Seeing Afar Off

 These are thoughts I sent to friends.

This is long to send in a text but I loved this in the Follow Him podcast this week.  And maybe some of you already heard it... and I shared a tiny bit of it in RS today but I loved it so much that I decided to share.  Because I think it's so easy to get bogged down in life and let the difficulties and complexities make us feel anxious or to let doubt or fear creep in or just to get sidetracked by good things and lose sight of the best things.

So here's what Daniel Belnap said on Follow Him said, starting by quoting bits of Alma 5:  "Do you see your corruption putting on incorruption? Can you imagine unto yourselves, God saying, "Enter in ye blessed." And I know that he's talking about it to the wicked going, "Or do you think that you're going to be able to lie to God?" But I think those other questions are intriguing, because I think they tie into this boldness, which is, do we think about that often? Do we think about what it's like to be in the presence of God? Do we imagine what eternal life is like? If those verses hold true Alma has just suggested that as weird as it sounds, imagination plays a fundamental role in the expression of faith. Looking forward with an eye of faith and seeing something that hasn't been yet, but will be. Do you imagine it? Do you imagine what it's like to be in the presence of God?

Do you imagine it? Do we explore the contours of what it means to have eternal life? And it seems to me that that longterm, that ability to not just look up but as Peter's going to call it, see afar off. Becomes absolutely essential to survival. And in a day and age, particularly now, and this is me getting on my soapbox a bit, but in a day and age where so much information is flying around so fast, so often, that to some degree, there's an element of where we're constantly reacting to the barrage of inspiration that's coming in. It's a constant reaction. We have no choice, but to deal with what keeps flashing before our eyes all the time. And yet to see afar off means, you've got to lift

yourself from that, lift your gaze from that and see a long perspective....

And that experience that the Israelites were meant to have, I think is tied into that. Why weren't they ready in three days? I don't know, but it makes me think they were concentrating on three days more than the horizon. They didn't see afar off.

What if my clothes aren't clean enough? Yeah.

And maybe part of it is we don't actually believe that that's an event that can really happen. I don't think we think enough about entering into the presence of God and what that's like. And yet the Doctrine and Covenants is full of that. And the Book of Mormon has narrative after narrative of people who do, and the New Testament talks about it. There's a promise. There's a promise that's given that this can happen so that you can bless all mankind. You're expected to be a kingdom of priests to bless everybody. And so yeah, the story isn't ultimately negative for Israel at that time for those 40 years, but it lays out an experience that any Israelite is expected to have in any dispensation...

This is an experience. And since I’m playing with that, here's section 107. This is in our Doctrine and Covenants talking about the powers of the priesthood. You get verse 18, which says, the power and the authority of the higher or Melchizedek Priesthood is to hold the keys of all the spiritual blessings of the church. It's then followed by a verse which appears to reflect the blessings, spiritual blessings of the church. To have the privilege of receiving the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, to have the heavens opened unto them, to commune with the general assembly and church of the firstborn, and to enjoy the communion and presence of God, the father and Jesus, the mediator of the covenant.
Now I don't think we talk about this enough and yet it's straight out, these are the spiritual blessings that the church has available. And so I'm back to the question that I've asked is, how often do we think about it? Do we even take these seriously? Do we think that they're only for a certain select group of people? Or are they blessings that are available to anyone by virtue the Melchizedek Priesthood? And what does it mean if they are available to everyone?"

Do we really believe what God is promising?  Do we really believe he can take us, warts, sins, weaknesses and all and make us like Him?  Do we believe it fully enough that we have the imagination to see it? To envision it?  And how does that change things if we do?  

I have been reading Atomic Habits.  It's the book that the 1% better comes from.  My favorite part is the second chapter which is all about how our sense of identity influences our development of habits.   What we believe about ourselves makes a huge impact on our success in developing good habits or getting rid of bad habits.  So for example if I believe I am a reader and identify myself as a reader then I will make choices that support my belief that I am a reader...joining a book club and reading books and visiting the library.  If someone is trying to quit smoking and they say things like I am trying to quit they will be less successful than if they say they are not a smoker.  Self-fulfilling prophecies often really do occur.  So do we really believe we will see God?  That we will be perfected?  For me the answer is...sometimes.  And it makes a world of difference when I do!

