Give An Answer

While listening to a sports talk radio show early this morning, the two hosts were discussing the issue of steroids (again).  I didn't pay much mind to them, being tired and on my way to the gym until the point was given that most professional athletes would use performing enhancing drugs if it meant being able to reach that level or not, even knowing of the harm that they could cause.  He went on to assert that this action is wrong and is cheating but who could blame them?  After all, he surmised, we would do the same thing if put in that situation.  Basically, it is all right to cheat if everyone else does too.  The reasoning disturbed me on several levels.  In my own profession, I may not make as much per year as an NFL football player but it is in a well respected profession and I am grateful to be a member of it.  Through my educational years and even now there are times where I could have "cheated" or "gamed the system."  In fact, many have.  In no way does that make it right.  I think that there is a time when we must stand up and say, "enough is enough."  It is not "OK" to cheat.  I thought of Peter's words in the New Testament, "be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you" (1 Peter 3:15). I will not lower my standards because someone else has.  I think there are many more people out there that feel the same way I do.  I am proud of my children who come home from school and report on all the cheating they see and yet will not do so themselves.  If we have no integrity, we have nothing indeed.  My hope is in the gospel of Jesus Christ.  I know that it is in how we live that truly reflects what we believe.  If we walk in his paths, his light will be directed to our feet.  As Paul told the Romans, "All things work together for good to them that love God" (Romans 8:28).

The Bread of Life

Many thousands of years ago Moses was commanded to lead the children of Israel from Egypt to the promised land.  Being enslaved by Pharoah, this was no easy task.  For seven days the Lord brought forth plagues to torment Egypt, culminating in the destroying angel taking the lives of all the first born sons in each home.  The lives of the children of Israel whose parents heeded the warning of the prophet were spared, having marked their homes with the sacrificial blood of a first born lamb.  They then left in such haste that they could not wait for their bread to rise.  The celebration of this singular event continues today in Jewish homes each year as "Passover."  The iconic symbol of the passover is the unleavened bread that the children of Israel took with them.

It was on this very day many years later that a young Jewish preacher went up on a hillside to teach a group of about 5,000 people.  There was something different about this "Jesus" who taught them things they had never thought of before.  His power was unmistakable, healing their sick and afflicted.  They left to hear him speak in such haste that not only was there not time for their bread to rise, they forgot it altogether.  After communing with his Father in "the mountain" he looked up, saw the multitude, turned to his disciple Phillip and asked, "Whence shall we buy bread that these may eat?" (John 6:5).  A small boy, a lad, had with him five loaves and two fishes.  After having offered a prayer of thanksgiving, the Savior broke the bread and miraculously fed the multitude.  Not only was everyone filled but there was enough left over to fill twelve baskets.

Now I had never before considered the fact that this well known miracle occurred on the passover.  Obviously this was not a coincidence.  Jesus, the following day went on to explain that he was the bread of life.  He was the symbol of the passover.  Through his blood, the blood of the Lamb of God, we all would be saved from the destroying angel of sin.  He declared, "whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life; and I shall raise him up at the last day" (vs. 54).  Many of the people, who were happy to be fed a free meal or receive of a healing miracle could not abide his declaration of the messiaship.  How could he be the Son of God?  He was Joseph's son.  He turned to his trusted apostles, likely with sadness in his eyes and heaviness in his heart and asked, "will you also go away?" (vs. 67).  Peter, he with the willing heart but an impetuous nature and who just the night before had taken two confident steps on water but then needed to reach for Jesus' outstretched hand, simply said, "To whom shall we go?  Thou hast the words of eternal life.  And we believe and art sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God" (vs. 68-69).  I love his response.  He did not wait for his bread to rise but quickly turned to follow the Savior.

It would be exactly one year later that Jesus would again sit at passover with his apostles.  This would be the last time to do so in mortality.  "[He] took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; This is my body.  And he took the cup and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins" (Matthew 26: 26-28).  The institution of the ordinance of the sacrament, or in other faiths, communion is, in my mind, a way to access the Savior's atonement.  It calls back through the ages, reminding us of ancient promises made to the fathers, it reminds us of Christ's ability to fill us spiritually and to make us whole, it is a time when we offer up to him the burden of our sins, taking upon ourselves a commitment to follow him and not turn away.  He is the manna from heaven.  As we partake, he will fill us day by day.

Lean Not Unto Thine Own Understanding

Aloha! We are having a wonderful family vacation in the beautiful paradise state of Hawaii. On Saturday we drove to Laie, the home of one of our oldest temples and of the campus of BYU Hawaii. Last sumer we learned that one of my ancestors went there as a missionary around 1860. He was given the charge of procuring the land where these buildings now reside. His wife started the first school there. It hit me that we were now seeing the fruits of their labors. We spent most of the day at the nearby Polynesian Cultural Center. We had a great day.

