It doesn't matter why. We like to give ourselves a break because of how we feel, what we think, or because of our special difficulties in life. We think we can excuse ourselves for our sins, shortcomings, and weaknesses. We can't. There is no excuse. We can find all the reasons why we were unable to complete our mission, fulfill our purpose, or do good, but in reality, it doesn't matter!
Excuses don't excuse us from obeying laws. If we don't obey the laws, we're going to get hurt, there's no way around it. We will fall if we lose our support. We'll be poor if we don't work. We will remain ignorant if we don't study. If we don't exercise we aren't going to have muscles. If we walk off the edge we're going to fall. We don't learn without experience. Everything happens for a reason, based on laws and principles. If we don't obey them for any reason, then we don't get the benefits. It doesn't matter why.
Doing Good
I often try to excuse myself from doing things I know I should do because I'm so busy doing other good things. All too often I find the most important things are at the mercy of urgent, but unimportant, things. I don't meet a deadline for an article because I'm cooking dinner, or cleaning the kitchen. I find so many other things to do when I really need to be doing the most important things that are hard and I don't want to do them.
Likewise, I see people try to excuse themselves from taking care of their bodies because they are too busy to cook good food, or exercise daily. They have so many other things to do that they end up with illnesses from disobedience to the laws of health. It doesn't matter at all why they fail to take care of themselves, they get sick anyway, there is no excuse.
Handicaps
Handicaps don't give you any benefit, or excuse us from doing right. It doesn't matter that you're blind if you walk off a cliff. The cliff, and gravity, don't care. You don't get a pass because of your handicap.
Being lame doesn't excuse us from the benefits of exercise. Being hungry, or having a sweet-tooth doesn't excuse us from dietary laws of health. Being blind does not excuse us from crashing the car. There is no handicap that laws will allow a pass.
We like to give a pass to people because of their handicaps. We give children a pass because they are ignorant. We give sick people a pass because of their illness. We give them benefits they don't earn. We give the poor money that they didn't work for because they are lazy, or ignorant. We automatically feel like mercy is giving others the benefit of laws they do not keep. But, it doesn't work in the long term. We may be able to skirt the law for a short time, but allowing a blind person to drive can only end in disaster -- it's the law!
Safety and Growth
There are two kinds of laws -- those that if we obey we grow, and those that keep us safe from harm. These are at odds with each other. Safety laws are needed for the ignorant. These rules keep us safe from harm that might happen when we disobey the laws of physics. A child with a key will first try to put it in something he can reach -- like an electrical outlet, causing disasters to happen. We "childproof" the house, keeping all chemicals and dangerous substances out of reach so they cannot hurt themselves in their ignorance.
It doesn't matter that the child was young and ignorant -- the laws of physics will still apply, so we protect them in their ignorance with random and arbitrary rules. These are not the laws that govern the Universe, but rather just rules to protect and preserve those who are ignorant of such laws.
However, the rules of safety also keep us ignorant. Growth doesn't come from obedience to the rules of protection, they are only there to protect us from harm. Most don't realize that the commandments of God are given to protect us in our ignorance -- they are the rules of safety. Adam and Eve broke the rule in order to learn and grow. It is only by breaking the rules of safety that we learn as we suffer the consequences of our actions. Electricians know what it's like to be shocked with varying voltages. Engineers need to break the rules to find out the laws of material strength. Surgeons needed to break the rules of cutting living people open, and killing lots of them, before they could understand the laws of living physiology and anatomy. Very often, a parent will stand by and watch their little child step off a curb and fall so he can learn the laws of physics. It is by breaking the rules of protection that we learn the laws.
Intelligence and Ignorance
The greatest benefits in life come from knowing the laws. Facts does not equal knowledge, only truth is useful. Laws are always true no matter what. An engineer knows laws of physics and the use of materials to create useful things. The doctor, knowing the laws of biology, is able to repair the body. The farmer is able to produce ten, or a hundred, times more food by knowing the laws of the plants he works with. Laws make life better. Life is hard when we don't know the rules, and becomes so easy when we do.
Lack of intelligence doesn't excuse the engineer for building a faulty bridge when it collapses. It doesn't excuse the doctor for killing his patients. Nor does the farmer get a pass for not knowing how much water his crops would need. People will starve, die, or get hurt because of ignorance.
The purpose of life is to learn and grow, gaining intelligence. It is to gain knowledge and wisdom through our experience. It is to experience as much as possible so we can have more knowledge, and thus more power. If we fail, we don't get a pass. Staying in the safety zone may keep us safe, but doesn't bring intelligence.
The laws are fixed, and we fail to follow them at our own peril despite our ignorance. Ignorance is the only evil, and doesn't excuse anyone. It doesn't matter why we're ignorant, we'll suffer the consequences just the same. If we don't understand the rules of business, our business will fail. If we don't understand the laws of physics, our bombs won't blow up. There is no excuse. However, if we do understand the laws, and abide them perfectly, then we will gain tremendous wealth, knowledge, wisdom and power. Eventually knowing all things.
Heaven and Hell
Heaven is those who know all the laws, or all truth. They are free from rules because they don't need protection. They can perform all "miracles." It is easy to create galaxies, stars, worlds, and life with all knowledge. Knowing everything gives complete power, the power to organize and understand. An engineer organizes his bridge in a certain way to take advantage of the materials he has chosen. He knows the properties of each material, and knows how to put them together to build a strong bridge. Knowledge is the only power. Two thousand years ago a miracle happened -- an infant was born to a woman who had never had a sexual relationship. Now we have the knowledge of biology that allows us to perform this miracle every day. It's simple. Today, we have institutionalized many "miracles." We make the blind to see, the lame can walk, and the deaf hear every day. We have power because of knowledge. Continuing on will bring all knowledge -- and all power. This is Heaven.
There are two ways to end up in Hell, or permanent ignorance. We can remain ignorant by being "safe," or simply by failing to seek knowledge. The first group are those who would do good by preventing failure. This is the plan of Satan -- safety. People who seek safety remain ignorant because they fail to discover the laws of the Universe. The rest are just lazy, seeking gratification of desires instead of knowledge of laws. Without understanding of the laws that govern the Universe, all things appear to happen randomly and magically.
Those in hell are severely limited by rules to protect them in their ignorance. There is no power because there is no knowledge. It doesn't matter why we fail. Wasting time on entertainment such as movies, television, and video games doesn't bring knowledge. There is no excuse, we just don't have knowledge. Nobody gets a pass for any reason. We are what we are irrespective of how it happened. It doesn't matter why. There is no excuse.
Tuesday, August 16, 2016
Saturday, August 13, 2016
The Ultimate Gift
There are two kinds of gifts in the world, those that are given to us to help us to grow, and those that are given to us that we may help others grow. Not that there is no overlap in all things, however, there is a primary purpose for each gift.
Those gifts that we call "strengths" are the ones we have to help others to grow. We bless the lives of others with our "strengths" such as knowledge, wealth, administration, cheerfulness, and love. Our service to them connects us with them.
Those gifts we call "weaknesses" are primarily to help us to grow. We gain humility, wisdom, understanding, compassion, and charity as we suffer through our weaknesses. The stress of our weaknesses strengthens us, and helps us to grow. Suffering within ourselves connects us with God.
Jesus Christ had all strengths. He had all power. He was strong in every area such that He could bless the lives of all. He had the gift of healing, knowledge, wisdom, discernment, angels, prophecy, revelations, tongues, and so forth. He had all He needed to "succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees." (D&C 81:5) He gave freely to all who desired, Jew or gentile, rich or poor, male or female.
Jesus Christ also had all weaknesses. He suffered pain, temptations of every kind, loneliness, despair, hatred, rejection, and so forth. These taught Him. The Apostle Paul explained this concept to the Hebrews, "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;" (Hebrews 5:8)
However, in all of this, there is one gift that is superlative, charity. Charity is the gift of Christ. It is the essence of Christ, and is all that the Word, the office, and the mission of Christ entails. It is all strength and weakness. It is all gain and loss. Charity is the spectrum of life, the gift of Eternal Life. This is the one gift that is required by all who would take upon themselves the name of Christ, to become Christ.
The term "Christ" is the center and circumference of all things. It is pure love. It defines creation and all that exists, because without Christ there is nothing. Growth, happiness, and all that defines life is found in this one word because without love there is no good, only evil, darkness, loneliness, and loss. Pure love gives meaning to all things. There is a general term, and a specific person called Christ. Generally, it is a name given to all those who receive the gift of charity, the pure love of Christ. Specifically, there is One who is the Christ because He encompasses all that is Christ. He is our example to follow.
The prophets assure us that there is one gift that we must seek if we are to become one with God. This gift is not given lightly or easily. It is the gift of Christ, called charity. It is given to those who take upon themselves the name of Christ and suffer the will of the Father in all things. They give their heart and will to God, letting go of all things of the world. These are they to whom the following scriptures apply:
"...believe in Christ, and view his death, and suffer his cross and bear the shame of the world;" (Jacob 1:8)
"...come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end;" (Omni 1:26)
"Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;" (Matthew 5:44)
"If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." (Matthew 16:24-25)
He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me." (Matthew 10:37-38)
"And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life." (Matthew 19:29)
The gift of charity comes with a price -- to follow Jesus Christ into death and hell, rejection and hatred, loss and mourning. The heights can only be reached by those who are willing to go into the depths. This brings balance to life. We cannot have compassion on what we don't experience. Only those who are true followers, who do as He did, who become as He is, can take His name and receive His gift of love. While all are loved equally, no matter what we do, charity is reserved for those who are true followers of Jesus Christ.
Receiving the gift of charity makes us one with Him. We possess His name, the name of Christ, being born of Him, or born into His family. We are Christ.
Of necessity, all prophets are a type of Christ. They are HOLY prophets because they are, in at least one way, like Him. In order to be with Him, we must be like Him, as they are. We are holy as He is holy. We are set apart from the world. We take upon ourselves the sins of the world. We take up our cross and bear the shame of the world. We do not complain, we do not even flinch. We have been called to weakness, to humility, to meekness, to loneliness, to loss, to mourning, to suffering, and to pain. We allow it all. We take it all in as He did. We remember Him in all things, taking upon ourselves His name, following Him into whatever we are given by the Father. Our path is set. We accept our calling. We focus only on our mission that must be performed by us. By so doing, we suffer (allow) the will of the Father in all things. We love the Father more than the world. We love the Lord whom we follow into the depths of death and hell. We saw Him do it, and we follow Him -- willingly, lovingly, hopefully, and happily suffering the will of the Father as He did. We take Him into ourselves. We eat His flesh, and drink His blood.
The flesh is the pain and suffering all manner of deprivation, loneliness, and a broken heart. All that we hold dear in this world is given up, sacrificed on the altar. The flesh is burned, and discarded. The flesh is lost. All of the desires of the flesh are given away, sacrificed, lost, and wasted. Opportunities to satisfy the flesh are ignored. The focus is entirely on the mission, and nothing can deter or distract from that. He was offered food for His hunger, satisfaction for His soul, and glory for His ambition, but paid no heed. He was focused on His mission, and nothing could tempt Him to turn from it.
The blood is death. We must die, as He did. We must be willing to die the death, both spiritual and physical. If we are to follow Him, we must be willing to allow our blood to be shed a martyr for Him. We must also be willing to face spiritual death and hell in order to bring out those who have strayed, wandered off into forbidden paths, and are lost. Some are lost to all that is righteousness, and have no light. These must also be gathered with the elect. They must be given the option, and we are willing to face their death with them in order to bring them to life. We have compassion, to suffer with them, as He did for us and all others.
Those who are willing to follow Him are given weaknesses to bring them into the depths of humility. They willingly take their cross and follow Him. After they are proven through patience and long suffering, they are given the gift of charity -- and the name of Christ. It is a possession worth more than all the riches, honor, glory, and love of the world. It is necessary, and sufficient. It is eternal. It fills, and fulfills all needs. It is our purpose, our all. It is life Eternal. It is connection with God and all people. It is compassion. It is true love. It is light. It is clarity. It is peace. It is joy and happiness. By following Him we become like Him and receive all that He has. It is a gift, the gift of Charity, the gift of pure love, or the gift of Christ.
Mormon implores the faithful: "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen." (Moroni 7:48)
Those gifts that we call "strengths" are the ones we have to help others to grow. We bless the lives of others with our "strengths" such as knowledge, wealth, administration, cheerfulness, and love. Our service to them connects us with them.
Those gifts we call "weaknesses" are primarily to help us to grow. We gain humility, wisdom, understanding, compassion, and charity as we suffer through our weaknesses. The stress of our weaknesses strengthens us, and helps us to grow. Suffering within ourselves connects us with God.
Jesus Christ had all strengths. He had all power. He was strong in every area such that He could bless the lives of all. He had the gift of healing, knowledge, wisdom, discernment, angels, prophecy, revelations, tongues, and so forth. He had all He needed to "succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees." (D&C 81:5) He gave freely to all who desired, Jew or gentile, rich or poor, male or female.