Spiritual Momentum: Nelson

 Once a month I meet with women in my neighborhood and we discuss a conference talk, the gospel, our families, etc.  This month we discussed President Nelson's talk Spiritual Momentum.  These are my notes from our discussion, mostly without distinguishing who said what...using "I" for everyone not just me.

I loved the discussion on positive vs. Negative momentum.  We have to be strong to continue positive spiritual momentum.  We all know people that seemed so strong that have chosen to go another way.   

I liked the discussion of the covenant path.  So many getting off path...it is hard to see.  We wish that others would come and see and come and stay.  Satan has a hold on many good people.  So many get caught up in the things of the world and there are “sheep in wolves’ clothing.”  President Nelson said, “Spiritual momentum can help us withstand the relentless, wicked attacks of the adversary and thwart his efforts to erode our personal spiritual foundation.”  He also said, “One of our greatest challenges today is distinguishing between the truths of God and the counterfeits of Satan.” 

A common counterfeit today is the belief that “you do you and I’ll do me” and we’ll both be fine...there’s no absolute right or wrong, my choices don’t influence you, you are responsible entirely for your own choices and I’m responsible for mine.  We (should) know this isn’t true, and yet these types of attitudes are prevalent and are even creeping in for many active members of the church.  Some people that are followed by many on social media or in other places sneakily mix truth with untruth and it’s easy to be deceived.  We need to be so cautious about what we read, watch, view, follow. 

 

Our actions matter.  They have an impact...for good or ill.  There are consequences for our choices.  

Elder Christofferson gave a beautiful talk in conference called “Our Relationship with God.”  Among other things he said, “Our repentance and obedience, our service and sacrifices do matter. We want to be among those described by Ether as “always abounding in good works.”14 But it is not so much because of some tally kept in celestial account books. These things matter because they engage us in God’s work and are the means by which we collaborate with Him in our own transformation from natural man to saint.15 What our Heavenly Father offers us is Himself and His Son, a close and enduring relationship with Them through the grace and mediation of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer.” 

 

 God gives us laws and commands because He loves us.  And because obedience brings forth blessings.  We cannot choose wrong and feel right/happy.  On Real Talk Come Follow Me this week, they talk about the law of gravity.  If two people are standing on the edge of a cliff and one says he believes in gravity and the other says he doesn’t, gravity doesn’t care.  The result for each if they step off the cliff is going to be the same (unless the person who believes either doesn’t step off or has a parachute.)  So, too, there are laws upon which joy and happiness are predicated.  We can only feel joy if we are acting in accordance with the laws of God...if we are living in harmony with what we know to be true. 

Our spiritual survival depends on us learning to feel joy. 

The world has counterfeits.  There are many things that can bring us temporary happiness, and some of them are good (Disneyland, travel, etc.)  But they are temporary.  And some of the things that the world tells us will bring us happiness and pleasure are empty and will not bring any sort of happiness at all.  There’s a difference between happiness and pleasure and joy.   

 

While it does feel like there is so much wrong in the world, there are also many good things happening.  17 temples just announced.  So much missionary work.  Lots of people making covenants.  Social media, the news, the world is not going to champion goodness, faith, following Christ...and that can make us feel like we are alone...but I believe there is a lot more good than we sometimes think.  Maybe we need to be more vocal about sharing our beliefs and sharing the good and standing up for truth so that others of faith don’t feel alone!  Look for the good, the helpers...follow them.  

 

“Boundaries not battlefields”...so much discussion in each of President Nelson’s talks this time to end conflict.  He urged us to end conflict.  “None of us can control nations or the actions of others or even members of our own families.  But we can control ourselves.  My call today, dear brothers and sisters, is to end conflicts that are raging in your hearts, your home and your life.  Bury any and all inclinations to hurt others—whether those inclinations be a temper, a sharp tongue, or a resentment for someone who has hurt you.” 

It is hard to end conflict.  Sometimes the hardest conflicts are those in our own heart...  

We discussed forgiveness.  It is hard.  It is a process, often even a daily choosing to continue to work at forgiving, to try to let go of the anger and hurt.  “Forgiveness does not make them right.  It makes me free.”It usually helps us more than them.  We need to try harder to give ourselves and others grace.  Most of us are doing the best we can with what we have right now. 

 

President Nelson asked us to do 5 things.  Any that seemed especially important or meaningful to you or that you’d like to discuss? 

 

Third suggestion:  Learn about God and how He works.  How do we do that? 

