but I am learning not to stop myself when my brain starts firing questions at me.  I used to think some questions were bad to think about.  I used to stop certain questions mid-thought and feel bad they even started to form in my head.  Questions like "What if this is all a bunch of made up stuff?" used to never make it to the pondering stage.  I thought it denoted a lack of faith.  Now however I can let those questions come because I have faith enough in my Father in Heaven to know that He will answer them.  He knows me and He will lead me to the answer in a way that I will understand.  I know He will do this because this isn't a bunch of made up stuff, but I have only become solidly sure of that since I let myself really ponder on it. I have noticed of late that when I'm in Gospel Principles class and the teacher asks me for my thoughts on our discussion, I always have more questions than I have answers.  I think that is OK, in fact I think it may be one of the reasons I have learned so much more about the gospel in recent years than I ever have before.  Questions really are marvelous things.

3 Nephi 11:33-34

Still thinking about baptism...I like 3 Nephi 11:33-34.  It boils things down to the basics:

"And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God.  And whoso believeth not in me, and is not baptized, shall be damned."

I think often people get very angry, or perhaps, fearful of a God who goes around damning people.  But truly it is our own choices and actions that damn us, or in other words, stop our progression.  To continue on the path laid out for us by our Father in Heaven we must do those things he has told us are essential to do.  (And by the way, if you check out footnote "a" in verse 33 it refers you to the Topical Guide under Baptism, Essential.)  It is not because He is mean or arbitrarily likes to assign us things so we can jump through hoops, or into pools of water in this case.  It is because He loves us and knows what we need to do to make it back to Him.  He knows the path we must walk to learn the things we need to learn to become like Him.  I hope I can be humble enough to follow all the steps He asks me to take and endure, or more accurately--progress--to the end.

3 Nephi 7:25--Why Get Baptized?

Sometimes, in literature and in life, I come across those with the attitude of--why get baptized?  They believe in God, but see no real necessity to get baptized.  When I come across this attitude I think of the Savior's baptism and the obedience involved in following his example, but when I read 3 Nephi 7:25 it struck me as a good answer to that why-get-baptized question.  It says:

"...all such as should come unto them (those ordained to the ministry) should be baptized with water, and this as a witness and a testimony before God, and unto the people, that they had repented and received a remission of their sins."

I also like what it says in 3 Nephi 9:17-20, when Christ announces that the Law of Moses has been fulfilled:

"...for behold, by me redemption cometh, and in me is the law of Moses fulfilled.  I am the light and the life of the world.  I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.  And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings.  And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit.  And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost..."

It seems to me that if you are unwilling to get baptized with water "as a witness and a testimony before God" then there is no way that you can receive the baptism "with fire and with the Holy Ghost" that comes with a broken heart and contrite spirit offered up unto the Lord.  A sad blessing to miss out on indeed.

Helaman 14:30-31

I have heard and said these words many times..."Be an example."  "Help those around you."  "Serve others."

All of these things are wonderful pieces of advice, but I have noticed even wonderful things can become distorted if I take them too far.  You see, I can sometimes have an over-reaching sense of responsibility towards others.  I can take these nice phrases into my heart and suddenly I am responsible for the spiritual welfare of those around me.  My family, my visiting teaching sisters, and my neighbors begin to weigh heavy on my mind.  I think of how Lehi longed to share the precious white fruit of his vision with his family, and I can see that for me it feels more like I need to carry my whole family on my back and lug them along the straight and narrow path because anything less would be a lapse in my duty as a wife and mother.  After all, I am responsible for the spiritual tone in my home, so I must also be responsible for any and all sin that might happen within its walls and probably even outside its walls if it has to with those over whom I have been given stewardship.  I know that this is not correct.

I know that lugging someone along the straight and narrow path isn't possible.  I know that in Heavenly Father's plan we must all chose whether to hold to the rod and seek for the fruit waiting for us.  Or another way of saying it--if I could borrow from a biblical parable--is we cannot give the oil in our lamp to those who may not have filled their lamps sufficiently full.  It just cannot be done because we are all free.  Free to choose for ourselves.

I know that my desire to "help" others along can turn into issues with control.  I know some people in my life might think that I am too controlling, but it is odd to me how very much I don't wish to be that way.  I am truly trying to do that which has been asked of me.  My natural way of looking at the world is more of a "live and let live" philosophy, but that feels too uncaring when I think of gospel teachings.  So...I have been working on my perspective of things and Helaman 14:30-31 has a little reminder for me when it says:

"And now remember, remember, my brethren, that whosoever perisheth, perisheth unto himself; and whosoever doeth iniquity, doeth it unto himself; for behold, ye are free; ye are permitted to act for yourselves; for behold, God hath given unto you a knowledge and he hath made you free.  He hath given unto you that ye might know good from evil, and he hath given unto you that ye might choose life or death; and ye can do good and be restored unto that which is good, or have that which is good restored unto you; or ye can do evil, and have that which is evil restored unto you."

I also have been thinking a lot about the difference between 'not making stellar choices' and 'committing actual sin.'  As I have paid more attention to this, I have been able file a lot of things in the former category.  I know we cannot make everyone happy with us all the time.  I know that nobody is perfect.  I am grateful that we all have the Atonement and ability to repent.  I know that keeping all of this in mind will enable me to more lovingly help those around me, teach with the Spirit and by example, and serve others while allowing them to choose for themselves.  I know that the feeling of responsibility will no longer be crushing as I put things in their proper perspective, and I will find more peace and joy in my life.