Jesus Christ also had all weaknesses. He suffered pain, temptations of every kind, loneliness, despair, hatred, rejection, and so forth. These taught Him. The Apostle Paul explained this concept to the Hebrews, "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;" (Hebrews 5:8)
However, in all of this, there is one gift that is superlative, charity. Charity is the gift of Christ. It is the essence of Christ, and is all that the Word, the office, and the mission of Christ entails. It is all strength and weakness. It is all gain and loss. Charity is the spectrum of life, the gift of Eternal Life. This is the one gift that is required by all who would take upon themselves the name of Christ, to become Christ.
The term "Christ" is the center and circumference of all things. It is pure love. It defines creation and all that exists, because without Christ there is nothing. Growth, happiness, and all that defines life is found in this one word because without love there is no good, only evil, darkness, loneliness, and loss. Pure love gives meaning to all things. There is a general term, and a specific person called Christ. Generally, it is a name given to all those who receive the gift of charity, the pure love of Christ. Specifically, there is One who is the Christ because He encompasses all that is Christ. He is our example to follow.
The prophets assure us that there is one gift that we must seek if we are to become one with God. This gift is not given lightly or easily. It is the gift of Christ, called charity. It is given to those who take upon themselves the name of Christ and suffer the will of the Father in all things. They give their heart and will to God, letting go of all things of the world. These are they to whom the following scriptures apply:
"...believe in Christ, and view his death, and suffer his cross and bear the shame of the world;" (Jacob 1:8)
"...come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end;" (Omni 1:26)
"Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;" (Matthew 5:44)
"If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." (Matthew 16:24-25)
He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me." (Matthew 10:37-38)
"And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life." (Matthew 19:29)
The gift of charity comes with a price -- to follow Jesus Christ into death and hell, rejection and hatred, loss and mourning. The heights can only be reached by those who are willing to go into the depths. This brings balance to life. We cannot have compassion on what we don't experience. Only those who are true followers, who do as He did, who become as He is, can take His name and receive His gift of love. While all are loved equally, no matter what we do, charity is reserved for those who are true followers of Jesus Christ.
Receiving the gift of charity makes us one with Him. We possess His name, the name of Christ, being born of Him, or born into His family. We are Christ.
Of necessity, all prophets are a type of Christ. They are HOLY prophets because they are, in at least one way, like Him. In order to be with Him, we must be like Him, as they are. We are holy as He is holy. We are set apart from the world. We take upon ourselves the sins of the world. We take up our cross and bear the shame of the world. We do not complain, we do not even flinch. We have been called to weakness, to humility, to meekness, to loneliness, to loss, to mourning, to suffering, and to pain. We allow it all. We take it all in as He did. We remember Him in all things, taking upon ourselves His name, following Him into whatever we are given by the Father. Our path is set. We accept our calling. We focus only on our mission that must be performed by us. By so doing, we suffer (allow) the will of the Father in all things. We love the Father more than the world. We love the Lord whom we follow into the depths of death and hell. We saw Him do it, and we follow Him -- willingly, lovingly, hopefully, and happily suffering the will of the Father as He did. We take Him into ourselves. We eat His flesh, and drink His blood.
The flesh is the pain and suffering all manner of deprivation, loneliness, and a broken heart. All that we hold dear in this world is given up, sacrificed on the altar. The flesh is burned, and discarded. The flesh is lost. All of the desires of the flesh are given away, sacrificed, lost, and wasted. Opportunities to satisfy the flesh are ignored. The focus is entirely on the mission, and nothing can deter or distract from that. He was offered food for His hunger, satisfaction for His soul, and glory for His ambition, but paid no heed. He was focused on His mission, and nothing could tempt Him to turn from it.
The blood is death. We must die, as He did. We must be willing to die the death, both spiritual and physical. If we are to follow Him, we must be willing to allow our blood to be shed a martyr for Him. We must also be willing to face spiritual death and hell in order to bring out those who have strayed, wandered off into forbidden paths, and are lost. Some are lost to all that is righteousness, and have no light. These must also be gathered with the elect. They must be given the option, and we are willing to face their death with them in order to bring them to life. We have compassion, to suffer with them, as He did for us and all others.
Those who are willing to follow Him are given weaknesses to bring them into the depths of humility. They willingly take their cross and follow Him. After they are proven through patience and long suffering, they are given the gift of charity -- and the name of Christ. It is a possession worth more than all the riches, honor, glory, and love of the world. It is necessary, and sufficient. It is eternal. It fills, and fulfills all needs. It is our purpose, our all. It is life Eternal. It is connection with God and all people. It is compassion. It is true love. It is light. It is clarity. It is peace. It is joy and happiness. By following Him we become like Him and receive all that He has. It is a gift, the gift of Charity, the gift of pure love, or the gift of Christ.
Mormon implores the faithful: "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen." (Moroni 7:48)
Wednesday, August 3, 2016
Legitimate Business
Throughout history mankind has based his wealth on plunder. When all gains were made by the sweat of the brow, it was impossible for people to become wealthy by their own efforts. Wealth required taking the labors of others. Thus, kings and walled cities protected the people from invasion and plunder by their neighbors. Governments were instituted to protect people from fraud and theft, allowing ownership without fear of being plundered. However, the governments themselves give in to the need for money and easily become part of the problem. Caveat Emptor was never so relevant as it is today, unfortunately.
Today, we have business as a form of legal plunder. These government-approved businesses "sell" people things that they don't need in order to get money. Marketing techniques are mastered and used to motivate more people to buy goods and services that may even bring harm. The government today is beginning to mandate that we buy useless goods and services such as insurance, chemotherapy, and vaccines. All too often they don't give real value in exchange for money. In this sense, a great deal of business and government in the world is fraud.
Info-tainment
Information is so cheap that we place little value on it. We think we can watch TV for free and get information. As Wormwood in the movie Matilda, said, "There's nothing you can get from a book that you can't get from a television faster." But is TV free? We must spend the most valuable asset we have in order to watch television -- time. Besides, everything that is on TV is a message paid by sponsors. Even the news is of questionable benefit, at best, offering people what they want to hear without giving any real information.
Most books are filled with things people like, but don't offer information of any value for the money. Information is sold rampantly in books, or on the internet, promising health, wealth, and happiness in every way possible, taking money and offering only lies. People pay for what they want to hear, not necessarily what they need. Thus, they spend their money and get nothing in return.
Sometimes, a college education is useless. We are told that the majority of what we learn in college is not true, that we need to go out into the world and begin to learn reality. People spend hundreds of thousands on an education to get a degree, and find only a worthless piece of paper and an empty head. In medical schools across the country, our future doctors are being taught that drugs help people to get well, when the research says otherwise. They are told they are getting a first-rate education, but really only learn to be an agent of drug companies. On the bottom-line, it's fraud.
Drugs
People spend large amounts of money on all sorts of drugs to feel good for a few minutes, and only receive harm. While it may be obvious that meth, heroin, marijuana, and cocaine are a problem, alcohol and caffeine have been the drugs of choice for millennia, and those who sell it are perpetrating fraud on those who buy it, even though they do it willingly. Like prostitution, street drugs or prescription drugs that only bring temporary relief of symptoms, and cause harm are not of any benefit. They take money, but don't offer value in return.
The patent drug business is, on the whole, based on fraud, giving harm instead of value. More than 99% of drugs are sold to people who don't need them, or who won't benefit from them, and might even be harmed by them. Money is exchanged for nothing of value as health is damaged by the toxic medications. It's worse than just stealing, where nothing is offered in exchange for money, it is actually giving ill for good.
The greatest marketing fraud perpetrated on the people of the world is found in the patent medicine industry. Since people don't generally want to take toxic medications, the drug companies have spent billions of dollars to create a perceived need. Using fear tactics to address health concerns, they advertise that drugs are the solution to a problem that they created. In most cases, there is no problem at all. Hypertension is a symptom that was made into an illness through marketing. We were told it is "The silent killer!" and in order to avoid death, we needed to take a drug to lower the pressure. The research shows this isn't true, but even the doctors remain ignorant of this fact because they are trained by the drug companies. People spend billions of dollars every year on these toxic medications that do more harm than good -- for an illness that doesn't exist!
Cholesterol is another creation of marketing drugs. We are told that high cholesterol causes heart disease and strokes, and that we can avoid these if we use drugs to lower cholesterol. The doctors are sales agents of the drug companies, doggedly telling everyone to take their statin drugs, or else! I had one patient with heart disease who was given a stent for a narrowed artery in his heart, and put on a statin drug. Two years later he had to get another stent for another narrowed artery, causing chest pain, and given a higher dose of statin drugs. A year later he was given another stent for further arterial disease in his heart, and more chest pain, and was changed to a stronger statin drug. This continued until he had five stents and very high doses of statin drugs. He came in to see me because of terrible side-effects (toxicity) of the statin drugs. It was obvious he had inflammatory issues so I took him off the statin drugs in order to treat the cause of his problem. His cardiologist called me, and literally yelled into the phone that it was "malpractice" to take a person with heart disease off of statin drugs, even after they have failed four times!
Fake Food
Like drugs, most food that is bought does more harm than good to the body. All those who sell junk food are stealing money from people, taking their money and offering nothing of value in return. In reality, for their money they only get illness and death. This is not to mean only "fast food" or "junk food" but all processed foods, drinks, restaurants, or packaged foods that are eaten for taste, but don't nourish the body. These foods are the greatest cause of disability and death in the world. Those in the business are perpetrating a fraud on unsuspecting innocent people, just like the drug industry. In fact, the most toxic substance known to man is sugar, the basic staple of most food sold. More people die from sugar toxicity than all of the drugs combined, illegal or legal. Those who sell it are doing more harm than good, taking money, but giving no value.
Marketing
Marketing is the art of legal plunder -- getting people to part with their money, taking something of value and giving nothing in return. In some cases, it's giving people what they want, instead of what they need. In other cases it's creating a perceived need where there really isn't one. We could go down the list of drugs that are fraud, but the picture is clear. People are sold a bill of goods, getting no value for their money. The patent drug industry is mostly fraud with brilliant marketing to trick people into thinking they are getting value for their money. Nobody notices that people are still getting the illnesses that the drugs are supposed to be preventing. Likewise the food industry is mostly fraud. In fact, just about everything we see advertised is selling something of little or no value for high prices. This is the art of marketing. Marketing is all about motivating people to spend money on what they want, but all too often it is a bait-and-switch game of getting them to spend their money, but not actually giving them what they want, or what was promised. These businesses prey on the weak, lonely, needy and ignorant people of the world.
More than two millennia ago, Jacob is talking to us when he says, "Wherefore, do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy." (2 Nephi 9:51)
Win-Lose
Plunder just as readily happens the other way, when people take advantage of businesses, looking for a win-lose deal. Those who are looking for a bargain, to pay less for something than everyone else, are often trying to receive goods and services at the expense of others. A perfect example is found in the "gaming" industry (AKA gambling). Near my house is an Indian casino where so many people go to get something for nothing. They hope to provide the smallest "investment" to get the largest gains for themselves, while everyone else in the house loses (except the House, of course). These are all forms of plunder, taking something and not giving value in return. There is no exchange, and is always a win-lose situation.
Legit
A legitimate business provides value for the money they receive. They will often give more than what they receive, a lot more. A legitimate business sells goods and services that improve people. There are thousands of businesses that give a real exchange of value. Real estate is based on the desirability of the property. Cars add value to people's lives. The business of connecting people through communication like phones and the internet is a real service. Those businesses that supply energy such as gas and electricity are valuable. Most stores that sell goods are giving value for the money. Restaurants and stores that sell nutritious foods also give value.
Legitimate businesses don't need to use marketing to create fear or false need. People come to them with a real need, and the business fills the need. There is a real exchange of value that benefits both parties. One of the most important principles of business was elucidated by Stephen R. Covey in his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, that is the principle of "Think Win-Win -- or no deal!" If either party was aware that the other is losing on the deal, they would call it off. Every exchange must benefit both parties, and neither would go through with a deal that would harm the other party. We are our brother's keeper, and we have an obligation to look out for everyone, especially those who are needy or ignorant. A legitimate business must offer value in exchange, and not consider taking money without offering at least an equivalent value in return.
Legitimate Marketing
Marketing for a legitimate business allows people to know that a service or product is available so those who need it can have access to it. The business provides good, quality, useful goods and services at a price that provides a fair exchange so there is no need to use tricks or manipulation to get people to spend money on products or services that will not benefit them. There is, instead, a fair exchange of value.
Many stores offer a return policy for defective merchandise, or even for "buyer's remorse!" The consumer can even reverse the deal after they take the goods home. Of course, this sometimes leads to an unfair exchange, where the buyer uses the goods, and still asks for money back.
Some businesses negotiate with customers. Negotiation is a way for us to determine the best exchange where both will gain. Negotiation may lead to creative ways to provide the service or pay for goods that wouldn't otherwise have made the exchange possible, especially with large purchases, such as real estate.
