"That every man might speak in the name of God"

I didn't grow up listening to a pastor or "holy man" preach every week.  I grew up in a church where everyone was expected to contribute, and everyone was expected to keep the commandments.  In hindsight, it's strange to me when I see others' religious experiences in which they are "normal" and some other figure is "holy".  I don't mean to take a shot at other people's faith, but I know what it means to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Every member of the Church has been baptized.  Through that covenant we all have promised to take upon ourselves the name of Christ, keep his commandments, mourn with those that mourn (Mosiah 18:9), and speak with the "tongue of angels" (2 Nephi 31:13-14, 32:2-3).  We are all disciples of Christ who have covenanted to cast off sin and leave worldly ways behind.  We all serve in the Church, and someone who is a mission president one month is a teacher for young children the next.  We all have the same responsibility to have faith and to repent, and if we do so we are all candidates for positions of service that people outside of our religion might see as positions of prominence.  Despite our weakness we are all saints; we are all Latter-day Saints.

I think sometimes we as members of God's Church don't realize what He wants for us.  We are sometimes too content to let others lead.  The truth is that we have all been called to serve and to lead and to be shining examples of discipleship.  No one is inherently better than anyone else; there isn't a division of groups that are meant to be noble and groups that are meant to be prodded along.  Instead, God desires "that every man might speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world; That faith also might increase in the earth; That mine everlasting acovenant might be established; That the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world, and before kings and rulers." (Doctrine and Covenants 1:20-23)

What's more, the breadth of Christ's Atonement itself implies that the glory of God is intended for all of us.  "And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men, yea, the pains of every living creature, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam.  And he suffereth this that the resurrection might pass upon all men, that all might stand before him at the great and judgment day.  And he commandeth all men that they must repent, and be baptized in his name, having perfect faith in the Holy One of Israel, or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God." (2 Nephi 9:21-23--a personal favorite)  We all are supposed to benefit from the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and having been given so much we are then all required to do much.  God desires for us all to receive His joy and glory, or as I mentioned in an earlier post, there's "Only One Destination in the Plan".

Last thoughts for now:
We all deserve to have hope, and we all deserve to know the joy of service.  Heavenly Father wants us all to be righteous and holy.  The Church exists to bring the children of God, every one of us a sinner, close to Him.  I hope for us all to better understand Jesus Christ's Atonement and become better servants of the Almighty God.

With Angel Eyes (Fiction)

The following is pure speculative fiction.  I wrote it a while back and figured it would be good to put here, even though the format is entirely different from my normal blog writing.  I don't claim to have had any experience with this sort of thing, but the narrative illustrates some ideas that make sense to me.

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With Angel Eyes

Mason watched people moving to and fro, performing everyday tasks while oblivious to his presence and also to the presence of Grant and the other, more distant disembodied spirits.  “I always assumed that it was like this, but it’s unsettling to realize it, to think back on the many things I did that…well, that I wouldn’t have done if I’d realized how many people could see.”

Grant nodded.  “Of course, whether or not someone can see what we’re doing shouldn’t be our motivation to eschew evil and pursue righteous goals.  It’s actually better for us that we aren’t aware of those who observe our mortal experiences, because it allows us to choose righteousness for the sake of righteousness, or for the sake of our acknowledgement of the Atonement of Christ.  So, the physical limitation, our inability to see things with spiritual eyes, actually helps.

“However, remember that those who can observe you don’t want to revel in your unrighteous choices.  So, while our unrighteous actions are still observable, they are generally less observed.  That same limitation that you’ve been used to also has largely hidden something about your own nature.  Look at these people.  Do you see that some shine brighter than others?”

Mason looked at the people everywhere, and for the first time he paid attention to the way that they glowed.  Indeed, some glowed brightly, while others were dim.  “Yes…why is that?”

“I’m sure you can tell me if you think about it.”

“Well, I always understood that when we were judged, we would have more glory if we were more righteous.”

Grant nodded again, smiling.  “Exactly.  So why would we not also have more glory and brightness before our final judgment?  And let me ask you this: where does the light come from?”

Mason had to think for a moment; Grant let him.  Mason finally replied: “From God.  We shine with the light from God.”

