On the Road Again

As I drive down the freeway, I encounter many different cars. I see what they are doing, and I try to avoid collisions with them. Some are slow. Some are in a hurry. Some have a hard time staying on the road, weaving through traffic. Some are courteous, letting others in, while others seem to be in a competitive race. Many are oblivious to the existence of other cars, such as driving slowly in the fast lane. Some are new, others old. There are all kinds of cars: sports cars, SUV's, trucks, and so forth. As one big car passes me, I see a whole family in it, with the mom driving. Another car passes and the windows are tinted so I cannot see who is in it. I can develop a whole paradigm of all the cars around me, not knowing a single individual who is driving. I judge them based on what I see, the outside. 

A Simile

The body is like a car. Everyone has a body. We mostly cannot see the drivers of the bodies around us, we just make inferences and judgments based on what we see. We see what they do, and how they look on the outside, the body, but we don’t see the spirit inside that controls the body. We are all on the road to eternal life. This is a new experience, having control of a body. I am the driver of my car -- a spirit controlling the body is like turning sixteen and getting a driver’s license. It’s fun to get a car! I can do so much with it. I have speed and power. I can move! I test the limits of my car, what can it do? I love this power to move! I love speed! I can even take passengers in my car. This body is a good thing for my spirit. 

As I’m driving down the road, I have a destination to return to my home in heaven where I came from. I don’t know how to get there so I consult the maps in the scriptures. I am trying to find the right road. There is only one real road, all the others are just tracks made by other cars going off the road. I need help. 

Hitchhikers!

All along the way, there are other spirits that want to ride in my car. They don’t have a body. They are those who followed Lucifer and were cast out of heaven for rebellion, and will never have a body. These evil spirits are hitchhikers that want to feel the power of transportation and ride instead of walking. Then, once they get in, they want to drive. They love speed and power more than I do. They offer me whatever I want to let them drive. I can let a lot of passengers in the car, picking them up from the side of the road because they look interesting. They always ask me what I want, and then they promise me they can give it to me. Let’s make a deal! I let them in.

Some are sensual, wanting me to veer off the road seeking the pleasures of the flesh, including sex, drugs, music, food, and so forth. Some passengers are lying spirits that want me to believe things that aren’t true, or to accept a fantasy. Some are addiction spirits who tell me that if some feels good, more will feel better. Some are directly from Satan, the accuser, causing me to accuse others of wrongdoing. Some are spirits of depression that bring hopelessness. Some are anxious spirits that bring fear. Others use the name of the Lord in vain, telling me that they know the way to heaven. They all want to take over control of the vehicle, to be the driver. They promise to get me where I want to go. But if I let them drive, my car veers off course and they take me off the path of eternal life -- always! They don’t have a driver’s license, and have never taken driver training. They have no destination -- just anywhere except home. They will not stay on the road home. Some are very subtle and only go a little off, others make a complete illegal U-turn and send me back into the world against oncoming traffic. The demons all have two things in common: 1. They tell me I can have whatever I want of the world if I let them drive, and 2. they will never drive on the road to eternal life. Every evil spirit will take me off the road. 

A Hard Road

As the owner of the vehicle, I decide who will drive. I often get tired of driving so I look for someone else to drive. I get lazy and do not want to drive my own car, so I give the wheel to the hitchhikers who are dying to drive, and then I go to sleep in the back seat. Satan’s minions have never learned to drive, so they don’t stay on any road. They take their car on a destructive joyride, getting into all kinds of mischief. They take me through every mudhole and crash into every tree. They bump a lot of other cars while driving the wrong way down the road. They destroy my car, it is dirty and there are dents all over. It looks bad, inside and out. My car is a mess!

I wake up and see what is happening and get scared! I try to take control back, but I'm weak and unable. The demons have control, and do not want to give it up. They push me into the back seat. This starts a big, long struggle for control. 

Repentance

It is so hard to kick out all passengers, clean out my car, and be my own boss. I don't have the power to do it. I need help. I hear of one, Jesus Christ, who has the power to help me take back control of the vehicle. I seek Him. He is everywhere. There are service stations with car washes along every road. I pull in and I ask Him to help and He cleans out the car for me. He takes out all the dents and makes my car like new -- and doesn't charge anything! The exit from the car wash always leads to the road home. That makes it easy. 