My own legitimacy
I need to assess my own business continually to see that I provide a valuable service. I need to be sure that I am giving real value for the money on an general and individual basis. I would continually examine the value of the services I provide, and be sure others receive that value. I could offer a guarantee policy, but that is difficult in a health care setting because people feel better and forget that they felt bad so the perceived value changes as the consumer gets more benefit. Moreover, we cannot judge any form of prevention because we cannot know if an individual would have become disabled with arthritis, heart disease, Alzheimer's disease, or some other chronic degenerative ailment. If we teach them how, they just continue to be healthy.
For this reason, I believe the best health care is education. Teaching people how to care for themselves on an individual and general basis allows them to be independent and healthy all their lives. "Health is the first wealth," said Mahatma Gandhi. Without health all of our wealth is worthless. Health allows us to live. Prevention of illness has more value than money. The knowledge of how to avoid all of the worthless food, drugs, and other life-stealing products is priceless! The savings will be many times more than the cost of the education. This is all-around a tremendous value -- definitely a win-win for all!
Today, we have business as a form of legal plunder. These government-approved businesses "sell" people things that they don't need in order to get money. Marketing techniques are mastered and used to motivate more people to buy goods and services that may even bring harm. The government today is beginning to mandate that we buy useless goods and services such as insurance, chemotherapy, and vaccines. All too often they don't give real value in exchange for money. In this sense, a great deal of business and government in the world is fraud.
Info-tainment
Information is so cheap that we place little value on it. We think we can watch TV for free and get information. As Wormwood in the movie Matilda, said, "There's nothing you can get from a book that you can't get from a television faster." But is TV free? We must spend the most valuable asset we have in order to watch television -- time. Besides, everything that is on TV is a message paid by sponsors. Even the news is of questionable benefit, at best, offering people what they want to hear without giving any real information.
Most books are filled with things people like, but don't offer information of any value for the money. Information is sold rampantly in books, or on the internet, promising health, wealth, and happiness in every way possible, taking money and offering only lies. People pay for what they want to hear, not necessarily what they need. Thus, they spend their money and get nothing in return.
Sometimes, a college education is useless. We are told that the majority of what we learn in college is not true, that we need to go out into the world and begin to learn reality. People spend hundreds of thousands on an education to get a degree, and find only a worthless piece of paper and an empty head. In medical schools across the country, our future doctors are being taught that drugs help people to get well, when the research says otherwise. They are told they are getting a first-rate education, but really only learn to be an agent of drug companies. On the bottom-line, it's fraud.
Drugs
People spend large amounts of money on all sorts of drugs to feel good for a few minutes, and only receive harm. While it may be obvious that meth, heroin, marijuana, and cocaine are a problem, alcohol and caffeine have been the drugs of choice for millennia, and those who sell it are perpetrating fraud on those who buy it, even though they do it willingly. Like prostitution, street drugs or prescription drugs that only bring temporary relief of symptoms, and cause harm are not of any benefit. They take money, but don't offer value in return.
The patent drug business is, on the whole, based on fraud, giving harm instead of value. More than 99% of drugs are sold to people who don't need them, or who won't benefit from them, and might even be harmed by them. Money is exchanged for nothing of value as health is damaged by the toxic medications. It's worse than just stealing, where nothing is offered in exchange for money, it is actually giving ill for good.
The greatest marketing fraud perpetrated on the people of the world is found in the patent medicine industry. Since people don't generally want to take toxic medications, the drug companies have spent billions of dollars to create a perceived need. Using fear tactics to address health concerns, they advertise that drugs are the solution to a problem that they created. In most cases, there is no problem at all. Hypertension is a symptom that was made into an illness through marketing. We were told it is "The silent killer!" and in order to avoid death, we needed to take a drug to lower the pressure. The research shows this isn't true, but even the doctors remain ignorant of this fact because they are trained by the drug companies. People spend billions of dollars every year on these toxic medications that do more harm than good -- for an illness that doesn't exist!
Cholesterol is another creation of marketing drugs. We are told that high cholesterol causes heart disease and strokes, and that we can avoid these if we use drugs to lower cholesterol. The doctors are sales agents of the drug companies, doggedly telling everyone to take their statin drugs, or else! I had one patient with heart disease who was given a stent for a narrowed artery in his heart, and put on a statin drug. Two years later he had to get another stent for another narrowed artery, causing chest pain, and given a higher dose of statin drugs. A year later he was given another stent for further arterial disease in his heart, and more chest pain, and was changed to a stronger statin drug. This continued until he had five stents and very high doses of statin drugs. He came in to see me because of terrible side-effects (toxicity) of the statin drugs. It was obvious he had inflammatory issues so I took him off the statin drugs in order to treat the cause of his problem. His cardiologist called me, and literally yelled into the phone that it was "malpractice" to take a person with heart disease off of statin drugs, even after they have failed four times!
Fake Food
Like drugs, most food that is bought does more harm than good to the body. All those who sell junk food are stealing money from people, taking their money and offering nothing of value in return. In reality, for their money they only get illness and death. This is not to mean only "fast food" or "junk food" but all processed foods, drinks, restaurants, or packaged foods that are eaten for taste, but don't nourish the body. These foods are the greatest cause of disability and death in the world. Those in the business are perpetrating a fraud on unsuspecting innocent people, just like the drug industry. In fact, the most toxic substance known to man is sugar, the basic staple of most food sold. More people die from sugar toxicity than all of the drugs combined, illegal or legal. Those who sell it are doing more harm than good, taking money, but giving no value.
Marketing
Marketing is the art of legal plunder -- getting people to part with their money, taking something of value and giving nothing in return. In some cases, it's giving people what they want, instead of what they need. In other cases it's creating a perceived need where there really isn't one. We could go down the list of drugs that are fraud, but the picture is clear. People are sold a bill of goods, getting no value for their money. The patent drug industry is mostly fraud with brilliant marketing to trick people into thinking they are getting value for their money. Nobody notices that people are still getting the illnesses that the drugs are supposed to be preventing. Likewise the food industry is mostly fraud. In fact, just about everything we see advertised is selling something of little or no value for high prices. This is the art of marketing. Marketing is all about motivating people to spend money on what they want, but all too often it is a bait-and-switch game of getting them to spend their money, but not actually giving them what they want, or what was promised. These businesses prey on the weak, lonely, needy and ignorant people of the world.
More than two millennia ago, Jacob is talking to us when he says, "Wherefore, do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy." (2 Nephi 9:51)
Win-Lose
Plunder just as readily happens the other way, when people take advantage of businesses, looking for a win-lose deal. Those who are looking for a bargain, to pay less for something than everyone else, are often trying to receive goods and services at the expense of others. A perfect example is found in the "gaming" industry (AKA gambling). Near my house is an Indian casino where so many people go to get something for nothing. They hope to provide the smallest "investment" to get the largest gains for themselves, while everyone else in the house loses (except the House, of course). These are all forms of plunder, taking something and not giving value in return. There is no exchange, and is always a win-lose situation.
Legit
A legitimate business provides value for the money they receive. They will often give more than what they receive, a lot more. A legitimate business sells goods and services that improve people. There are thousands of businesses that give a real exchange of value. Real estate is based on the desirability of the property. Cars add value to people's lives. The business of connecting people through communication like phones and the internet is a real service. Those businesses that supply energy such as gas and electricity are valuable. Most stores that sell goods are giving value for the money. Restaurants and stores that sell nutritious foods also give value.
Legitimate businesses don't need to use marketing to create fear or false need. People come to them with a real need, and the business fills the need. There is a real exchange of value that benefits both parties. One of the most important principles of business was elucidated by Stephen R. Covey in his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, that is the principle of "Think Win-Win -- or no deal!" If either party was aware that the other is losing on the deal, they would call it off. Every exchange must benefit both parties, and neither would go through with a deal that would harm the other party. We are our brother's keeper, and we have an obligation to look out for everyone, especially those who are needy or ignorant. A legitimate business must offer value in exchange, and not consider taking money without offering at least an equivalent value in return.
Legitimate Marketing
Marketing for a legitimate business allows people to know that a service or product is available so those who need it can have access to it. The business provides good, quality, useful goods and services at a price that provides a fair exchange so there is no need to use tricks or manipulation to get people to spend money on products or services that will not benefit them. There is, instead, a fair exchange of value.
Many stores offer a return policy for defective merchandise, or even for "buyer's remorse!" The consumer can even reverse the deal after they take the goods home. Of course, this sometimes leads to an unfair exchange, where the buyer uses the goods, and still asks for money back.
Some businesses negotiate with customers. Negotiation is a way for us to determine the best exchange where both will gain. Negotiation may lead to creative ways to provide the service or pay for goods that wouldn't otherwise have made the exchange possible, especially with large purchases, such as real estate.
My own legitimacy
I need to assess my own business continually to see that I provide a valuable service. I need to be sure that I am giving real value for the money on an general and individual basis. I would continually examine the value of the services I provide, and be sure others receive that value. I could offer a guarantee policy, but that is difficult in a health care setting because people feel better and forget that they felt bad so the perceived value changes as the consumer gets more benefit. Moreover, we cannot judge any form of prevention because we cannot know if an individual would have become disabled with arthritis, heart disease, Alzheimer's disease, or some other chronic degenerative ailment. If we teach them how, they just continue to be healthy.
For this reason, I believe the best health care is education. Teaching people how to care for themselves on an individual and general basis allows them to be independent and healthy all their lives. "Health is the first wealth," said Mahatma Gandhi. Without health all of our wealth is worthless. Health allows us to live. Prevention of illness has more value than money. The knowledge of how to avoid all of the worthless food, drugs, and other life-stealing products is priceless! The savings will be many times more than the cost of the education. This is all-around a tremendous value -- definitely a win-win for all!
Sunday, July 24, 2016
True Love
We cannot give what we don't have. If we are looking to be loved, then we cannot love. If we don't have any love to give, then we cannot truly love. Instead, we give fake love. We are very familiar with fake love because it's constantly all around us. The words, "I love you" generally refer to fake love. Fake love is all the things people do to manipulate us into doing what they want. Let's look at a few examples.
Needs
Fake love is very often found in need. We cannot love anyone or anything we need. Need always has conditions: "I need _____ in order to _____ ." But love has no conditions.
This may happen in marriage. For example, if a husband needs his wife to fill his loneliness, then he pretends to love her by trying to fill her needs. As long as they fill each other's needs, each continues to feel as if the other loves them. However divorce is imminent when either, or both, are not getting their needs filled. They may recognize previous contributions of their spouse, but feel like, "What have you done for me lately?"
When parents need their children to love them, then they cannot love their children; they cannot give what they don't possess, nor supply what they need. This reversal of roles is what underlies all child abuse. Parents who use their children to fill their own needs are abusive. Sometimes it's blatant, such as sexual abuse, however, most of the time it's more subtle. Fear is the opposite of love so when parents try to protect their children out of fear, it is a form of fake love. Even more subtle would be the desire for the children to be an extension of the parent, "a chip off the ol' block," or in any way expecting a child to follow in the parent's footsteps. When parents need their children to be, or do, or say, or in any way fill a role in the family that isn't for the benefit of the child, it is fake love.
Sometimes we have friends who need us. They cannot love us because we cannot love anyone we need. When the need is no longer there, being filled by another, for example, the friendship may dissolve. The old saying goes, "A friend in need, is a friend, indeed." But that need is not love, it is need. There is nothing wrong with need, and certainly nothing wrong with exchanging help to fill needs, however, it isn't real love because it's conditional.
All the Lonely People
When we come of age, and look around, we find very little real love. We find fake love everywhere. The cycle of fake love goes on because of the hope that it will work, though it never does. Unless we decide to change, we all just end up doing the same things our parents did to our children, only in different ways. Thus children don't grow up knowing love.
Those children then move out into the world seeking love, and find none. Everyone is looking for love, but nobody has any love to give. They get boyfriends and girlfriends hoping to be loved, but all they get is filling needs. They are married, but the expectation of filling needs only becomes greater. They may have children hoping to be loved, but find children are needy, and can't love. After a time, many give up ever trying to find love.
Some bury themselves in selfishness, their work or their habits, filling their need for love with fame, fortune, food, or fun. Their business is busy-ness; their occupation occupies their time, distracting them from their true need. Their relationships aren't connected or intimate. They eat to fill a need that cannot be filled with food so they get fat. Money seems to fill the need because we can buy love, but only fake love can be bought. Thrill-seekers are also looking for love, but not able to fill the need with a greater high. All the things we do, all the mountains we climb, all that we endure for love is wasted on fake love.
Fake it 'till you make it
Most books on love look at the superficial aspects of relationships, most often filling needs. One school of thought is to use the needs of another in order to manipulate them into filling our own needs. There are few needs that make people feel loved, or love languages. Using the needs of another to "make them feel loved" is just another form of manipulation. It isn't real love. Couples go to counseling to learn how to love each other, but are only taught how to manipulate by filling the needs of the other. Anytime there is a condition placed on love, "I love you if..." or "I love you when..." it is fake love.
Self-help psychology books on love are nearly always based on feeling loved, instead of being loved. They work on the leaves, the trappings, or the superficial aspects of what looks like love from the outside. Sometimes they advocate giving service to others as a way to love, which may be true, but love is not about what you do, rather why you do it. If we give service so that we can feel loved, it is only another form of manipulation, and is temporary, at best.
