Drew and I were able to attend an endowment session together last week. It was the most powerful, edifying, comforting temple experience I've ever had. This really is the restored church of Jesus Christ. It's His and He wants us to know how much He loves us. Please, if you haven't been to the temple in a while, make time to go. Take the opportunity to draw closer to the Savior and learn about Him. His love fills me with so much joy.
There's a lot to cover this week. I love this note at the beginning of the Come, Follow Me lesson:
"Be careful not to rush your study of the scriptures. Take time for prayerful pondering, even if it means you don’t have time to read every verse. These moments of pondering often lead to personal revelation."
The purpose of study isn't necessarily to read everything this time, but to invite the Spirit into our lives and open the door to revelation. That relieves pressure because it can feel like a lot to read a whole book of scripture. I didn't manage it with the Old Testament. I often felt "behind" in my study, but I was missing the point. We're here to have experiences with the Savior - to get to know Him and His doctrine. That doesn't necessarily happen when we read every verse. I'm often guilty of reading through a chapter without comprehending it. Prayerful pondering is what we're encouraged to pursue. If we can read and ponder every verse, great. If we focus on just a few verses and come away with new insights and plans to act, awesome. Let's allow the scriptures to work within us and change us for the better.
As we read these verses, the manual encourages us to ask: what does God want me to learn from this miracle? Personal revelation is personalized, intimate, and ours. As always, what I share here is simply what comes to my mind and might not apply to you the same way.
Matthew 8:2-3
2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.
3 And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
Sometimes waiting for a prayer to be answered is frustrating. We know that He is able to do everything, even the impossible. He works miracles for many. We might ask questions like ...
- Lord, do you really love me?
- Do you want to bless me?
- When others receive blessings, does it mean you love them more than me?
- Have I done something wrong?
- Don't I deserve this thing I desire?
The beauty is that the Lord always can do it. The question is if He will do it. Our Savior always loves us and wants to bless us. That never changes. His timing might allow one person to be blessed now and another to be blessed later. That doesn't mean His love for them is any different. When prayers go unanswered, it isn't because He wants to withhold anything from us, but instead that He wants to give all. Sometimes we have to wait for Him to do that. Maybe trial and refinement is necessary for us to become like Him. Maybe we're learning patience. Maybe we've received answers and don't see them. Or the thing we want isn't actually best for us. Whatever the situation, His desire is always to improve our lives.
Matthew 8:21-22
21 And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
22 But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.
I don't know the context of this conversation, but it seems extreme and harsh when taken literally. I don't want to focus on that because I think it's a great parable of sorts. We all have things in our lives that are "dead" - meaning they don't offer us anything positive or worthwhile. "Dead" things in my life include time wasters, unkind feelings, comparisons, and so on. We also have excuses. When we say that we want to do something first before we commit to the Savior and give Him our all, we don't have the right priorities. For example, if we receive a prompting and say we'll do it "later," we aren't doing as the Lord told this disciple. Let worldly matters be the things you put off until later. Follow the Savior first.
Mark 2:14
14 And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphæus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him.
He finds us where we are. The scriptures are full of examples of Him choosing unlikely servants and helping "unworthy" people. He chooses us no matter where we are or what we're doing. Then, He invites us to go where He is - to elevate ourselves and leave our old lives behind. He always wants us. He is constantly extending His hand. When we feel He isn't there for us, it's because we've turned our backs away.
Mark 2:
21 No man also seweth a piece of new cloth on an old garment: else the new piece that filled it up taketh away from the old, and the rent is made worse.
22 And no man putteth new wine into old bottles: else the new wine doth burst the bottles, and the wine is spilled, and the bottles will be marred: but new wine must be put into new bottles.
The invitation "follow me" means action and movement. We must find spiritual momentum and change ourselves. Otherwise, His ways will clash with how we’ve been living and something will break. We can’t hold onto our old ways and also serve Him. We can’t serve both God and mammon.
Matthew 8:26-29
26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.
27 But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the asea obey him!
28 And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way.
29 And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time?
It's fascinating that even the evil spirits acknowledge who He is. In some ways, they have clearer vision than we do. The earth and elements also obey Him. They know their God. Do we? Mortality brings so much complication to our lives. The world clouds our vision. A worthy goal is to know our Maker as surely as the earth does. No physical element willfully rebels against God except man. I suppose that's because of our fallen state. We are granted agency and that's a great blessing. We need to remember that He is our Father and our Creator. He knows what's best for us and we'll be blessed by aligning our will to His.
Mark 3:24-25
24 And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
25 And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
We can’t be divided against ourselves. When we make the commitment to follow Him, we need to do it with our whole beings or we'll find ourselves torn and confused. We can't pick and choose what commands to obey or standards to follow.
Mark 3:35
35 For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother.
When we covenant with Him and do our part, we bind ourselves to Him forever! We become His family.
Mark 4:
14 The sower soweth the word.
15 And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, aSatan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts.
16 And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;
17 And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended.
18 And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word,
19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.
20 And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.
If we don’t go where He is, His word will fall upon stony ground and we’ll eventually defy it. We need to cultivate our own good ground by letting go of the thorns and rocks in our lives that aren’t compatible with Christlike living.
Luke 7:40-48
40 And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on.
41 There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty.
42 And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?
43 Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged.
44 And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head.
45 Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet.
46 My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.
47 Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.
48 And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.
"Thou hast rightly judged." When I read that, I was reminded of the recent section in Come, Follow Me about righteous judgement (was that last week?). The Savior's teaching here tells us a lot about judging as He would. He didn't condemn the woman, but instead gave her the opportunity to experience love. When we see children of God who are struggling, instead of judging them harshly, we can "judge" how much love they will experience when they connect with their Savior. We can see their potential for joy and salvation. We can rejoice in the Savior's Atonement and how it makes it possible for anyone to return to Him. That perspective will help us a lot.
In conclusion, these are the points that stood out to me the most this week:
- Prayerful pondering is better than rushing to read every verse.
- God always, always wants to bless us.
- We need to put the Savior first and tend to worldly matters later.
- His hands are always extended, no matter where we are.
- "Follow me" = action, movement, spiritual momentum, and change.
- Judging righteously includes seeing the potential in others to experience love, joy, and salvation.
Bonnie Gwyn
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