“Right again.  Inasmuch as we allow ourselves to reflect the light of truth from God’s Spirit, His light shines forth from us.  It’s always like that, though to mortal eyes it’s often quite hard to discern.  If you think back, though, I’m sure you can remember times when, for no reason that was evident, someone looked different, brighter in some way, and you could tell that he or she was a faithful disciple of Christ.”

Mason looked again at the people, going about their business in the simple ways he had done so often himself.  “Yes, I do remember times like that.  In fact, after a certain lesson from a seminary teacher I had really hoped to give other people the same impression, or rather, just to shine so that they would want to follow Jesus Christ.”

“Good!  That’s the right idea.”

Mason looked at his own spirit-matter hand.  “I’m relieved to see some light in myself.”

“Surely.  And you can take it as a good sign that you’re here associating with someone else who also bears the light of truth.  But we were speaking, before, about others observing our actions.  Like I said, while our unrighteous acts are observable, they are generally less observed.  When we engage in unrighteous behavior, we inherently shield ourselves from the influence of the Holy Ghost, thus reducing the light around us.”

“So when we’re bad we can’t be seen?”

“No, no, it takes a lot of evil to completely block out the influence of God in our lives, and even then we’re still visible, but it’s more a matter of focus.  Those of us who are observing are naturally inclined to observe those who are shining brightly and turn our attention easily away from darkness.  As a person’s light dims because of wickedness, only their personal angels stay with them to help.  When you sin more seriously and the truth becomes dim around you, only those who really are concerned stay near and watch over you.”

Mason became uncomfortable again.  “So for my bigger mistakes, people were probably still watching.  Maybe someone like my grandpa?”

“Perhaps.”

“I hate that.  I hate knowing that someone else knows what I’ve done.  When it was wrong, I mean.”

“Of course.  Shame is natural and can be very helpful.  Don’t worry about other people knowing, though; it’s better for key individuals to know now than to have your sins proclaimed from the rooftops to the whole world later, and the people who watch over you from above are those who really love you anyway.  They forgive you and still have faith in you.”

Mason lowered his head.  “If I knew, I mean really knew, how things were, I know I wouldn’t have done some of the dumb things that I did.”

“Ah, naturally.  But if we had a full knowledge from the beginning, it wouldn’t be a test, would it?  We wouldn’t really be able to learn and grow.”

“I guess I feel like it would be helpful to have this kind of perspective in order to do the learning.”

“I can see why you’d think so, but if you take a bit of time to observe people you’ll find that simply being told a truth isn’t enough to make it powerful in our lives.  In fact, depending on our dispositions, we can very easily blind ourselves to things that ought to be obvious.  Too much information all at once isn’t helpful either, and while you have some extra perspective here, you’re faced with different limitations.  Consider, for example, sacrifice.  Though it’s an incredibly important principle of the Gospel, it’s quite difficult to practice here.  How do you expect to learn the benefit of fasting and giving of your substance to others, when you don’t have much in the way of substance?  There’s really not much that you can learn here that you can’t learn in a mortal experience, and there, you can actually learn most things more fully than you can here.”

They were both silent for a moment before Grant spoke again.  “Come with me.  I’d like to show you something.”

Grant took his hand and began walking, and Mason felt that they were moving very quickly.  When they were still again, Mason found himself in a place he didn’t recognize.  It was a bustling city.

“Look around,” Grant said, “and tell me who those two people are.”

It didn’t take Mason long at all to identify the two people of whom Grant was speaking, for while the crowd of people all around generally only dimly reflected the light of the Holy Ghost, these two particular souls, well-dressed young men shone with a radiance.  Mason figured that there was a natural explanation for this—two young men, walking together and casting light before them.  “Missionaries,” he said.  “They’ve got to be missionaries.”

“They are indeed.”  Grant acknowledged.  “When it comes to light and shining truth, they’re some of the most satisfying to watch.  When the people they teach listen to the Holy Ghost, the light from the missionaries shines out and brightens them as well.  There are other ways by which a given person’s light quickly increases, but the teaching of missionaries is one of the better ways.”

