Alternatives to Obeying the Law

This thought starts with something not spiritual at all.  I drive according to the speed limit.  Admittedly, I used to be more careful, but I still consider it personally unacceptable to exceed that limit.  This means that I tend to drive slower than most people around me.  I don't mind that.  People tend to be polite and don't tell me I should drive faster, yet as with everything else, there is always a subtle pressure to conform to what everyone else is doing.  There are surely those who would look down on me for restricting myself to obeying a law that most people don't obey, especially in light of countless reasons to drive faster.  This was on my mind the other day, so I asked myself if I didn't follow the speed limit, what else would I do?

One of my options would be to match the speed of those around me, or, if I didn't happen to be in much traffic, to try to go as fast as I thought other people would drive if they were there.  I don't like this idea because I believe in acting out of principle.  I have a good mind that can think through problems and come up with reasons for taking any particular action, and I can use it when determining my driving speed rather than just going with the flow.  Sure, there are a lot of social conventions that are harmless to follow, where it would be more trouble than it's worth to defy, but if it comes to social pressure vs. principle, principle will always be more important for me.

Another option would be to increase my speed but limit myself to only going five miles per hour over the speed limit.  This is a pretty common practice, because people (like me) often want to take as little time as possible to get somewhere, but are content to get away with breaking the law a little bit when they know they won't get in trouble for it (which is not much like me).  In this case, people driving five-over are still constrained by the law without respecting it.  I don't like that.  To undermine one law is to undermine the rule of law in general, and I believe in law.  I believe that the commandments of God and usually the laws of the land are there for our benefit, and I don't want to undermine them.

I could also go flying down the road at very high speeds.  I see people do this commonly, and I always think poorly of their actions.  Not only would such an action show blatant disrespect for the law, but it can be very dangerous.  It also sends a clear message to everyone that the driver considers himself or herself to be more important than everyone else, because there's no practical way that everyone could drive recklessly on the road.  Even if I knew that there were no police officers or cameras on a given stretch of road, I wouldn't want to do this.

So the alternatives to obeying the law aren't acceptable to me.

I made the distinction between God's commandments and the laws of men.  In matters such as the payment of tithing, no one is going to fine me or imprison me for not obeying the law.  If I were to openly break the Word of Wisdom I wouldn't get tossed in jail either.  So when I choose to obey the commandments, it's because I know the value of the law and the blessing I receive from obeying it.

As with man-made laws, people tend to have social conventions regarding obedience to the laws of God.  The social pressure in a given context may be to obey the commandments or to disobey them.  I don't ever want to obey commandments only because it's the socially acceptable thing to do, and I do want to obey them even if it's not popular.  I'm not immune to social pressure; I do worry about being too concerned with what people think of me, and there have surely been times when social pressure has led me to do the right thing when I wouldn't have otherwise, but I believe in doing what is right just because it is right.

As a disclaimer, when my baby was born recently I sped while driving from an airport to the hospital.  I bear in mind President Monson's words that "it is easier to keep the commandments 100 percent of the time than it is 98 percent of the time."  But especially after missing the birth of my last child, I wanted to be there for this one.  So my obedience to law is evidently not perfect, but after this experience I've continued in my regular driving habits.

Last thoughts for now:
I believe in obeying the commandments because they are God's will and He loves us and knows what is best for us.  I believe in doing the right thing out of principle.  What's really most important to me is knowing that I stand well with God and with myself.  I will need the mercy of Jesus Christ, but I want to merit it by truly being His disciple.

A Mighty Change of Heart

All three speakers in church  today taught about reverence.  It's a theme that the bishop has addressed more than once recently.  The talks were very much of an instructive nature, with particular direction given, such as statements that we should arrive early to our meetings and not carry on casual conversation in the chapel.  In other words, we were told to do something because we (as a whole) need to change what we are doing.

Without a doubt, the following are true:
Only some who heard were really listening.
Only some who really listened identified themselves as needing to change.
Only some who knew they needed to change made a determination to take specific action to cause that change.

I taught the teachers today about the change of heart we need to experience as we give Jesus Christ's Atonement power in our lives.  We read scriptures that taught us that we must have "a broken heart and a contrite spirit" (2 Nephi 2:7), "godly sorrow [that] worketh repentance to salvation" (2 Corinthians 7:10), and "a mighty change in[...]our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually." (Mosiah 5:2)  Though I don't claim to have experienced this entirely, I have felt the power of the Christ's Atonement in my life as it has changed my disposition to no longer desire things I used to desire, and it's wonderful.  I intend to keep pursuing that change.

It seems to me (though I don't want to misjudge anyone) that many people enter into patterns of living that are comfortable to them and then don't take action to change in any way.  I cannot accept such a thing in my life; I know that I need to change because I'm imperfect and I need to repent.  That's a very broad statement, but I do hear specific words from church leaders or church members, and I feel specific guidance from the Holy Ghost, that make it clear that I need to do something I'm not already doing, start doing something that I'm not doing, or do something differently.  I'd better be changing; if I'm not changing, I'm not progressing--I'm not learning!

Sometimes it's hard to hear that what we're doing is wrong.  Sometimes it's actually very hard to hear that the way we do things somehow *isn't* the best way of doing things.  We have to be of a mind to take instruction willingly and give up habits or methods to which we have become attached, thus possessing the so-important "broken heart and a contrite spirit".  We have to give up our desires and our attachments, and that's why we are told multiple times in scripture that a broken heart and a contrite spirit is the type of sacrifice that we need to make.  (Psalms 51:17, 3 Nephi 9:20, Doctrine and Covenants 59:8)  To be willing to make that sacrifice is to be teachable; it's being humble.  Showing that willingness and humility definitely falls into the category of "pursuits that are difficult but worthwhile".

It can be very hard, but it ought to be hard.  Otherwise, it wouldn't be a "mighty" change of heart.

Last thoughts for now:
I'm grateful for God's mercy in teaching me so much in the past and I trust Him to continually direct me in His wisdom.  Sometimes it will be a stinging blow to my pride, but every time He gives me direction I know it will be for my own benefit.  I hope to often make the sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit.  I believe in learning and growing.  I know that it is only through the Atonement of Jesus Christ that we can repent and be like Him.