Everyone knows, but nobody will say, that our efforts to love and be loved are all fake. We want fake love. We want to be accepted just the way we are, and have no strings attached. We want to avoid growth. Thus, on both sides we are giving and receiving fake love willingly and happily, as long as it is available. When it isn't, we may become depressed, anxious, hopeless, or hard-hearted. But even receiving fake love will eventually cause us to become disillusioned.
We are told that we need to "fake it 'till we make it!" A young couple is supposed to fall in love and fill each other's needs with fake love until they grow into real love. But just as often this ends badly, not just in divorce, but in unhappy marriages or domestic partnerships with parallel lives. Children grow up with childish parents who are affectionate and use words of love, but aren't really loving. Faking love is fake love. Fake love is the sacrifices we make in an attempt to fill our own need of being loved. Faking it doesn't work, it doesn't fill the true need to love and be loved -- to share love -- real love.
Real love
This is not to say that real love doesn't exist, but rather it is precious and rare. Only those who are filled with love are able to give love to others. Parents who are loved by their spouse are able to love their children with real love. There is no fear or need, only acceptance and help. A daughter who is loved by her parents is able to love her husband with real love. There must be a beginning. It must start out with love. Someone must have real love to start the process so others can be loved, who then love those around them. The growth of love is exponential.
But, we don't just feel loved, we possess love, and have an abundance to give. Real love is the sacrifice we make for the benefit, or spiritual growth, of others. We give ourselves. There are a few things we possess: time, attention, knowledge, and effort. Giving these willingly and freely is all the love we have to give.
To be with
Everyone has the same gift and exactly the same amount as everyone else -- time. We are all given a little less than 24 hours in a day. We spend our time with the things we love, or that we think will bring us love. Since objects cannot love, nor can they grow, we cannot truly love them, thus, our time may be wasted on things. Nevertheless, if our time spent with things is being used to increase our own ability to love, then it isn't wasted. Ultimately, when we use our time to help others grow spiritually, it is love.
To listen for understanding
Attention is given as a gift. It is the energy we put into knowing another person. It is what we do to connect with them, to know them, and to be intimate with them. It takes energy to truly listen for understanding. This energy is love. We cannot love what we don't understand so if we don't know a person, we can't love them. Love requires knowledge, and listening is the beginning of love.
To accept the whole package
Everyone has strengths as well as weaknesses. Real love accepts the person as a whole without judging or condemning weaknesses. One who possesses love is able to see the truth of each person, that their weaknesses are given to them for their own benefit, while their strengths are given for them to benefit others. Seeing both sides as the blessings that they are helps us to take the whole person, and love them. With this knowledge we will be able to lift them up and help them grow -- which is true love.
To share our story
Giving knowledge is the gift of what we truly have. Our experience can be passed-on by communicating what we have learned. Telling our story is love. It allows others to take what we have learned, incorporate it into their own lives, and not have to endure the same experiences. The mistakes we have made teach us lessons, and those things we learn can be imparted to others for their benefit. The risk we take of showing our weaknesses is love.
To use our creativity
Our art is our creative efforts, our strengths, or our gifts. We all have an art to give, which are gifts that uplift others, that raises the consciousness of those who witness it. We may think of creativity and art as painting or sculpture, but it also comprises building, cleaning, teaching, cooking, and all of the mundane things we do. Some are good at speaking, or knowledge, others have administrative gifts. Whatever our gifts of creativity, we can lift others and improve their lives by giving freely, not for our own benefit, but rather just to improve the lives of others. This is real love.
To choose
Real love is always a choice. It is never automatic. In marriage, ideally, two people who already know they are loved choose to be together and love one another. They can give true love because they already possess it; they don't need the other to give it to them. There can never be any form of manipulation or coercion in real love. The Lord tells us that we can only influence others "by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul, without hypocrisy, and without guile." (D&C 121:41-42) The choice to influence others in this manner is real love.
Receiving the gift
True love is a gift that is given to others. We cannot give what we don't have so it is necessary that we first obtain real love. Like any gift, we need to be prepared to receive it. We cannot possess love if we don't have a heart. If we were very thirsty, and sitting by a well of water, but had no bucket to lower into the well, we would just remain thirsty. The need is there, the possibility of fulfillment is there, but for the lack of a vessel there is no way to marry the two. We all need love, it is the primary motive force of life in the Universe. However, as long as we need, but have no way to hold or store love, it will be like water running though our fingers.
In order to be prepared to be loved, we must begin with desire. When we know the difference between real love and fake love, we may begin to seek to possess it. There are three steps in this process:
1. A broken heart helps us to know ourselves.
2. Learning self-control by being obedient
3. Giving our heart to God allows us to receive His love.
This path is not automatic, it must be sought specifically. A broken heart can lead us in one of two directions, a soft heart, or a hard heart. Those who become bitter and angry because of their pain, weaknesses and problems do not learn to love. On the other hand, those who choose to let go and give their heart to God will be softened. This will allow us to begin the path that prepares us to love.
Know yourself
The Greek maxim, "Know Thyself" is written on the temple at Delphi. Variously ascribed to Socrates or Plato, this aphorism is filled with love. As we have already discussed, we can't love anyone we don't know, and if we don't know ourselves, we cannot understand that we are loved. When we encounter true love, we will be skeptical, unbelieving, or we will simply ignore it. Thus, unless we understand who we are, at the very core, our hearts, there is no way for us to possess love at all.
As we go through life, we are given circumstances that help us to know who we are, or what we truly desire in our hearts. These are usually hard things. Some are temptations. King David was given a temptation that he couldn't resist, and learned his heart, and the love of God. We are all given issues to deal with. Often they are problems that cause us damage such as addictions, breaking our hearts so we may learn what we are truly made of. As we come to know ourselves, we can accept who we are, strengths and weaknesses, and begin to feel loved, especially the love of God. This is a soft heart.
Control yourself
Once we come to know what is in our hearts, the next step towards love is to be in control. While the maxim "control thyself" has been ascribed to Cicero, I like the way Alma explains it to his son, Corianton, "see that ye bridle all your passions, that ye may be filled with love." (Alma 38:12) A bridle gives direction, but not force. It is a gentle control over the whole body. The Apostle James used the same analogy as he explains the need to control our speech, "If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body. Behold, we put bits in the horses' mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body." (James 3:2-3) When we have control over ourselves, our wants, needs and desires, then we will begin to have the capacity to love.
The achievement of self-control is to love God. When we put Him first, we will be able to put aside our own needs, which are the problem, and "take His yoke upon us." We only need to do as He says in order to have love. Jesus gave us the path as succinctly as possible, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." (John 14:15) By controlling our passions and desires we are enabled to be filled with love.
Give yourself
When we have love, we are enabled to give. Jesus told His disciples, "as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." (John 13:34) He didn't tell them they had to know themselves, or control themselves, they learned it through their own experience. Right after Jesus commanded this, Peter said he would give his life for Jesus. The subsequent experiences allowed Peter to see himself truly, and then repent and become a mighty apostle. As he went through each one of the steps, he was able to give love as Jesus did.
Jesus likewise gave love as He had received. He explained, "As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you" (John 15:9) We all start from the same place. We cannot give what we don't possess. For this reason it is essential that we receive the love of Christ before we can love one another.
The way to find true love is clear. Our experiences in life allow us to see who we are. If we soften our hearts and accept that we are needy, then we can turn to God. We then exert control by doing everything He tells us to do. Once we are in control, God fills us with love, and we have the ability to use all of our talents to lift others, to love them truly, to give from the heart without any selfish desires, and help them grow. Is this not real?
Needs
Fake love is very often found in need. We cannot love anyone or anything we need. Need always has conditions: "I need _____ in order to _____ ." But love has no conditions.
This may happen in marriage. For example, if a husband needs his wife to fill his loneliness, then he pretends to love her by trying to fill her needs. As long as they fill each other's needs, each continues to feel as if the other loves them. However divorce is imminent when either, or both, are not getting their needs filled. They may recognize previous contributions of their spouse, but feel like, "What have you done for me lately?"
When parents need their children to love them, then they cannot love their children; they cannot give what they don't possess, nor supply what they need. This reversal of roles is what underlies all child abuse. Parents who use their children to fill their own needs are abusive. Sometimes it's blatant, such as sexual abuse, however, most of the time it's more subtle. Fear is the opposite of love so when parents try to protect their children out of fear, it is a form of fake love. Even more subtle would be the desire for the children to be an extension of the parent, "a chip off the ol' block," or in any way expecting a child to follow in the parent's footsteps. When parents need their children to be, or do, or say, or in any way fill a role in the family that isn't for the benefit of the child, it is fake love.
Sometimes we have friends who need us. They cannot love us because we cannot love anyone we need. When the need is no longer there, being filled by another, for example, the friendship may dissolve. The old saying goes, "A friend in need, is a friend, indeed." But that need is not love, it is need. There is nothing wrong with need, and certainly nothing wrong with exchanging help to fill needs, however, it isn't real love because it's conditional.
All the Lonely People
When we come of age, and look around, we find very little real love. We find fake love everywhere. The cycle of fake love goes on because of the hope that it will work, though it never does. Unless we decide to change, we all just end up doing the same things our parents did to our children, only in different ways. Thus children don't grow up knowing love.
Those children then move out into the world seeking love, and find none. Everyone is looking for love, but nobody has any love to give. They get boyfriends and girlfriends hoping to be loved, but all they get is filling needs. They are married, but the expectation of filling needs only becomes greater. They may have children hoping to be loved, but find children are needy, and can't love. After a time, many give up ever trying to find love.
Some bury themselves in selfishness, their work or their habits, filling their need for love with fame, fortune, food, or fun. Their business is busy-ness; their occupation occupies their time, distracting them from their true need. Their relationships aren't connected or intimate. They eat to fill a need that cannot be filled with food so they get fat. Money seems to fill the need because we can buy love, but only fake love can be bought. Thrill-seekers are also looking for love, but not able to fill the need with a greater high. All the things we do, all the mountains we climb, all that we endure for love is wasted on fake love.
Fake it 'till you make it
Most books on love look at the superficial aspects of relationships, most often filling needs. One school of thought is to use the needs of another in order to manipulate them into filling our own needs. There are few needs that make people feel loved, or love languages. Using the needs of another to "make them feel loved" is just another form of manipulation. It isn't real love. Couples go to counseling to learn how to love each other, but are only taught how to manipulate by filling the needs of the other. Anytime there is a condition placed on love, "I love you if..." or "I love you when..." it is fake love.
Self-help psychology books on love are nearly always based on feeling loved, instead of being loved. They work on the leaves, the trappings, or the superficial aspects of what looks like love from the outside. Sometimes they advocate giving service to others as a way to love, which may be true, but love is not about what you do, rather why you do it. If we give service so that we can feel loved, it is only another form of manipulation, and is temporary, at best.
Everyone knows, but nobody will say, that our efforts to love and be loved are all fake. We want fake love. We want to be accepted just the way we are, and have no strings attached. We want to avoid growth. Thus, on both sides we are giving and receiving fake love willingly and happily, as long as it is available. When it isn't, we may become depressed, anxious, hopeless, or hard-hearted. But even receiving fake love will eventually cause us to become disillusioned.
We are told that we need to "fake it 'till we make it!" A young couple is supposed to fall in love and fill each other's needs with fake love until they grow into real love. But just as often this ends badly, not just in divorce, but in unhappy marriages or domestic partnerships with parallel lives. Children grow up with childish parents who are affectionate and use words of love, but aren't really loving. Faking love is fake love. Fake love is the sacrifices we make in an attempt to fill our own need of being loved. Faking it doesn't work, it doesn't fill the true need to love and be loved -- to share love -- real love.
Real love
This is not to say that real love doesn't exist, but rather it is precious and rare. Only those who are filled with love are able to give love to others. Parents who are loved by their spouse are able to love their children with real love. There is no fear or need, only acceptance and help. A daughter who is loved by her parents is able to love her husband with real love. There must be a beginning. It must start out with love. Someone must have real love to start the process so others can be loved, who then love those around them. The growth of love is exponential.
But, we don't just feel loved, we possess love, and have an abundance to give. Real love is the sacrifice we make for the benefit, or spiritual growth, of others. We give ourselves. There are a few things we possess: time, attention, knowledge, and effort. Giving these willingly and freely is all the love we have to give.
To be with
Everyone has the same gift and exactly the same amount as everyone else -- time. We are all given a little less than 24 hours in a day. We spend our time with the things we love, or that we think will bring us love. Since objects cannot love, nor can they grow, we cannot truly love them, thus, our time may be wasted on things. Nevertheless, if our time spent with things is being used to increase our own ability to love, then it isn't wasted. Ultimately, when we use our time to help others grow spiritually, it is love.
To listen for understanding
Attention is given as a gift. It is the energy we put into knowing another person. It is what we do to connect with them, to know them, and to be intimate with them. It takes energy to truly listen for understanding. This energy is love. We cannot love what we don't understand so if we don't know a person, we can't love them. Love requires knowledge, and listening is the beginning of love.
