3 Nephi 6
3 Nephi 6
You know that saying "There is nothing to fear but fear itself." ?
Verse 5 made me think of it, but with a little change. "There is nothing to fear but yourself." There really was nothing to hinder them but their own choices. Yesterday Angie made the comment in Relief Society about how everything comes down to your choice: what you do, what you fear, what you love, what you read, etc. That was true for the Nephites then. They were prospering, and the only thing that would break the prosper cycle was their choice to sin.
The same thing could be said of us today. We are a blessed people. We have the gospel in our lives, we have personal revelation, we have the teachings of the Prophets, scriptures, the blessings of the Priesthood, life-saving ordinances, the Gift of the Holy Ghost. No matter the trials we face, no matter the adversity that comes into our lives, we can always have these things if we choose righteousness.
It is when we sin that we lose some, or even all of them. And without these things, or a love of these things, our hearts will harden and hollow, become the perfect breeding ground for the adversary.
But it comes down to our choices. We have the power to decide. It is our God-given right. We cannot blame anyone else for our choices (maybe our circumstances, but not our choices.)
Satan does have great power (15) but ONLY as much as we give him.
I have a quote glued on this page that says: No stone wall separates the members of the Church from all the seductions of the world. Members of the Church, like everyone else, are being surfeited with deceptions, challenges and temptation. HOWEVER, to those of enduring faith, judgment, and discernment, there is an invisible wall which they choose never to breach." James E. Faust
The Invisible Wall. I love it. Maybe I'll write a book about just that.
As faithful disciples of Jesus Christ we draw a line in the sand, the foundation for our invisible wall, and we say, "I will not cross that line." And, if we remain humble and faithful we won't.
You know that saying "There is nothing to fear but fear itself." ?
Verse 5 made me think of it, but with a little change. "There is nothing to fear but yourself." There really was nothing to hinder them but their own choices. Yesterday Angie made the comment in Relief Society about how everything comes down to your choice: what you do, what you fear, what you love, what you read, etc. That was true for the Nephites then. They were prospering, and the only thing that would break the prosper cycle was their choice to sin.
The same thing could be said of us today. We are a blessed people. We have the gospel in our lives, we have personal revelation, we have the teachings of the Prophets, scriptures, the blessings of the Priesthood, life-saving ordinances, the Gift of the Holy Ghost. No matter the trials we face, no matter the adversity that comes into our lives, we can always have these things if we choose righteousness.
It is when we sin that we lose some, or even all of them. And without these things, or a love of these things, our hearts will harden and hollow, become the perfect breeding ground for the adversary.
But it comes down to our choices. We have the power to decide. It is our God-given right. We cannot blame anyone else for our choices (maybe our circumstances, but not our choices.)
Satan does have great power (15) but ONLY as much as we give him.
I have a quote glued on this page that says: No stone wall separates the members of the Church from all the seductions of the world. Members of the Church, like everyone else, are being surfeited with deceptions, challenges and temptation. HOWEVER, to those of enduring faith, judgment, and discernment, there is an invisible wall which they choose never to breach." James E. Faust
The Invisible Wall. I love it. Maybe I'll write a book about just that.
As faithful disciples of Jesus Christ we draw a line in the sand, the foundation for our invisible wall, and we say, "I will not cross that line." And, if we remain humble and faithful we won't.
I like the invisible wall.
ReplyDeleteVs 13 stood out to me because the people were SO divided. Those that were choosing pride and wickedness and those that were choosing to remain penitent and humble. The important word is choosing.
The other verse I really like is 14. Those Lamanites were converted, faithful, firm, steadfast, immovable, diligent... all keeping the commandments of God. I think I'd like to live in that community. A place where everyone is striving to the best of their ability to be the best they can... it would make things easier all around.
When I was reading verse 17 I had this picture in my head of Satan throwing the people around like a ball when it said "to be carried about by the temptations of the devil whithersoever he desired to carry them, and to do whatsoever iniquity he desired they should." Like they were puppets on his string, totally in his control, and that is not a nice thought. I want to be like the righteous people in verse 14 too - firm, steadfast, immovable, diligent in keeping the commandments.
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