“You cannot today remotely imagine what that decision to be unwaveringly obedient to the Lord will allow you to accomplish in life. Your quiet, uncompromising determination to live a righteous life will couple you to inspiration and power beyond your capacity now to understand.” -Elder Richard G. Scott
Prepare. We hear so much about it we are almost desensitized to it. However, the parable of the ten virgins illustrates to us that our preparation or our lack of preparation will have eternal consequences. There are ways we have been warned to prepare for the events of the last days both spiritually and temporally. Today as I was reading in the end of Alma about the armies of Moroni I noticed an interesting phrase about preparation.
In Alma 62 the army of Moroni wants to recapture the city of Nephihah. Moroni goes to the city at night as a spy and discovers that the whole army is asleep on one side of the city. At that very moment he realizes there is an immediate opportunity to make a move. If they wait the moment will pass and the opportunity will be gone. He acts. The scriptures say they “prepared in haste” the ropes and ladders to let the army down into the city. In the morning the Lamanites are surprised to awake to the unwanted guests and they run away out of the city. Moroni captures the city without one soul of the Nephites being lost (Alma 62:26). That is an amazing victory.
That phrase, “prepare in haste,” is what made me think today. Usually we think of preparation as something done long in advance. However, in this moment the need was immediate, the preparation was immediate, and the fruits were immediate. Did the army carry around ropes and ladders just in case? No. But when the moment came they were prepared to prepare in haste. What if Moroni had waged the whole war based on this as his military strategy–just wait till the need is there and then do it? Would they have won? No. In my mind Moroni exemplifies long, hard, intentional preparation. Alma is filled with descriptions of Moroni’s efforts to prepare and fortify the lands and the people. I feel like he was prepared in that moment to “prepare in haste” because he had prepared so much beforehand.
I have no doubt that in our lives we will be presented with experiences like Moroni that the pressing need and the necessary preparation will come in the moment. We don’t know all the ropes and ladders we will need on hand to be successful in our battles against the adversary. However, if we are preparing in the ways we have been commanded to prepare–both temporally and spiritually–then when those unexpected moments come we will be prepared with the resources, the character, and the discernment to “prepare in haste” those teaching moments, those service opportunities, those talks, those missionary lessons, those emergency shelters, or whatever it may be–temporally or spiritually–that the Lord needs us to do to be victorious.
Preparation in haste is the exception not the rule. It is a part of a lifestyle of preparation and not a substitute for it. As with the ten virgins, at the moment the bridegroom called there were some haste-full preparations to fill lamps with the extra oil that had been wisely brought, but the true preparation had already taken place. Those without oil were making preparations in hast too–but it was too late for them to be be ready to meet the Lord. In that case, five of the ten souls were lost instead of no souls being lost, as with Moroni’s victory.
I don’t want to be a lost soul. I don’t want my children or family or friends or neighbors to be lost either. We can all work now to foster a lifestyle of preparation and skills of preparation so we are ready for whatever adventure life brings–temporally or spiritually.
Last night I was snuggling with our 7-year-old daughter at bedtime. She was telling me about her Primary lesson about how Abraham was saved from being sacrificed when he was a child because he had a special mission in life. I shared my testimony that I know the Lord is with us to protect us and help us accomplish what He needs us to do. Then with bright, hopeful eyes and a happy smile she asked me, “Do you think God has a special purpose for me and do you think He’s excited about it?” I embraced her and told her I was certain that her generous heart and sensitive spirit were special gifts from God because He indeed has a special purpose for her in her life. I told her that I’m sure He’s excited to help her accomplish it and I am excited to see the young woman she becomes and the special things she continues to do in her life. She was so delighted–it was better than Christmas Eve!
I have been pondering that moment. The guilelessness and trust of childhood are certainly something I needed a fresh a dose of. She was such a great example to me of embracing God’s special purpose for me and being delighted to fulfill it. Who cares what others think? Who cares if I get rejected a few times before a manuscript finds a publisher? Who cares if the path resembles more wilderness than promised land for awhile? If we know that we are moving forward in using our talents and gifts as the Lord would have us do, then we can laugh that giddy laugh and clap our hands in excitement just as my daughter did. God has a special purpose for each of us that is different than anyone else’s purpose.
So how do we find that special purpose? In her new book Weakness Is Not Sin, Wendy Ulrich says, “We often find our strengths and gifts in what we love–the activities we find energizing and enjoyable even when they require effort. . . . Our personal mission will often emerge from these deep interests. God calls to us through what we love.”
I love that thought. We don’t have to go searching for something that seems noble. We just have to follow the loves and interests God has already put in us and trust Him with all our heart. I can do that. One day at a time I can fulfill His purpose for me–not by being perfect but just by being delighted to be me.
I came across this talk yesterday in my personal study and thought it was very powerful. I know I often struggle with the balance between attending to my needs and the needs of those I love. Her perspective here about the third option–the choice to consecrate ourselves to the Lord–was a powerful insight for me about how to see that struggle differently and surrender it to the Lord so it is not a struggle. I am realizing that as I trust Him implicitly that everything has a way of working out!
Sheryl Condie Kempton, “Magnifying the Lord: Mary’s Example for Us,” Ensign, Dec 1980, 44
“One of the pervasive decisions we face is the choice between self-denial and self-fulfillment: do we seek first to serve others, or do we try to satisfy our own needs?
For some years, popular trends have focused on the rights of individuals to “do their own thing,” seeking their own happiness. Many people see achieving personal goals as the ultimate meaning of life. Some psychologists support this emphasis by pointing out the negative effects of the “martyr complex” and by asserting that a person becomes a nonperson if he never does what he wants to do.