To accept the whole package
Everyone has strengths as well as weaknesses. Real love accepts the person as a whole without judging or condemning weaknesses. One who possesses love is able to see the truth of each person, that their weaknesses are given to them for their own benefit, while their strengths are given for them to benefit others. Seeing both sides as the blessings that they are helps us to take the whole person, and love them. With this knowledge we will be able to lift them up and help them grow -- which is true love.
To share our story
Giving knowledge is the gift of what we truly have. Our experience can be passed-on by communicating what we have learned. Telling our story is love. It allows others to take what we have learned, incorporate it into their own lives, and not have to endure the same experiences. The mistakes we have made teach us lessons, and those things we learn can be imparted to others for their benefit. The risk we take of showing our weaknesses is love.
To use our creativity
Our art is our creative efforts, our strengths, or our gifts. We all have an art to give, which are gifts that uplift others, that raises the consciousness of those who witness it. We may think of creativity and art as painting or sculpture, but it also comprises building, cleaning, teaching, cooking, and all of the mundane things we do. Some are good at speaking, or knowledge, others have administrative gifts. Whatever our gifts of creativity, we can lift others and improve their lives by giving freely, not for our own benefit, but rather just to improve the lives of others. This is real love.
To choose
Real love is always a choice. It is never automatic. In marriage, ideally, two people who already know they are loved choose to be together and love one another. They can give true love because they already possess it; they don't need the other to give it to them. There can never be any form of manipulation or coercion in real love. The Lord tells us that we can only influence others "by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul, without hypocrisy, and without guile." (D&C 121:41-42) The choice to influence others in this manner is real love.
Receiving the gift
True love is a gift that is given to others. We cannot give what we don't have so it is necessary that we first obtain real love. Like any gift, we need to be prepared to receive it. We cannot possess love if we don't have a heart. If we were very thirsty, and sitting by a well of water, but had no bucket to lower into the well, we would just remain thirsty. The need is there, the possibility of fulfillment is there, but for the lack of a vessel there is no way to marry the two. We all need love, it is the primary motive force of life in the Universe. However, as long as we need, but have no way to hold or store love, it will be like water running though our fingers.
In order to be prepared to be loved, we must begin with desire. When we know the difference between real love and fake love, we may begin to seek to possess it. There are three steps in this process:
1. A broken heart helps us to know ourselves.
2. Learning self-control by being obedient
3. Giving our heart to God allows us to receive His love.
This path is not automatic, it must be sought specifically. A broken heart can lead us in one of two directions, a soft heart, or a hard heart. Those who become bitter and angry because of their pain, weaknesses and problems do not learn to love. On the other hand, those who choose to let go and give their heart to God will be softened. This will allow us to begin the path that prepares us to love.
Know yourself
The Greek maxim, "Know Thyself" is written on the temple at Delphi. Variously ascribed to Socrates or Plato, this aphorism is filled with love. As we have already discussed, we can't love anyone we don't know, and if we don't know ourselves, we cannot understand that we are loved. When we encounter true love, we will be skeptical, unbelieving, or we will simply ignore it. Thus, unless we understand who we are, at the very core, our hearts, there is no way for us to possess love at all.
As we go through life, we are given circumstances that help us to know who we are, or what we truly desire in our hearts. These are usually hard things. Some are temptations. King David was given a temptation that he couldn't resist, and learned his heart, and the love of God. We are all given issues to deal with. Often they are problems that cause us damage such as addictions, breaking our hearts so we may learn what we are truly made of. As we come to know ourselves, we can accept who we are, strengths and weaknesses, and begin to feel loved, especially the love of God. This is a soft heart.
Control yourself
Once we come to know what is in our hearts, the next step towards love is to be in control. While the maxim "control thyself" has been ascribed to Cicero, I like the way Alma explains it to his son, Corianton, "see that ye bridle all your passions, that ye may be filled with love." (Alma 38:12) A bridle gives direction, but not force. It is a gentle control over the whole body. The Apostle James used the same analogy as he explains the need to control our speech, "If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body. Behold, we put bits in the horses' mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body." (James 3:2-3) When we have control over ourselves, our wants, needs and desires, then we will begin to have the capacity to love.
The achievement of self-control is to love God. When we put Him first, we will be able to put aside our own needs, which are the problem, and "take His yoke upon us." We only need to do as He says in order to have love. Jesus gave us the path as succinctly as possible, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." (John 14:15) By controlling our passions and desires we are enabled to be filled with love.
Give yourself
When we have love, we are enabled to give. Jesus told His disciples, "as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." (John 13:34) He didn't tell them they had to know themselves, or control themselves, they learned it through their own experience. Right after Jesus commanded this, Peter said he would give his life for Jesus. The subsequent experiences allowed Peter to see himself truly, and then repent and become a mighty apostle. As he went through each one of the steps, he was able to give love as Jesus did.
Jesus likewise gave love as He had received. He explained, "As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you" (John 15:9) We all start from the same place. We cannot give what we don't possess. For this reason it is essential that we receive the love of Christ before we can love one another.
The way to find true love is clear. Our experiences in life allow us to see who we are. If we soften our hearts and accept that we are needy, then we can turn to God. We then exert control by doing everything He tells us to do. Once we are in control, God fills us with love, and we have the ability to use all of our talents to lift others, to love them truly, to give from the heart without any selfish desires, and help them grow. Is this not real?
Tuesday, July 12, 2016
Why are we here?
I've always loved the story of Jonah and the whale. Jonah was called to preach the Gospel to a fallen people of the city of Nineveh, and warn them to repent or they would be destroyed. Jonah didn't want to do it so he took a ship going away from the presence of the Lord. A great storm then threatened the boat, and Jonah was identified as the cause of it, and thrown overboard. Then, a miracle happened, a fish swallowed him, saving him from drowning. He repented for three days while in the belly of the whale, and then was spit out onto dry land. Accepting his calling, he went to Nineveh and told them they had 40 days to repent, or be destroyed. They repented. Jonah fulfilled the work (but even then wasn't happy about it), and God blessed him.
Jonah is every man and woman. The elements of this story could apply to each person on the Earth. Everyone is given a work to do, or a mission to perform. The plan was made before the world was even created, and everyone agreed to come to Earth and do their job. If everyone fulfills his mission, then we can be saved from death and hell, and may return, as individuals and as a group, to God in Heaven. The work is not all done by one person, everyone pitches in and performs his own tasks.
A personal mission
In the big picture, there was a plan made that would allow everyone to receive Eternal Life, not individually, but rather as a group, all the children of Adam can return to God and partake of life and exaltation. We each have jobs to do in order to carry-out the plan. We each were given a calling to provide a service to the group, and each is given the exact talents and abilities necessary to fulfill that calling. Before the world was even created we were shown our personal plan, and agreed to it. This is, in part, what qualified us to come to Earth.
We are not just sent to fritter-away our time here, seeing the sights, smelling the smells, and either enjoying our time here or working away to earn money. We are not just slaves to work for food, clothing and shelter, nor are we here to play with our toys all day. We must be about our Father's business. There is no retirement from this mission, except death. As long as we have breath in our lungs and a beating heart we have a job to do. We have a specific thing to do, that is unique to our talents and abilities, and nobody else will do it -- unless we reject our calling. We can always say, "No," in which case another will be called to do your work.
Agency
We are told that we have the ability to choose whatever we want on Earth. Actually, this isn't true. There are many things we cannot choose because we are unaware of them, or we don't have the talents needed to acquire them, or we are born into the wrong caste. We only really can choose between those things that are placed within our reach.
Ultimately, life isn't about choosing anything, but rather saying "yes" or "no" to our own mission. Whatever else we do is almost irrelevant. The only good we can ever do is our own work, that work which we agreed to while we were planning this life. There is no other work. There is no other good. Everything else is evil because it leads us away from our mission.
Resistance to your mission
Life is hard. When we get to Earth, we find it difficult to actually fulfill our promise to God. The mission we have to perform is difficult, and we are lazy. We want to make all sorts of excuses, trying to excuse ourselves from doing our work. We resist the guidance of the Holy Spirit, our conscience, which is constantly nagging at us to begin. We develop all sorts of reasons why we cannot do what we are called to do.
We run from our calling, like Jonah, because it's hard. Though we have been given the gifts we need, we are amazed by what it takes. It's a big mountain to overcome. We will need to work closely with the Lord in order to get it done. We will also need the help of others, but nobody can do our work for us, it is unique to us, and the others have their own work to do.
We find all sorts of distractions and reasons why we cannot do the work we were given. We blame others, such as our parents for not giving us all the tools we need. We blame our spouse for not helping us. We blame those who injure us in any way. It's their fault we cannot do our work.
One common distraction is church. We are so busy "doing good," by keeping all the commandments and doing all the work in church that we don't have time to fulfill our real mission. There is nothing more insidious than doing good in order to avoid our real work. The "good" we do is evil, in this case. We cannot really do good unless we are doing exactly what we are commanded by God to do, personally fulfilling the work He gives to us (which may include serving in His church).
Satan's mission
We are often told that the devil only wants us to do evil, to kill and hate, rob and maim. In reality, Satan has followers that send all sorts of distractions to keep us from doing the work God has given us to do. The purpose of the devil is to destroy the work of God. If he can prevent us from performing our mission, then he can frustrate the plan, and the work of God would be destroyed. He does this by distracting us in so many ways away from our personal mission:
We find we have desires of the flesh, needs that must be filled. Jesus explained to His disciples, "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." (Mark 4:19) We can let all our wants and needs of the flesh distract us from our mission, and most do.
Other people distract us constantly. We may have friends, family, or co-workers who take our time and prevent us from doing our work. We can become so inwardly focused on every ache and pain that we spend every effort to work on our physical health in order to avoid having to do our mission in life. Fear can paralyze us to prevent us from our work. Fear is evil. The devil always works through fear.
Thus, evil is not only the destructive things we do to others, but even more so it's everything that prevents us from doing our work. This is the work of Satan, and he is very good at fulfilling all he was chosen to do.
Christ's mission
The word "Christ" refers to "Messiah," meaning, "the anointed One." There is One who had a specific mission to be the Son of God, and to take upon Himself our sins, weaknesses, and transgressions. This is a specific mission that only He could do, it had to be an "infinite atonement" because nobody else had the power, or was qualified to do it. Others may have been able to teach the Gospel. Others may have been able to perform miracles. Others may have been able to organize a church. But only He could perform the great Atonement for all mankind. Only He could suffer for the sins of others. Nobody else had that ability. Because He was the Son of God, He was uniquely given the gifts and talents needed to do the work He was called to do.
When He had finished his work, as He hung on the cross, "he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost." (John 19:30) What was finished? His work on the Earth. When he then came to the Nephites three days later he said, "And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning." (3 Nephi 11:11) Now, in the past tense, He tells them that He has done His work. He has finished His mission. He did all He said He would do.
Though He was hated, mocked, and rejected by the establishment of the Jews and Romans, yet He went ahead and did what He was commanded to do -- every jot and every tittle. He left nothing undone, but drank the bitter cup to the dregs, fulfilling all that He was given before the foundation of the world.
Fulfilling our mission
We don't need to do what Christ did, suffering for the sins of the world, but rather follow Him in performing the work we were given, and agreed to before the world was created. If we follow Satan, then we will waste our time here on Earth, no matter what we're doing. If we follow Christ, we will be guided to do what we came here to do. We all have our contribution to humanity. We all have our art to give. We have in our hearts and minds something to raise the level of mankind in some large or small way. It's hard. It's always hard because though we have a gift or talent to provide a specific service, we cannot do it alone. We must have help.
Help comes to us in many ways, through other people, angels, or in the direct intervention of God. We cannot fail. Once we take on our mission, focus on it, and put all of our energy towards it, there is no way to stop us. All of Earth and hell could combine against us, but could not deter us from accomplishing what we came to do.
Heeding the call
We start out with the calling. Once we are called, we need to repent of all our sins, or all of the things that distract us from our calling, turning to God, putting our faith in Him that, though it is hard, we will be able to finish the work with His help. We then make a commitment, to put our whole being, body and soul, to sacrifice all our time and talents to doing the work. At this point we are given help from above. The Holy Spirit of God comes to us to guide us on our path.
We can go directly to our mission, or we can take the long way. The Children of Israel had the option of going directly into the Promised Land from Egypt, but they were scared so they had to wander in the desert for 40 years first. Likewise, we can be led directly to our mission, and find joy in serving God and our fellow-men, or we can wander around for years, hoping that we won't have to do it.
When we repent and accept our calling we are no longer children, tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine. We are now on the Lord's errand. The Holy Ghost tells us what to do to accomplish every part of our mission. We no longer have needs in the flesh, for He will provide for our needs. We let go of the things of the world, money, food, clothing, homes, lands, and even people -- mother, father, children and spouse. All we need is given to us. Every tool we need will be provided. Like a surgeon in the operating room, the only one who can perform that operation, has others standing beside him, giving him exactly what he needs in order for him to finish the surgery, the Lord provides all we need for us to complete our work.