Of all the beautiful sights and sounds we have experienced, the one that I cannot get out of my head was attending church services at a local congregation of our church near Pearl Harbor. After taking the tour to the U.S.S. Arizona, we changed clothes and headed to a nearby chapel we had found on the internet. We were about the only Caucasians in the whole congregation but we immediately felt at home. The meetings all over the world are conducted the same way. The hymns are the same but more than anything we share the same spirit. It was this congregation's, "Ward Conference," which means that in addition to hearing from their bishop (pastor), we also heard from the Stake President (regional ecclesiastical leader) and his counselor. The theme for the meeting was taken from Proverbs 3:5-6, "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknoledge Him and He shall direct thy paths."The Bishop spoke for quite awhile. I'll have to say that the warm air, the peaceful spirit and my heavy eye lids were not a great combination for remaining alert. He went on for about an hour. The counselor shortened his talk and did a great job discussing trusting the Lord. The Stake President then stood and I shall not soon forget the experience.

He had a soft voice and very kind eyes. He spoke about "leaning not unto thine own understanding." He spoke of times in his life when he put aside what he thought was best and did what the Lord thought was best. He spoke of serving a mission, marrying the right woman, accepting the right job and raising his family. He mentioned his upcoming retirement this December and how he might consider "relaxing, going on trips." Better yet, he spoke of putting those things aside and serving a mission with his wife. He then, tenderly looked into our eyes and declared that he knew the God and his Son, Jesus lived. The spirit of his testimony touched me deep in my soul and I understood that this knowledge came from a man who truly walks with the Lord. He had "taken his yoke upon him" many years hence and truly knows his master. He then declared "this is his church." Jesus cannot reside on the earth at this time so he has chosen a prophet, Thomas S. Monson and he leads and guides us. He then told that congregation that their bishop was called from God. He promised them if they would heed his counsel, they would be blessed. There was no mention of the previous sermon going too long. He loving supported and elevated this good bishop who had only just been asked to fulfil this calling two weeks previous. His words only covered about ten minutes but he left us all with a powerful spirit. The mood had changed. We left, feeling alive and blessed for having been there.

"My Burden is Light"

I recently was able to attend Sunday School and watch my lovely daughter teach. She did a great job! The lesson was centered on the scripture found in Matthew 11:28-30.

28¶ Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

This has been a favorite of mine. I think we all feel heavy laden at times. I remember the feeling of backpacking and of taking off that load when we have reached our destination. What a great feeling. That is what the Savior does for us. He has carried that burden. He has made us free.

The next verses have made me wonder, though. How is it that his yoke is easy and his burden light? His burden was the greatest ever to be placed on the back of one of God's children. One of the students in the class made a comment that made a lot of sense to me. She commented that a yoke of oxen is never singular. It is a device that ties the two beasts together. Walking, side by side, the load is shared. We are invited to come under the Savior's yoke and walk with him. His yoke is easy because he has already born the greatest burden. As we walk in the paths that he walks and do the things that he does we gain his strength and we arrive where he arrives. It is the process by which we get to know our Lord and be known of him (see Mosiah 5:13).

Watch and Pray

This week I had the opportunity of going with my daughter to the Carl Bloch exhibit at the BYU Museum. I love art and looked forward to going. More so than the art itself, I was affected spiritually as I considered the biblical events depicted in the paintings. The one of Jesus praying in the garden of gethsemane was particularly touching. Consider the words found in Matthew:

36Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.

37And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.

38Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.

39And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

40And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?

41Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

42He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.

43And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.

44And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.

I have pondered these words before. These men were his closest of companions here on the earth. He must have felt so alone as he had to shoulder the burden of all mankind. Just prior to the agony which caused him to "sweat as it were, great drops of blood on the ground" (Luke 22:44), "there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him" (vs. 43). This is the scene depicted in the painting above. At the museum, one of the commentators speculated that the angel possibly was sent from the Father in response to the prayers from all of His children, watching over the greatest event that would ever occur on the earth. Knowing of my weaknesses, I have previously thought that if I were in the situation of watching over the events of the garden, I would have fallen asleep as did his apostles. The thought that, perhaps unencumbered by the weaknesses of the flesh, I could have been watching and praying for him from above and that an angel was sent in answer to all of our prayers, touched me deeply. It made the atonement even more personal to me. I am forever indebted to my Savior and hope that I can now and forever "watch and pray" more earnestly in all that I do.

A More Excellent Way

In reading and pondering the "Sermon on the Mount," I was struck by the contrast of the Savior's injunctions on righteous living and the temptations He endured from the hands of Satan.