I now have control of my car. I will not let any more hitchhikers in the car. I will not listen to any demons in my head; I will drive them away. But then I am alone in the car in an unfamiliar place. I don’t know where I am, and I don’t know which road to take. There are so many wrong roads, and only one right road. I cannot see the end of any road, and I can't read the signs -- I don't know what they say. I am completely lost. There are hitchhikers with their own agenda all over the roads looking for a ride, each having a different way, none of which will take me where I want to go. I need help! There is no way for me to know which is the right road. I have driven around, hoping to find some kind of sign indicating which road I need to take to get back on the road to eternal life, but it’s dark, my headlights don’t work, and nothing is familiar. The posted signs are written in some foreign language that I cannot read. I don't want to leave the nice, bright, clean station and go back out on the road again! 

The Gift of the Holy Ghost

The service station has a gift for me when I leave. After the car is all cleaned out by the Lord, and there are no hitchhikers in it, He offers to send a navigator with me to show me the way. There is only one passenger that I need if I want to arrive at my destination in heaven -- the Holy Ghost. The Spirit of God is the only One who knows the correct road, and the only One who will navigate for me to show me the right way. He turns on the headlights and tells me what the signs mean. If I want to be on the road to eternal life, I must have the Holy Ghost. 

The Spirit of Christ is not a hitchhiker. I must seek Him. I must receive Him. I must repent, pray, and be obedient if I want Him in the car with me. If I have any passengers or drivers that are evil, then I cannot have the Holy Ghost. If there are any other spirits in the car yelling out directions and trying to take the wheel, the Holy Ghost will not be there. I must kick out all the passengers that would take me off the road, and ask the Holy Ghost into my car to be my navigator. The trip to the Promised Land is only done when there are two -- one driver, me, and one navigator, the Holy Ghost. 

If I am tired of driving, I may ask the Spirit to drive, but The Holy Ghost will not take over control of my vehicle. It is my car; Jesus does not take the wheel. The Lord always lets me drive my car. I must be the driver at all times. The Holy Ghost will sit in my car and be my navigator, but I must drive the car according to His instructions. If I veer off course, deciding to take a different road, or go my own way, my Navigator leaves, and I am left alone to ask directions from hitchhikers who don’t know. I must then repent and follow directions, going back to the station, taking the Sacrament, and inviting the Spirit back into my vehicle to give me the next step to get back on the road to eternal life. I do this through sincere repentance and a prayer of faith. 

The Straight and Narrow Path

Having a true Navigator, I finally get on the road of life, a very unexpected path. It is a one-way road that is very narrow, only allowing one car. It is hilly and has potholes. There are cliffs on both sides. It is not paved. It is not well-traveled. I am the only car on the road. It is not fun; It’s boring with only occasional beautiful vistas. All the attractions are way off the road. If I take a detour to see them it is hard to get back on so I stay on the road. It is long and hot and straight, like wandering in the desert for forty years. There are a few hitchhikers out here, who promise to show the way to eternal life, but I know that none of the demons will do it -- they lie. With the help of the Holy Ghost I begin to understand the signs, and follow them. Then, after many years of travel, I cross a bridge and suddenly I am in a beautiful land with mountains, valleys, waterfalls, and bountiful vegetation. The road is good, paved, and with no potholes. 

Home at Last

I made it to the Promised Land. I drove all the way, being led by the Holy Spirit. I find people who are real, and who are kind and love others. They also have taken the Holy Ghost for their guide. There is peace, and joy, and happiness. Life is good. My car is mine. I have control. I take the wheel. I possess it. I own it. I can get around paradise in my vehicle. I am not limited to walking around. I don’t need to look for a ride. I know my way around. I connect with others, getting to know the driver of the vehicles, and not just the outside. There are no hitchhikers here because there is nothing interesting to them. Those who do not own cars are happy to walk. Nobody wants my car, they want to know me, the driver of the vehicle.

How would it be to be driving on the freeway with only people I know? Everyone on the road is my best friend. There are still all sorts of different cars, but I know and love the driver of each one.