Failure
We cannot fail. There is no way we can not do the work we are given if we will just start. The only way to fail is to run away, like Jonah. We will be brought back. We will be put in positions that make us face our fears and choose to do our work. Nevertheless, we can always opt out and run away. We can refuse to do it -- this is the only failure.
Faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ, gives us the assurance that we cannot fail. We know that we don't have the power to do what we are called to do, but with His help we can actually accomplish it. Our job requires that we put our trust in Him, listen to Him, follow the guidance of the Holy Ghost, and take the step into the Jordan River before the water will part and let us through. It will always seem like failure is imminent, but each time help will come to keep us on track. There is no way to fail, if we try.
In fact, we don't really even have to try because, like Jonah, if we run the other way, we will be stopped. We will then shake a fist at God and ask, "WHY?" when bad things happen to us. Until we repent and do the work we came to do, the Heavens will combine against us, but we won't die, we'll linger in purgatory, wander in the desert, or otherwise feel like our life is a waste. The mission will be before us until the end of our lives. If we die without fulfilling our work, judgment will come upon us.
Final Judgment
We think we will be judged for our sins of omission or commission, the candy we stole from the store, or people we hurt, but really we are judged for not doing what we agreed to do, our work. That's why good and evil cannot be defined by an action. If our work requires that we kill people, the commandment, "Thou shalt not kill" is irrelevant. If we are commanded to steal, plunder, hurt, or otherwise commit "crimes" it is counted as good if it is the work we need to do. Only the specific, individual commandments given by God to each of us independently are important. If we are told to kill, and we don't do it, that is a sin.
On the other hand, all the "good" things we do that keep us from our work is evil. If Mother Theresa was not called to help the orphans in India (which I believe she was) then all her work with them would be counted as evil to her. Nothing excuses us from performing our real work.
The reason we have scriptures and standards and "ten commandments" is to form a basis for learning. Every commandment in the scriptures is a guideline for the children to learn on. They are for the unschooled. Once we receive our calling we no longer need the general guidelines because we're guided by God through every step of our mission. To a great poet, the rules of grammar don't apply. To a great surgeon the rules of cutting bodies don't apply. To one who is called by God, none of the commandments necessarily apply. When a person accepts his calling, and commits to it, the guidance of the Holy Ghost is all that is needed. To him, the commandments are whatever the Spirit tells him to do. Period. Good and evil are defined only by our personal communications with God.
Accepting our fate
When I was eight years old I decided that nobody at home loved me, and I was going to run away. I made a peanut butter sandwich, put it in a lunch bag, and started walking without telling anyone. I got to the end of the street and realized that I had never been this far from home on my own. I didn't know where to go. I felt lost. It wasn't familiar to me. So, I turned around and went home, never even eating the sandwich. Though we may run away, and resist our calling, we cannot go far. The Lord is always right there, and will bring us back, even if it takes being swallowed by a whale!
We can do it. We must do it. We go to motivational seminars telling us that we can do it, but we don't know what "it" is. "It" is our work, our mission, our duty, our art, and our gift to mankind. Yes, we can do it, but we cannot do it alone. We must start by being called. When you are called, accept the calling.
The motivation we need is to give in to the guidance of the Lord. We need to be motivated to listen to the Spirit and do as we're told, putting our trust in God. M. Scott Peck, MD, in his book, The Road Less Traveled, begins by saying that life is difficult. He says that when we receive our calling, it isn't usually an "Oh Boy!" experience, rather it's usually an "Oh CRAP!" experience. Our mission will always be hard. There is always fear involved. We must face the fears and move ahead in faith, going through the fear with courage. In fact, the fear itself is a good indicator that it is our work. Those things we procrastinate are the most important things we do.
Peace, Joy, and fulfillment
Mark Twain said, "The two most important days in a man's life are the day he is born, and the day he finds out why." Knowing why we exist is the path to happiness. If we never know why, we cannot fulfill our purpose, and will find no joy in life. Those who accept their calling right away, and pursue it with vigor, have happy, easy lives. They find fulfillment. They aren't continually searching for their right place, pointing fingers at others, blaming and creating conflict. They have the assurance they're in the right place at all times. They have self-esteem. They connect with others. They have peace. Jesus said,
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27)
Knowing that we are on the errand of the Lord, and that He will guide us and give us help, strength, and gifts that we need to do our work is empowering. Knowing we cannot fail relieves all stress. When we are doing our work, fulfilling our mission, or living our dreams, then, and only then, will we have peace, rest, and fulfillment. When we fill the measure of our own creation, we find joy therein.
Jonah is every man and woman. The elements of this story could apply to each person on the Earth. Everyone is given a work to do, or a mission to perform. The plan was made before the world was even created, and everyone agreed to come to Earth and do their job. If everyone fulfills his mission, then we can be saved from death and hell, and may return, as individuals and as a group, to God in Heaven. The work is not all done by one person, everyone pitches in and performs his own tasks.
A personal mission
In the big picture, there was a plan made that would allow everyone to receive Eternal Life, not individually, but rather as a group, all the children of Adam can return to God and partake of life and exaltation. We each have jobs to do in order to carry-out the plan. We each were given a calling to provide a service to the group, and each is given the exact talents and abilities necessary to fulfill that calling. Before the world was even created we were shown our personal plan, and agreed to it. This is, in part, what qualified us to come to Earth.
We are not just sent to fritter-away our time here, seeing the sights, smelling the smells, and either enjoying our time here or working away to earn money. We are not just slaves to work for food, clothing and shelter, nor are we here to play with our toys all day. We must be about our Father's business. There is no retirement from this mission, except death. As long as we have breath in our lungs and a beating heart we have a job to do. We have a specific thing to do, that is unique to our talents and abilities, and nobody else will do it -- unless we reject our calling. We can always say, "No," in which case another will be called to do your work.
Agency
We are told that we have the ability to choose whatever we want on Earth. Actually, this isn't true. There are many things we cannot choose because we are unaware of them, or we don't have the talents needed to acquire them, or we are born into the wrong caste. We only really can choose between those things that are placed within our reach.
Ultimately, life isn't about choosing anything, but rather saying "yes" or "no" to our own mission. Whatever else we do is almost irrelevant. The only good we can ever do is our own work, that work which we agreed to while we were planning this life. There is no other work. There is no other good. Everything else is evil because it leads us away from our mission.
Resistance to your mission
Life is hard. When we get to Earth, we find it difficult to actually fulfill our promise to God. The mission we have to perform is difficult, and we are lazy. We want to make all sorts of excuses, trying to excuse ourselves from doing our work. We resist the guidance of the Holy Spirit, our conscience, which is constantly nagging at us to begin. We develop all sorts of reasons why we cannot do what we are called to do.
We run from our calling, like Jonah, because it's hard. Though we have been given the gifts we need, we are amazed by what it takes. It's a big mountain to overcome. We will need to work closely with the Lord in order to get it done. We will also need the help of others, but nobody can do our work for us, it is unique to us, and the others have their own work to do.
We find all sorts of distractions and reasons why we cannot do the work we were given. We blame others, such as our parents for not giving us all the tools we need. We blame our spouse for not helping us. We blame those who injure us in any way. It's their fault we cannot do our work.
One common distraction is church. We are so busy "doing good," by keeping all the commandments and doing all the work in church that we don't have time to fulfill our real mission. There is nothing more insidious than doing good in order to avoid our real work. The "good" we do is evil, in this case. We cannot really do good unless we are doing exactly what we are commanded by God to do, personally fulfilling the work He gives to us (which may include serving in His church).
Satan's mission
We are often told that the devil only wants us to do evil, to kill and hate, rob and maim. In reality, Satan has followers that send all sorts of distractions to keep us from doing the work God has given us to do. The purpose of the devil is to destroy the work of God. If he can prevent us from performing our mission, then he can frustrate the plan, and the work of God would be destroyed. He does this by distracting us in so many ways away from our personal mission:
- The lusts of the flesh
- Other people
- Doing good
- Laziness
- Work, or the cares of the world
- Drugs and alcohol
- Sickness or pain
We find we have desires of the flesh, needs that must be filled. Jesus explained to His disciples, "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." (Mark 4:19) We can let all our wants and needs of the flesh distract us from our mission, and most do.
Other people distract us constantly. We may have friends, family, or co-workers who take our time and prevent us from doing our work. We can become so inwardly focused on every ache and pain that we spend every effort to work on our physical health in order to avoid having to do our mission in life. Fear can paralyze us to prevent us from our work. Fear is evil. The devil always works through fear.
Thus, evil is not only the destructive things we do to others, but even more so it's everything that prevents us from doing our work. This is the work of Satan, and he is very good at fulfilling all he was chosen to do.
Christ's mission
The word "Christ" refers to "Messiah," meaning, "the anointed One." There is One who had a specific mission to be the Son of God, and to take upon Himself our sins, weaknesses, and transgressions. This is a specific mission that only He could do, it had to be an "infinite atonement" because nobody else had the power, or was qualified to do it. Others may have been able to teach the Gospel. Others may have been able to perform miracles. Others may have been able to organize a church. But only He could perform the great Atonement for all mankind. Only He could suffer for the sins of others. Nobody else had that ability. Because He was the Son of God, He was uniquely given the gifts and talents needed to do the work He was called to do.
When He had finished his work, as He hung on the cross, "he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost." (John 19:30) What was finished? His work on the Earth. When he then came to the Nephites three days later he said, "And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning." (3 Nephi 11:11) Now, in the past tense, He tells them that He has done His work. He has finished His mission. He did all He said He would do.
Though He was hated, mocked, and rejected by the establishment of the Jews and Romans, yet He went ahead and did what He was commanded to do -- every jot and every tittle. He left nothing undone, but drank the bitter cup to the dregs, fulfilling all that He was given before the foundation of the world.
Fulfilling our mission
We don't need to do what Christ did, suffering for the sins of the world, but rather follow Him in performing the work we were given, and agreed to before the world was created. If we follow Satan, then we will waste our time here on Earth, no matter what we're doing. If we follow Christ, we will be guided to do what we came here to do. We all have our contribution to humanity. We all have our art to give. We have in our hearts and minds something to raise the level of mankind in some large or small way. It's hard. It's always hard because though we have a gift or talent to provide a specific service, we cannot do it alone. We must have help.
Help comes to us in many ways, through other people, angels, or in the direct intervention of God. We cannot fail. Once we take on our mission, focus on it, and put all of our energy towards it, there is no way to stop us. All of Earth and hell could combine against us, but could not deter us from accomplishing what we came to do.
Heeding the call
We start out with the calling. Once we are called, we need to repent of all our sins, or all of the things that distract us from our calling, turning to God, putting our faith in Him that, though it is hard, we will be able to finish the work with His help. We then make a commitment, to put our whole being, body and soul, to sacrifice all our time and talents to doing the work. At this point we are given help from above. The Holy Spirit of God comes to us to guide us on our path.
We can go directly to our mission, or we can take the long way. The Children of Israel had the option of going directly into the Promised Land from Egypt, but they were scared so they had to wander in the desert for 40 years first. Likewise, we can be led directly to our mission, and find joy in serving God and our fellow-men, or we can wander around for years, hoping that we won't have to do it.
When we repent and accept our calling we are no longer children, tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine. We are now on the Lord's errand. The Holy Ghost tells us what to do to accomplish every part of our mission. We no longer have needs in the flesh, for He will provide for our needs. We let go of the things of the world, money, food, clothing, homes, lands, and even people -- mother, father, children and spouse. All we need is given to us. Every tool we need will be provided. Like a surgeon in the operating room, the only one who can perform that operation, has others standing beside him, giving him exactly what he needs in order for him to finish the surgery, the Lord provides all we need for us to complete our work.
Failure
We cannot fail. There is no way we can not do the work we are given if we will just start. The only way to fail is to run away, like Jonah. We will be brought back. We will be put in positions that make us face our fears and choose to do our work. Nevertheless, we can always opt out and run away. We can refuse to do it -- this is the only failure.
Faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ, gives us the assurance that we cannot fail. We know that we don't have the power to do what we are called to do, but with His help we can actually accomplish it. Our job requires that we put our trust in Him, listen to Him, follow the guidance of the Holy Ghost, and take the step into the Jordan River before the water will part and let us through. It will always seem like failure is imminent, but each time help will come to keep us on track. There is no way to fail, if we try.
In fact, we don't really even have to try because, like Jonah, if we run the other way, we will be stopped. We will then shake a fist at God and ask, "WHY?" when bad things happen to us. Until we repent and do the work we came to do, the Heavens will combine against us, but we won't die, we'll linger in purgatory, wander in the desert, or otherwise feel like our life is a waste. The mission will be before us until the end of our lives. If we die without fulfilling our work, judgment will come upon us.