Following forty days of fasting, Jesus was met by Satan who tempted him saying, "If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread" (Matt 4:3). Jesus answered, "It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God" (vs. 4). In the next chapter, Jesus teaches, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled" (vs6). Where Satan appealed to corporal appetites that can be sated but never satisfied, Jesus teaches us how to live so that we will always be filled. It starts with a recognition that we are not yet as we will become. If we desire with all our hearts to be who He knows we can become, he will feed us.

Satan issued his second attempt, “If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.” By throwing himself off the pinnacle of the temple in such a fashion, Jesus would have drawn the admiration of the people but would do so in a way that would put himself at a level above the rest. Salvation is not a ranking. We don’t get to Heaven by being better than someone else. Consider Jesus words on the mount, “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth” (Matt 5:4). Meekness is not weakness. In the words of President Uchtdorf, “We don’t discover [meekness] by thinking less of ourselves; we discover [meekness] by thinking less about ourselves” (October Conference 2010, “meekness substituted for humility”). Meekness is a recognition that we are all children of a loving Heavenly Father. We all have weakness but within us is the seed of deity. We access our potential as we follow the Savior, utilizing his atoning sacrifice in our life.

Satan’s last attempt to lure Christ was to promise him the riches of the world. “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me” (Matt 4:8-9). Contrast that with the words, “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5:3). Being poor in spirit means that we recognize that we are in need of the Savior. As we choose to follow Him and accept his gospel we are promised his spirit. Our poverty is transformed by his wealth. We are promised that “all that [the] Father shall be given unto [us]” (Doctrine & Covenants 84: 38).

After teaching us of hungering after righteousness, of being meek and poor in spirit, Jesus then commands us, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in Heaven is perfect” (Matt 5: 48). The seeming contradiction is resolved in our ability to do so through accepting his atoning sacrifice in our life. This perfecting process is explained beautifully in the closing words of the Book of Mormon, “Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God. And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot” (Moroni 10:32-33).

Surely, as the Prophet Moroni explained, “in the gift of his Son hath God prepared a more excellent way” (Ether 12: 11).

And They Straightway Left Their Nets

As Jesus began his ministry, he invited men to follow him. I love the story of Peter and his brethren. They had been out fishing all night and were surely tired and worn out but had returned with nothing for their labor. Cleaning their nets for another day, Jesus came and first asked if he could sit in the boat a little off the shore and teach the people who had thronged to see him. After he was done preaching, he turned to Peter, telling him to launch out again and drop his nets. I'm sure Peter wondered what the son of a carpenter could tell him about fishing. By all accounts Peter was very successful in his trade, owning two ships that he governed. Sighing, he gathered his men, put the freshly cleaned nets back in the ship and obeyed. Of course, we know that when they were let down, they were immediately filled to the point of breaking and required the assistance of all they could find. Realizing he was blessed beyond the measure of his faith, Peter cried out, "I am a sinful man." Jesus then told him that from henceforth they would be fishers of men, and "they straightway left their nets."

I am grateful to know men and women who like the ancient apostles have willingly given up all that they have to follow the Lord. I, like Peter, feel that I have been blessed beyond measure. I have been thinking of what nets I have in my life that keep me from being the disciple that Jesus would have me be. Let me share two thoughts that I have had, taken from outstanding talks given at my church this Sunday.

The first is the net of forgiveness. A woman in my congregation who has felt betrayed by her father has battled with her emotions and the ability to forgive him. By all accounts his actions are deplorable and worthy of condemnation. She spoke of her struggle to reach out to the Savior and through his atonement, forgive him. In a very powerful way, she taught me of His ability to take away our pains, even when caused by someone else. Not only pain, he takes away our bitterness and rage. Her forgiveness does not mean that she says, "it's OK, I forgive you." It is not OK, but she can feel remorse for his actions without letting it affect her ability to love the man. She showed us one way that we can truly leave our nets and follow Him.

The second net is that of consecration. Being the day before Valentine's day our next speaker spoke of the relationship that a husband has with his wife. Using Paul's text from the fifth chapter of Ephesians, he reminded us that our relationship with our spouse should be the same as Jesus' relationship with us, the church. He gave all for us. In our church we are asked to live the law of consecration in our families. The law of consecration is to give all our possessions to the church, as in the days of Peter after the Pentecost when the saints "had all things in common." Though we are not yet asked to do that, we are aked to have all things in common in our families. It is not a "50/50" relationship. If we both give 100% of each other to the cause, we'll get much more in return. As such, the nets of our material goods will bind us together instead of creating dividing boundaries between us. It left me thinking of how I can more fully give of myself to my wife. My material possessions don't bother me at all, they have long since been "ours" rather than "mine" and "hers." My heart and desires I pledge to her but I can do better... and I will.