I believe he has a sense of humor.   

He lives by rules.  And rules are actually given because He loves us and wants us to be safe and become our best selves.  (I am sometimes not the most popular teacher at my school because I enforce rules.  Many of the 6th graders get frustrated that I don’t let them run down the hall or throw food in the cafeteria or trample my 3rd graders.  But the reality is that whether they like it or not, my actions make the school a safer place for everyone.  Having and enforcing rules helps the students learn.  It may not make me popular at times, but it is for everyone’s good.  Just as I sometimes shake my head when students can’t see that what I’m doing is for their benefit, I’m sure the Lord does some head shaking, wishing that we better understood His heart...that we recognized that these rules are for our good.) 

Studying scripture helps us come to know Him.   

Several years ago I felt prompted to study every conference talk and make a list of every thing said about each member of the Godhead.  It was such a meaningful study, that I repeated it for 3 years.  And what I learned is that I had some misconceptions about Heavenly Father.  It seems like I should have known this...but I realized that I’d come to view Him a bit as the lawgiver and the one who punishes and viewed Him in a bit more negative light.  And sometimes in the scriptures it is a bit harder to differentiate between what is being said of God and what is being said of each, but it is usually clearer in conference talks.  And what I realized is that EVERY attribute of Christ is also an attribute of the Father.  That He is everything good.  That in the words of a song I love, we have a “Good, Good Father”.   

Elder Christofferson’s talk from conference was all about our relationship with God.   

How else do we come to know how He works?  By noticing how he works in our lives, how we see His hand. 

Suggestion 4 was to seek and expect miracles...to recognize His tender mercies. 

This one is one I love but also the word “expect” feels a little presumptuous.  I believe in miracles, but am not sure how to balance believing in them with turning my will over to Him, trusting His timetable and His plan. And many of the miracles I most hope for are related to other people’s agency. 

Sharon shared so many beautiful tender mercies she had after Cal’s death. She called Costco to see if she could return a tablet he had bought.  They showed up at her house with flowers, chocolates and $200.  She was given money from strangers who felt prompted to give her money.  So many tender mercies and blessings were poured out upon her.  Cal was given a blessing and told he could stay or go and it was his choice.  A couple of months later, the spirit whispered to her that she still has a work to do and wouldn’t have done it if Cal had remained.  Now she needs to figure out what that is. 

Heather also shared some personal experiences with some difficult challenges and the remarkable miracles that have come.  She testified so beautifully that the Lord is in every detail.  That the blessings have been too much.  That we SHOULD expect miracles...they are there.  We just have to recognize them when they happen.  The Lord knows which experiences EACH of us need to get us to where we need to be.  See the miracles.  See the blessings.  Perhaps rather than praying for a specific miracle, pray for the “miracle I need”.   Our individualized experiences help us to be more charitable, loving, and empathetic...allow us to succor others.   

These difficult experiences can either make us bitter or better. 

One miracle I am praying for is to feel and create unity and remove conflict from my life/home/heart.  Some days that feels like it will take a miracle and it is a miracle that is so needed! 

Some thoughts after pondering our discussion.  

*Some of my hesitancy about miracles relates to a timeline I was trying to put on it, but after listening to comments and discussion last night, I realized President Nelson didn’t put any timelines on when the miracles will come.  He shared some miracles and said, “Each of these miracles took time and may not have been exactly what those individuals originally requested from the Lord.”  So he’s not saying that I need to expect the miracle I hope for to take place by next October conference...or even that I should request a specific miracle.  I loved Heather’s counsel to fast and pray for the “miracles we need” rather than for a specific miracle we are hoping for.  And I just keep thinking that ultimately, the Lord fulfills His promises.  We don’t get to decide when, but the blessings promised are SO great.  Worth whatever effort or sacrifice.  Eternal life and becoming like God are probably the greatest of all miracles!  That He can take me and make me like Him?  That’s pretty miraculous indeed!  President Nelson said, “Do the spiritual work to seek miracles.  Prayerfully ask God to help you exercise that kind of faith.”   

 

President Nelson always gives such beautiful promises.  In this talk he promised, “As you act on these pursuits, I promise you the ability to move forward on the covenant path with increased momentum, despite whatever obstacles you face. And I promise you greater strength to resist temptation, more peace of mind, freedom from fear, and greater unity in your families.”