Final Judgment
We think we will be judged for our sins of omission or commission, the candy we stole from the store, or people we hurt, but really we are judged for not doing what we agreed to do, our work. That's why good and evil cannot be defined by an action. If our work requires that we kill people, the commandment, "Thou shalt not kill" is irrelevant. If we are commanded to steal, plunder, hurt, or otherwise commit "crimes" it is counted as good if it is the work we need to do. Only the specific, individual commandments given by God to each of us independently are important. If we are told to kill, and we don't do it, that is a sin.
On the other hand, all the "good" things we do that keep us from our work is evil. If Mother Theresa was not called to help the orphans in India (which I believe she was) then all her work with them would be counted as evil to her. Nothing excuses us from performing our real work.
The reason we have scriptures and standards and "ten commandments" is to form a basis for learning. Every commandment in the scriptures is a guideline for the children to learn on. They are for the unschooled. Once we receive our calling we no longer need the general guidelines because we're guided by God through every step of our mission. To a great poet, the rules of grammar don't apply. To a great surgeon the rules of cutting bodies don't apply. To one who is called by God, none of the commandments necessarily apply. When a person accepts his calling, and commits to it, the guidance of the Holy Ghost is all that is needed. To him, the commandments are whatever the Spirit tells him to do. Period. Good and evil are defined only by our personal communications with God.
Accepting our fate
When I was eight years old I decided that nobody at home loved me, and I was going to run away. I made a peanut butter sandwich, put it in a lunch bag, and started walking without telling anyone. I got to the end of the street and realized that I had never been this far from home on my own. I didn't know where to go. I felt lost. It wasn't familiar to me. So, I turned around and went home, never even eating the sandwich. Though we may run away, and resist our calling, we cannot go far. The Lord is always right there, and will bring us back, even if it takes being swallowed by a whale!
We can do it. We must do it. We go to motivational seminars telling us that we can do it, but we don't know what "it" is. "It" is our work, our mission, our duty, our art, and our gift to mankind. Yes, we can do it, but we cannot do it alone. We must start by being called. When you are called, accept the calling.
The motivation we need is to give in to the guidance of the Lord. We need to be motivated to listen to the Spirit and do as we're told, putting our trust in God. M. Scott Peck, MD, in his book, The Road Less Traveled, begins by saying that life is difficult. He says that when we receive our calling, it isn't usually an "Oh Boy!" experience, rather it's usually an "Oh CRAP!" experience. Our mission will always be hard. There is always fear involved. We must face the fears and move ahead in faith, going through the fear with courage. In fact, the fear itself is a good indicator that it is our work. Those things we procrastinate are the most important things we do.
Peace, Joy, and fulfillment
Mark Twain said, "The two most important days in a man's life are the day he is born, and the day he finds out why." Knowing why we exist is the path to happiness. If we never know why, we cannot fulfill our purpose, and will find no joy in life. Those who accept their calling right away, and pursue it with vigor, have happy, easy lives. They find fulfillment. They aren't continually searching for their right place, pointing fingers at others, blaming and creating conflict. They have the assurance they're in the right place at all times. They have self-esteem. They connect with others. They have peace. Jesus said,
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27)
Knowing that we are on the errand of the Lord, and that He will guide us and give us help, strength, and gifts that we need to do our work is empowering. Knowing we cannot fail relieves all stress. When we are doing our work, fulfilling our mission, or living our dreams, then, and only then, will we have peace, rest, and fulfillment. When we fill the measure of our own creation, we find joy therein.
Thursday, June 16, 2016
Life is Choice
The Lord said unto Enoch:
There must be a choice
Without choice there is no life. Agency, or the ability to choose is the essence of life. If there are no options, then there is no choice, and everything is the same, and nothing exists. Again, Lehi explains:
All that is power, all that is movement, all that is change, indeed, all that makes life possible is found in contrast, or opposition.
Opposition of good and evil
Ultimately, our choice is between good and evil.
Life is suffering
The Buddha reminds us that "Life is suffering." He is saying that part of the contrast that makes life possible is suffering. We must have joy, happiness, peace, and love -- but on the other hand, we must also have pain, discomfort, and misery. Without the contrast, there is no life. We cannot know joy without misery.
My business is to try to help people avoid the suffering of illness. However, the way I was taught in medical school is evil. We were told that we could relieve suffering and allow people to continue their bad habits. This is not avoiding suffering, it is creating more suffering in the future. The amount of disability, pain, and death from this program is tremendous!
Now, I have an entirely different practice -- I make people suffer now, so they won't have to suffer later. By choosing to suffer now, they are doing good. They will be hungry. Their muscles will hurt. They will give up their favorite foods and activities now so that they can know joy in the future. People finish our program and begin, sometimes for the first time, to enjoy life. The contrast is amazing!
This opposition is inescapable; we must have both ends of the spectrum in order to live. Good is the choice to go into pain so that we can receive joy, happiness, and love. Evil is the choice to have our cake now and try to avoid future suffering that will inevitably result.
To act, or to be acted upon
Choice is the ability to act, and not to be acted upon. There is a continuum, or scale upon which all good and evil is based. The scale is choice. The higher on the scale, the more freedom we have. There is a bottom where there is no choice at all, we are chained, ignorant, and lost completely. There is also a top where we have all things before us, all knowledge, and infinite choices with the freedom to choose anything.
If we choose evil, we are choosing bondage. We will be ignorant, or unable to choose. We relinquish choice if we try to avoid life, including suffering, and receive death. Death is not to cease to exist, but rather to remove the freedom to choose life. If a mother chooses to abort a baby she is carrying, she no longer has a baby, choices end, life ends. If, on the other hand, she chooses to suffer the pain of childbirth, and problems of raising her child, life goes on with an infinite number of choices.
If we choose to suffer, we are choosing to act against our wants, needs, and desires. We are going against our natural tendency of laziness. We are not being carried downstream, but swimming upstream. It is active, requiring effort on our part -- constant effort. This effort yields rewards that bring pleasure to us. If, on the other hand, we choose not to act, we are lazy and choose to float downstream, we will end up in the sea of misery. We then have lost all choice. We are acted upon. We are able to either choose our misery, or have it forced upon us.
Evil removes choice
There are two ways evil removes choice:
1. Not offering options
2. Binding, blocking, decreasing power to choose
This is a result of making short-term choices in a selfish manner. When I choose what I like, or what I want, then pain will be the result. We find addictions to all sorts of desires because we choose them, and lose the ability to not choose them. We suffer pain, and we lose options, or the power to choose. For example, we like to rest, and not work hard so we don't exercise. Over time, we then lose the ability to work or use our muscles. Our freedom is lost, and we only have misery. Or, if we don't take care of our brains, we get dementia or memory loss, being unable to make choices. Evil is being on the wrong side of contrast -- choosing comfort now so we will have misery forced upon us later.
Good increases choice
There are two ways that good gives more choice:
1. Giving more options
2. Increasing power, or control
This is a result of choosing to put off what we desire now so that we can achieve a higher goal. The ability to sacrifice gives us power over ourselves. We learn self-control. Also, we have more knowledge as we suffer through our pain, loss, and discomfort. We learn the lessons of life. We are enabled to feel joy and happiness because we know the contrast of sorrow and misery. We can choose our misery, or it will choose us. We must go through it, either way. It is part of life. Good is being on the right side of contrast, choosing suffering now so we can experience joy forever.
The ways we choose to suffer are important. Whipping ourselves, cutting, or causing illness doesn't bring the greatest benefit. It does help with self-control, but isn't part of a program that brings permanent joy. This comes by:
1. Submission to the will of God
2. Making Eternal choices
3. Allowing suffering, pain, discomfort
4. Learning self-control
Submission means giving up our own will, or the things that we want, and doing God's will instead. We are generally filled with desires for wealth, ease, comfort and pleasure of all kinds. We have a broken heart when we give up all the desires of our heart and submit to all the will of the Lord. His will brings the exact suffering we need in order to learn peace, love and joy.
When we make short-term choices, the consequences are generally suffering of some kind. We may want that chocolate bar now, but we will pay for it later. Eternal choices are always difficult. We will suffer to have children and raise them. It is hard to be married forever. Keeping our body fit, and choosing to eat only things that build and nourish the body is eternal. All of the things that are good are forever, increasing our choices.
While we don't necessarily create our own suffering, we do allow it as the will of God. Life will bring its own suffering, and we need to accept it, and allow it, rather than fight against it. Perish the thought that we shouldn't suffer. "Life is suffering." We need to suffer in order to live and have life. As we fast, for example, we allow the body to feel hungry. As we exercise, we allow the body to feel fatigue, or pain.
Self-mastery is the process of unifying the body and spirit. Giving our spirit executive power over the body requires huge effort. The more we have indulged the whims of the body, the more power the body has to control. Giving the spirit control means allowing the body to suffer deprivation of desires. This is usually a lifetime effort. It doesn't happen in a day, or a year. Once the spirit has full control, we are unified, and we have repented of all our sins.
Choice is life
Without choice there is no life. There must be contrast. There must be a choice. There must be a devil in contrast to God. We must choose sides. That is life; indeed, it is our very purpose. If we choose life we go on to increase in our power to make more choices. If we choose death, we are given boundaries, and we lose our ability to choose.
Cecile B. DeMille made the following observation.
"Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge, in the day I created them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency;" (Moses 7:32)God made us and gave us knowledge (how this works is a whole other topic), and in the Garden of Eden (the beginning, or creation of life) He gave us a choice. We were able to choose between good and evil. The trees of the Garden represent the choices we were able to make. They were limited, according to our knowledge. Since we were innocent, they were simple and straightforward, "Do this, and don't do that." The choice was as simple as an innocent two-year-old being told not to eat the cookies in the cookie jar. However, that simple choice made all the difference in the world! It is choice that brings life, as Lehi explained to his son, Jacob.
"And if ye shall say there is no law, ye shall also say there is no sin. If ye shall say there is no sin, ye shall also say there is no righteousness. And if there be no righteousness there be no happiness. And if there be no righteousness nor happiness there be no punishment nor misery. And if these things are not there is no God. And if there is no God we are not, neither the earth; for there could have been no creation of things, neither to act nor to be acted upon; wherefore, all things must have vanished away." (2 Nephi 2:13)Freedom is the ability to choose. Without freedom there is no difference. It is both the existence of agency, or freedom, and the presence of a choice that makes life possible.
There must be a choice
Without choice there is no life. Agency, or the ability to choose is the essence of life. If there are no options, then there is no choice, and everything is the same, and nothing exists. Again, Lehi explains:
"For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my first-born in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility." (2 Nephi 2:11)It is contrast that makes everything exist. Without opposition, nothing exists. All power is found in opposition. All life is found in opposition. All of existence is contrast.
- Electric power is found in the contrast between poles.
- Magnetic power is found in the contrast between charges.
- Light, or vision, is the contrast of hue, gradient, and colors.
- Muscle movement depends on the opposition between calcium and magnesium ions in the cell.
- Nerve conduction is found in the contrast between intracellular and extracellular ion concentrations of sodium and potassium.
- The power to hear is found in the contrast of sound waves.
All that is power, all that is movement, all that is change, indeed, all that makes life possible is found in contrast, or opposition.
Opposition of good and evil
Ultimately, our choice is between good and evil.
"men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil;" (2 Nephi 2:27)This freedom is based on the existence of a choice, and the ability to act for ourselves, being free agents. If we are free to choose, there must be a choice to make. Moreover, this choice must be between equals.
"the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other." (2 Nephi 2:16)In order to for choice to exist, there must be a reason to choose, or we must be enticed to choose one or the other. If I am given the choice of sitting in a prison cell or having all the power and money I want, that's not a choice. If I have a choice between a penny and a million dollars, that's not a choice. Each must have a draw of some type that makes them equal. Each must be enticing in some way.
Life is suffering
The Buddha reminds us that "Life is suffering." He is saying that part of the contrast that makes life possible is suffering. We must have joy, happiness, peace, and love -- but on the other hand, we must also have pain, discomfort, and misery. Without the contrast, there is no life. We cannot know joy without misery.
"if Adam had not transgressed he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden. And all things which were created must have remained in the same state in which they were after they were created; and they must have remained forever, and had no end. And they would have had no children; wherefore they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no sin." (2 Nephi 2:22-23)People think that the choice between good and evil is simple, and everyone knows that evil is bad, and nobody would choose it. This is not the case, in reality. The choice we make, on one level, is to suffer. If we choose to suffer, then we are choosing good. If we choose to avoid, or put off suffering, pain, or discomfort, then we are choosing evil. We must suffer. Good is choosing our suffering, evil is trying to avoid suffering, and having it forced upon us.
My business is to try to help people avoid the suffering of illness. However, the way I was taught in medical school is evil. We were told that we could relieve suffering and allow people to continue their bad habits. This is not avoiding suffering, it is creating more suffering in the future. The amount of disability, pain, and death from this program is tremendous!
Now, I have an entirely different practice -- I make people suffer now, so they won't have to suffer later. By choosing to suffer now, they are doing good. They will be hungry. Their muscles will hurt. They will give up their favorite foods and activities now so that they can know joy in the future. People finish our program and begin, sometimes for the first time, to enjoy life. The contrast is amazing!