Mason lifted his head and peered toward them.  “Are we going to see that today?”

“These two are pretty reliable, so I wouldn’t be surprised.”

They observed quietly for a brief while, and it gave Mason time to think.  One idea gently nagged him, though he was reluctant to speak it.  “Grant, you said that people don’t get as much attention from angelic observers when they sin,” (and Grant nodded encouragingly,) “but at other times, you do, ah, give people their privacy, right?  Like newlyweds?”

Grant laughed.  “Yes, of course.  Just as we can quickly turn our attention away from the darkness of sin, we are selective about other things as well.  Sacred events are universally considered to by ‘by invitation only’, and something as immeasurably sacred as the physical intimacy of a husband and wife is no one’s business but their own.  It’s quite instinctive to find another place to be, and surprisingly easy to sense when they no longer require privacy.  We’re neither curious about it nor carnal, so it’s not a concern.”

Mason looked down and raised his eyebrows.  “Huh.  Good.  Well, I’d expect things to make sense like that, but I’m glad to hear it.”

Grant still wore a mild smile.  “Though, to bring perspective, those of us that no longer have bodies also don’t get embarrassed like we used to.”

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"He granteth unto men according to their desire"

A recurring message in the scriptures is "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened."  (Matthew 7:7-8)  When we need something from Heavenly Father, if we ask faithfully He will give it to us.  Often, he will answer our prayers through His servants here on this earth.  Sometimes, if we are truly seeking to serve Him, we are blessed to be the instruments by which He blesses others.

I certainly hope to bless others' lives.  I believe that the most important way I can help others is by sharing the restored Gospel with them.  While it's good to serve in many ways, such as by providing food or doing physical labor, if we can share true knowledge and inspire others to live according to that truth, then for the most part they will be able to provide what they need for themselves and dedicate themselves to service as well.  So I love to testify of the restored gospel.

I find myself frustrated in my desire sometimes, though.  While I would love to declare the joyous truths of the restored gospel with everyone, that isn't how God works.  He gives to those who ask.  Or, as Alma said, "O that I were an angel[...]that I might go forth[...]with a voice to shake the earth, and[...]declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder, repentance and the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth.  But behold, I am a man, and do sin in my wish; for I ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me.  [...]I know that he granteth unto men according to their desire[...]yea, I know that he allotteth unto men, yea, decreeth unto them decrees which are unalterable, according to their wills, whether they be unto salvation or unto destruction."  (Alma 29:1-4)

I doubt that Alma met people who intentionally sought spiritual destruction, but many who heard him definitely did choose that path through their refusal of the true gospel.  Similarly, we run into people who, while professing to live life just like anyone else, reject the glad message of the restored gospel.  Despite my great desires to share the gospel, if someone doesn't want it, I should "give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you."  (Matthew 7:6, interestingly spoken by Jesus right before the passage above.)  I hesitate to call anyone "swine" or "dog", but I recognize that many will find no value in the treasures I share and will instead mock them and me.  Thus, I should reserve my great treasure for those who seek it.

I have found that even when someone asks a question about my religion they may not merit a lengthy response, depending on whether they ask with a real desire to know.  Just because someone throws out a simple question, I should not seek to provide every answer to every question.  The other day I spoke about the restored gospel for several hours with a friend, but in hindsight, I see that I was more eager to share the truths of the Restoration than he was to learn them.  The result was that, despite my testimony of the Book of Mormon, he still didn't want to read it.  Without doing so, he cannot gain a testimony for himself.  Even if he did read some of it, if he did not ponder the words and ask God "with a sincere heart, with real intent" (Moroni 10:4), he would not receive an answer from God.

Last thoughts for now:
I know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is for everyone and is a joyous, wonderful thing.  I know that I should "be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh [me] a reason of the hope that is in [me]".  Yet, I should guard the treasure of my testimony, and as I seek to serve God I should seek to share my testimony and knowledge only inasmuch as others truly seek it, just as "He granteth unto men according to their desire".  And like Alma, "I ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me."  And, though it won't always happen at the speed I would like, measure by measure, those who listen to the voice of the Shepherd will be gathered into Zion.