I gave a talk in sacrament meeting today. I learned so much as I studied this topic. The entire Relief Society Presidency spoke and as we discussed a topic we were led to the scripture, Mosiah 18:21. My first counselor, Sue Jackson, spoke about service and my second counselor, Irene Werthmann, spoke about frienship and unity. I spoke first, introducing the topic. Here is my talk:
We
spent this past week in Yellowstone. We were awestruck by the majestic geysers, amazing
wildlife, spectacular waterfalls, towering mountains, high alpine lakes, and
pristine rivers. One of my kids said to me, “Mom, do you know why this is so
much better than, like, Lagoon? Because this wasn’t man-made. All of this was
made by Heavenly Father!” We were certainly reverenced by the impressive beauty
of it all. As we drove through certain parts of the park I noticed scars from
forest fires and was reminded of the devastating fires that swept through in
1988. My family lived in Cheyenne at the time and media coverage was constant
as the blazes continued on through the entire summer. I was only Anne’s age,
but especially remember the dark skies and red sun, trademarks of that summer
for me.
I decided to research more about the fires. What I found out was that dry conditions
and high winds were the catalyst to the fires that burned over 1/3rd
of the national park. Traditional firefighting methods proved useless as the
fires jumped streams, bull-dozer lines, and even the Grand Canyon of
Yellowstone. At the peak, nearly 10,000 people worked together to combat the
fires. 120 helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, 10 million of gallons of water,
1.4 million gallons of fire-retardant, and more than 100 fire engines.
These efforts saved
buildings, but man could not stop the fires.
After nearly
three months, the fires ended as they begun, with an act of nature.
It snowed.
What an army of
firefighters, hundreds of aircraft and $120 million couldn’t do, a quarter-inch
of snow did.
And so it is
with life.
Life can sometimes consume us like the blazing fires of Yellowstone. When
we may feel hopeless and at a loss for solutions, we must remember that our
Heavenly Father has provided us with an eternal snowfall in our Savior Jesus
Christ. I love the way Abraham describes it when he says, “Eternity was our
covering, and our rock and our salvation.” Jesus Christ is our fail-safe for
any fire.
To our great
joy, God has provided a Savior who performed a perfect Atonement and provided a
path for us to return home and receive all that He has. His covenant to us, His
children, is that despite our inevitable fall, we can be transformed from
beings whose impure hearts, desires, and wills cannot abide His presence into
sanctified beings who can abide His glory.
So, how do we do this?
One of the greatest sermons on
the doctrine of Jesus Christ is found in the Book of Mormon, and involves a
different fire. This fire would take the life of the prophet Abinadi.
Abinadi stood before
King Noah and boldly testified of Jesus Christ. He knew his testimony would
most likely lead to his death, but he would not deny what he knew. Just one
person heard and listened to his words. But one person was enough.
Elder Holland
says, “Out of Abinadi’s heroic – and ultimately fatal – declaration to the
wicked King Noah came one crucial convert, a young priest in the king’s court
named Alma. Hearing Abinadi’s witness of Christ and fleeing into the wilderness
to record the message and repent of his sins, Alma began baptizing all who
wished to make a covenant with Christ. “
There in the
wilderness Alma established the “church of Christ.” He taught them of
repentance, redemption, and faith. He led his people to follow the pattern of
the doctrine of Christ. Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism,
receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. We may desire more intricate
solutions, but the reality is that the pattern is beautifully simple.
First, Faith in
Jesus Christ leads us to know Him better. As we learn of His character and
attributes we seek to become more like Him and to follow after Him.
Second, we
repent that we may better align ourselves with His will. Hugh B. Nibley said, “Who
is righteous? Anyone who is repenting. No matter how bad he has been, if he is
repenting, he is a righteous man. There is hope for him. And no matter how
good he has been all his life, if he is not repenting, he is a wicked
man.” Repentance is a constant and continuous process in the doctrine of
Christ.
Third, our repentance
leads us to and is completed as we make covenants with God in ordinances. In
the ordinances of baptism and the sacrament we witness our repentance and
commitment to follow God. We not only renounce sin, we also covenant to obey.
When Alma taught at the Waters of Mormon he taught what Elder Holland describes
as the most complete scriptural statement on record as to what the newly
baptized commit to do and be.
Bear one
another’s burdens.
Mourning with
those that mourn.
Comfort those
who stand in need of comfort.
Standing as
witnesses of God at all times and in all things and in all places.
Entering into a
covenant to serve God and keep his commandments.
Fourth, keeping the
covenants we make allows the gift of the Spirit in our lives. I like to think
of the Holy Ghost as the element that helps us to understand the pattern we are
trying to follow. The Spirit “shows all things that ye should do,” “leadeth to
do good”, “and knoweth all things”. David A. Bednar said, “The commandments
from God we obey and the inspired counsel from Church leaders we follow
principally focus upon obtaining the companionship of the Spirit.
Fundamentally, all gospel teachings and activities are centered on coming unto
Christ by receiving the Holy Ghost in our lives.”
Finally, we must
endure to the end. Elder Renlund explains, “Our theology [teaches] us, that we
may be perfected by repeatedly and iteratively “relying wholly upon” the
doctrine of Christ: exercising faith in Him, repenting, partaking of the
sacrament to renew the covenants and blessings of baptism, and receiving the
Holy Ghost as a constant companion to a greater degree. As we do so, we become
more like Christ and are able to endure to the end, with all that that entails.
In less formal terms, God cares a lot
more about who we are and who we are becoming than about who we once were. He
cares that we keep on trying.”
Back at the
Waters of Mormon Alma gives a two part commandment. “And he commanded them that
there should be no contention one with another, but that they should look
forward with one eye, having one faith and one baptism, have their hearts knit
together in unity and in love one towards another.” Mosiah 18:21
One eye. One
faith. One baptism. The doctrine of Christ.
But brothers and
sisters, we know that this is not a pattern we follow alone. Christ admonished
us, “When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” Hearts knit together in
unity and love.
In Yellowstone,
the spring following the fires, amidst the charred earth, another miracle
happened. Plants began to emerge. Flowers and shrubs and began to fill the many
acres of what looked like complete devastation. Now nearly three decades later
the forests have replenished and filled in. The landscape continues to thrive
and to refresh and renew. Not only has Christ promised us a snowfall, through
our faithfulness, he has also promised us renewal. Beauty from the ashes.
The same beauty
from ashes came to Alma and his people at the waters of Mormon.
“And this he said unto them, having been
commanded of God; and they did walk uprightly before God, imparting to one
another both temporally and spiritually according to their needs and wants. And
now it came to pass that all this was done in Mormon, yea, by the waters of
Mormon, in the forest that was near the waters of Mormon; how beautiful are
they to the eyes of them who there came to the knowledge of their Redeemer;
yea, and how blessed are they, for they shall sing to his praise forever.”
I add to these
testimonies, my own. I know that as we strive to understand and follow the
doctrine of Christ and in turn strengthen each other through the doctrine of
Christ, that eternity will be our covering. We will be able to withstand the
fires that inevitably come with life as we rely on our Savior Jesus Christ. I
also testify of the importance of understanding that we cannot do this alone.
One eye, one faith, one baptism. Hearts knit together in unity and love one
towards another. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