In sharp contrast are the ascetic practices of self-denial focusing on sacrifice for other people or causes. For those who pursue this course, the individual becomes less important than the group or the goal: there is something higher than self to live for.
Most people do not live either of these extremes. They try to pursue a course which neither totally denies themselves nor shuns service to others. At some times it seems appropriate to them to try to fill their own needs, and at other times it is important to sacrifice for something else.
Reading about Mary and the choices she made suggests an entirely different approach to the problem of choosing between self-denial and self-fulfilment. Suddenly, both choices seemed to carry with them too much emphasis on self. Mary focused on God, not on herself, putting her faith in him rather than in her own abilities. Rather than seeking to fulfill herself, she consecrated herself to fulfill the will of God. But in making that choice, she did not deny herself: God fulfilled her needs better than she could ever have fulfilled them herself.”
“Our words and external expressions are not neutral, for they reflect both who we are and shape who we are becoming.” Robert S. Wood
What do I want to do when I grow up? I have fielded that question a lot lately as I begin my last semester of graduate school. Surely I must have it figured out by now since I’m graduating in four months. The truth is, I don’t know really. I know I want to come back to having my whole heart at home for awhile. I actually miss sweeping the floor when it’s dirty and having the time to look through a cookbook for a new recipe to try for dinner. Even so, all the questions regarding my future aspirations that I fielded while I was in Arizona for Christmas led me to my knees with the question, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” That night I awoke from a dream in the middle of the night that I new was my answer. As I lay there thinking of it, the following scripture ran through my mind:
2 Nephi 25:26 “And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, and we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.”
That’s my new answer for what I want to do after I graduate–I want to talk and rejoice and write about Christ and the role He plays in our individual lives and in our marriages and families. I want to talk and teach and write about how to help parents teach the truths of the Savior and His atonement to children. I want to talk and teach and write about the power of the atonement in our marriages.
The past two years have been an amazing journey as I have come to know my Savior differently than before. It is a journey that will never end, as I have so much more to learn and change, but I rejoice in the changes He is making in me and in my marriage and family. I want to share what I have been taught with anyone who wants to hear and who wants hope in their efforts to change the patterns and traditions in his or her life, marriage, and family.
Jesus Christ lives! He is the Light of the World, and the Light of my life. His grace and atoning power are real and are accessible every minute of every hour of every day. From Him come an abundance of love, peace, and joy–even in turbulent times.
What do I want to do when I grow up? I want to talk of Christ and point all who will listen to the Light!
“How can we love days that are filled with sorrow? We can’t—at least not in the moment. I don’t think my mother was suggesting that we suppress discouragement or deny the reality of pain. I don’t think she was suggesting that we smother unpleasant truths beneath a cloak of pretended happiness. But I do believe that the way we react to adversity can be a major factor in how happy and successful we can be in life. If we approach adversities wisely, our hardest times can be times of greatest growth, which in turn can lead toward times of greatest happiness.”
-Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin
When I was a young girl—about seven or eight—I was helping my Dad pack for a camping trip. He gave me his razor blade to go put in with the supplies, and, being the curious child I was, I decided to open the blade to check it out. Somehow in my childhood agility I managed to cut myself very deeply in the palm of my hand. I knew I had done something wrong by playing with it, and I knew I would get in trouble for it. Feeling guilty and ashamed, I ran to get something to stop the bleeding myself. I don’t remember much of the blood from that cut though, what I remember was the globules of fat and tissue that I saw inside my hand when the bleeding started to subside. I felt nauseated by it. I had never seen the inside of my body and I guess I had never taken the time to imagine what it would be like. As I stood there seeing what was really inside me I felt sick. I was so afraid of what I saw, and yet I was equally afraid that if I turned to a parent for comfort and help I would be in trouble for the choice that got me there in the first place. I felt so alone and afraid and disgusted with what was inside of me.
That memory came back to me today in my tears of feeling that same way again—alone and afraid and disgusted with what is inside of me. As I have asked the Lord to purify me from the traditions that are claiming the Light and Truth of who I am, He has opened my eyes to see so many untrue and destructive thoughts and feelings that are entirely intertwined with the core of who I divinely am. I have never seen my insides like that, and just as with my hand, it’s nauseating.
I looked for the scar in my hand this morning and couldn’t find it among the creases of my palm, but as I looked I realized that the only hope for healing and comfort is from He who still carries the scars in His hands from the gift of love He gave to me. He understands all of what is inside of me, and He loves me still. He knows what is real and what is false, and only He can direct the journey to become purified and return to the Light. It doesn’t change what is inside of me for now, but it does change things to know I am not alone and I am not in trouble for bringing my broken humanness to the feet of my Savior!
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:28)
In an effort to curb some of the sibling drama in our house, I have taken to singing the primary song “Kindness Begins with Me” when the children are quarreling. It hasn’t had any effect on them yet, but it does distract me a bit so I don’t snap at them! Tonight while I was playing school with the girls, the boys were quarreling about chap stick–yes, two boys debating who got to use the mint flavored lip balm, it makes sense, right?!? I sang the little song and they rolled their eyes. As I continued working on my addition, Brinnley started singing her own version of the song. Instead of ending “kindness begins with me,” her song ended “kindness begins with God!” I have been thinking about that, and she is certainly right–great truths come out of the mouths of babes. Kindness does begin with God. When I am kind to others it is just His love flowing through me to another. When I am not kind it is just a witness that I am disconnected from Him. It puts into perspective the struggles between the kids. Instead of working on them being kind to each other, maybe we need to focus on ways we can feel the love of the Lord more in our home and our lives, and the quarreling will resolve itself. It’s worth a try!
A great one from Stake Conference today.
“I doubt there will be very many people in the celestial kingdom who aren’t kind.”
-Elder Marlin K. Jensen