This opposition is inescapable; we must have both ends of the spectrum in order to live. Good is the choice to go into pain so that we can receive joy, happiness, and love. Evil is the choice to have our cake now and try to avoid future suffering that will inevitably result.
To act, or to be acted upon
Choice is the ability to act, and not to be acted upon. There is a continuum, or scale upon which all good and evil is based. The scale is choice. The higher on the scale, the more freedom we have. There is a bottom where there is no choice at all, we are chained, ignorant, and lost completely. There is also a top where we have all things before us, all knowledge, and infinite choices with the freedom to choose anything.
If we choose evil, we are choosing bondage. We will be ignorant, or unable to choose. We relinquish choice if we try to avoid life, including suffering, and receive death. Death is not to cease to exist, but rather to remove the freedom to choose life. If a mother chooses to abort a baby she is carrying, she no longer has a baby, choices end, life ends. If, on the other hand, she chooses to suffer the pain of childbirth, and problems of raising her child, life goes on with an infinite number of choices.
If we choose to suffer, we are choosing to act against our wants, needs, and desires. We are going against our natural tendency of laziness. We are not being carried downstream, but swimming upstream. It is active, requiring effort on our part -- constant effort. This effort yields rewards that bring pleasure to us. If, on the other hand, we choose not to act, we are lazy and choose to float downstream, we will end up in the sea of misery. We then have lost all choice. We are acted upon. We are able to either choose our misery, or have it forced upon us.
Evil removes choice
There are two ways evil removes choice:
1. Not offering options
2. Binding, blocking, decreasing power to choose
This is a result of making short-term choices in a selfish manner. When I choose what I like, or what I want, then pain will be the result. We find addictions to all sorts of desires because we choose them, and lose the ability to not choose them. We suffer pain, and we lose options, or the power to choose. For example, we like to rest, and not work hard so we don't exercise. Over time, we then lose the ability to work or use our muscles. Our freedom is lost, and we only have misery. Or, if we don't take care of our brains, we get dementia or memory loss, being unable to make choices. Evil is being on the wrong side of contrast -- choosing comfort now so we will have misery forced upon us later.
Good increases choice
There are two ways that good gives more choice:
1. Giving more options
2. Increasing power, or control
This is a result of choosing to put off what we desire now so that we can achieve a higher goal. The ability to sacrifice gives us power over ourselves. We learn self-control. Also, we have more knowledge as we suffer through our pain, loss, and discomfort. We learn the lessons of life. We are enabled to feel joy and happiness because we know the contrast of sorrow and misery. We can choose our misery, or it will choose us. We must go through it, either way. It is part of life. Good is being on the right side of contrast, choosing suffering now so we can experience joy forever.
The ways we choose to suffer are important. Whipping ourselves, cutting, or causing illness doesn't bring the greatest benefit. It does help with self-control, but isn't part of a program that brings permanent joy. This comes by:
1. Submission to the will of God
2. Making Eternal choices
3. Allowing suffering, pain, discomfort
4. Learning self-control
Submission means giving up our own will, or the things that we want, and doing God's will instead. We are generally filled with desires for wealth, ease, comfort and pleasure of all kinds. We have a broken heart when we give up all the desires of our heart and submit to all the will of the Lord. His will brings the exact suffering we need in order to learn peace, love and joy.
When we make short-term choices, the consequences are generally suffering of some kind. We may want that chocolate bar now, but we will pay for it later. Eternal choices are always difficult. We will suffer to have children and raise them. It is hard to be married forever. Keeping our body fit, and choosing to eat only things that build and nourish the body is eternal. All of the things that are good are forever, increasing our choices.
While we don't necessarily create our own suffering, we do allow it as the will of God. Life will bring its own suffering, and we need to accept it, and allow it, rather than fight against it. Perish the thought that we shouldn't suffer. "Life is suffering." We need to suffer in order to live and have life. As we fast, for example, we allow the body to feel hungry. As we exercise, we allow the body to feel fatigue, or pain.
Self-mastery is the process of unifying the body and spirit. Giving our spirit executive power over the body requires huge effort. The more we have indulged the whims of the body, the more power the body has to control. Giving the spirit control means allowing the body to suffer deprivation of desires. This is usually a lifetime effort. It doesn't happen in a day, or a year. Once the spirit has full control, we are unified, and we have repented of all our sins.
Choice is life
Without choice there is no life. There must be contrast. There must be a choice. There must be a devil in contrast to God. We must choose sides. That is life; indeed, it is our very purpose. If we choose life we go on to increase in our power to make more choices. If we choose death, we are given boundaries, and we lose our ability to choose.
Cecile B. DeMille made the following observation.
"We cannot break the Ten Commandments. We can only break ourselves against them—or else, by keeping them, rise through them to the fullness of freedom under God. God means us to be free. With divine daring, he gave us the power of choice." (Commencement Address, Brigham Young University, May 31, 1957) (CR, Oct. 1959, 127)
Sunday, June 5, 2016
Subjecting the Son to the Father
In the most amazing of all speeches, Abinadi explains the relationship of Christ to God, His Father, and how Christ is both the Father and the Son. He explains how Christ becomes our father when we are subject to His will. It is a most difficult concept, and I feel like most just skip over the Father-Son doctrine in favor of the story of Abinadi.
I'm going to take the first eleven verses of Mosiah chapter 15 and give an interpretation in the context of God the Father and God the Son, and then re-interpret them in terms of us in the world. I want to show how we could benefit in our own lives from knowing the relationship between the God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.
The Father and Son within
Now, lets look at how the relationship between God the Father and God the Son can apply to us.
Within each of our bodies is a spirit that is subject to the will of God. Our spirits made covenants with God before we came to Earth, that we would be obedient to our Lord, and sacrifice all things, even our very lives. Lets call the spirit the father, because it is subject to God, as Abinadi described.
However, when we actually receive a body, we allow the body to control our actions. The body has feelings, and needs. If we don't eat, we are hungry, if we don't eat, we are thirsty. We want to avoid all forms of pain, and seek only pleasurable things. Lets call the body the son, because it is the flesh, as Abinadi described.
Looking again at the speech by Abinadi in this light, we could see how we would do the works of Jesus, and become His children:
Love of Father
The metaphor is beautiful. If we look at any father-son relationship we find love at the core and foundation. Fathers love their sons. The son is the heir to the father. The father nourishes the son, provides for the son, and teaches the son to grow up and become a man. A father wants the best for his son, but doesn't allow the son to wander aimlessly. A loving father gives strict guidelines and rules, reproving his son when he strays from them, but lovingly bringing him back in line.
If we look inside ourselves and understand that we have two parts that are separate and distinct. The flesh is like a child with wants and needs that must be addressed, while the spirit is like an adult that provides and teaches. In order to become one, the child must be subject to, obedient to, and learn from the father.
Many people, however, allow the child to run their being. They are as wild horses, roaming free with no bridal to tame them. They are as two-year-old children just wanting, needing without regard to consequences. It's like the inmates are running the asylum. These indulge every whim of the body, being more and more destructive to themselves and those around them. They have addictions because they cannot control themselves, there is no bridal, nobody is in charge. The spirit has completely given up controlling the body. They have absentee fathers, creating chaos.
When the father is in charge of the son, or the spirit is in charge of the body, the picture is just the opposite. Everything changes. There is control. There is peace. There is happiness. There is civility. There is unity and love.
A parent loves a young child by providing for needs instead of wants, and giving guidance. When a child asks for ice cream for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, the parent wisely listens, kisses him, and gives him broccoli. Then, after a strenuous day of labor, they go get some ice cream. A loving parent allows a child to roam, but when the child gets too close to the street, or any danger, the parent physically picks him up and moves him to safety. The parent lovingly listens to all the idle chatter, the dreams and crazy ideas of the child, just allowing the child to be himself. A loving parent also teaches the child to be clean, healthy, and independent. Love is found in the parent making sacrifices for a child -- giving time and resources, setting guidelines, and not paying too much attention to temper, screaming, crying for wants.
Our spirit, or father, can do the same for our body, or son. We can allow the body to be, allowing hunger, thirst, fatigue, or pain, at times, but wisely seeking relief when it's too much. The spirit can look lovingly at the body as a two-year-old child that will have temper tantrums for wanting things, and just smile, waiting for it to go away. Hunger lasts only a few minutes, we can wait to eat. Desires for tasty treats, water, sex, relaxation, and other pleasures can be postponed, or put in proper order. The "father" can tell the "son" when it is time to eat, what to eat, or when certain pleasures are appropriate. Thus, we subject the son to the father, as Jesus was subject to God. "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;" (Hebrews 5:8)
Becoming One
The unity created by doing this is powerful. We will be able to become adults in the full sense of the word, providing for others according to our gifts, helping many people. Those who do good, however, are often not appreciated. The prophets may get stoned, verbally and physically, in spite of the good they do, or because of it. Again, Christ is the example:
And after all this, after working many mighty miracles among the children of men, he shall be led, yea, even as Isaiah said, as a sheep before the shearer is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. Yea, even so he shall be led, crucified, and slain, the flesh becoming subject even unto death, the will of the Son being swallowed up in the will of the Father.
Ultimately, the spirit will ask the body to die so that they may become one. It may be a painful death. The body must be willing to die without complaint or objection because it is totally submissive to the spirit.
The process of subjecting our body to our spirit is exactly the same as the story of Christ and His Father, as well as our spirit to Christ. Power is found in unity. Each with separate wills must come together in order to receive power. Jesus didn't want to suffer for all of mankind, but was willing because His body was subject to his spirit, or the Son was obedient to the Father. The Father asked Jesus to do it, and He said, "not my will, but thine, be done." (Luke 22:42) In doing so, He allows all of us to become one with Him, and consequentially, one with God.
As Jesus Christ is completely obedient to God the Father, our spirits must be subject to Christ, and our bodies subject to our spirits. This is the pattern of unity. It is how we become one with the Father, becoming the children of God. "And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together." (Romans 8:17) That we all may become the children of God is my prayer in the holy name of Jesus Christ.
I'm going to take the first eleven verses of Mosiah chapter 15 and give an interpretation in the context of God the Father and God the Son, and then re-interpret them in terms of us in the world. I want to show how we could benefit in our own lives from knowing the relationship between the God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.
And now Abinadi said unto them: I would that ye should understand that God himself shall come down among the children of men, and shall redeem his people."God Himself" refers to that God, Jehovah, Yahweh, the great I Am, who created all things would condescend to walk in the flesh among the children He created all things in order to get us out of our lost and fallen state and move on to Eternal Life.
And because he dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God,Even though He is the Creator, He is the Son of God because He was conceived by God, the Only Begotten son of God, in the flesh.
...and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father,Jesus relinquished the desires of the flesh to do only God's will, as Jesus said, "The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise." (John 5:19)
...being the Father and the Son—The Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and Son—And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth.The unity of God is found in the subjection of the Son to the Father. Jesus was the only One conceived by the power of God, and because He is completely subject to the Father, He becomes the Father, they are One God, who together created Heaven and Earth.
And thus the flesh becoming subject to the Spirit, or the Son to the Father, being one God,As a man, Jesus subjected His body to His Spirit, Jehovah, doing only the will of the Father, making them one God.
...suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to the temptation, but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people. And after all this, after working many mighty miracles among the children of men, he shall be led, yea, even as Isaiah said, as a sheep before the shearer is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. Yea, even so he shall be led, crucified, and slain, the flesh becoming subject even unto death, the will of the Son being swallowed up in the will of the Father. And thus God breaketh the bands of death, having gained the victory over death; giving the Son power to make intercession for the children of men—Having ascended into heaven, having the bowels of mercy; being filled with compassion towards the children of men; standing betwixt them and justice; having broken the bands of death, taken upon himself their iniquity and their transgressions, having redeemed them, and satisfied the demands of justice.These are the works of Jesus, making Him the Christ, the Anointed One. These are the ways that He subjected His flesh to His Spirit, or subjected Himself to God. He allowed all forms of suffering in the flesh, temptation, mocking, beating, and rejection, even after He had performed many miracles. He didn't defend Himself. He suffered injustice even to death -- so completely was His flesh sacrificed to the will of God. It was the will of the Father that He suffer, bleed, and die for all mankind so He could save us from death and hell. He subjected Himself to men because He was wholly subject to God. It was all God's will.
And now I say unto you, who shall declare his generation? Behold, I say unto you, that when his soul has been made an offering for sin he shall see his seed. And now what say ye? And who shall be his seed? Behold I say unto you, that whosoever has heard the words of the prophets, yea, all the holy prophets who have prophesied concerning the coming of the Lord—I say unto you, that all those who have hearkened unto their words, and believed that the Lord would redeem his people, and have looked forward to that day for a remission of their sins, I say unto you, that these are his seed, or they are the heirs of the kingdom of God.Those who believe in the holy prophets and look forward to Christ for a remission of sins become His children, and He is their Father. They inherit what He has because they are His children. How do they become His children? The same way He became the Son of God, by subjecting themselves completely to His will, and by doing the same thing He did.
Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. (John 4:34)
For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. (John 6:38)If we want to be children of Christ, we must do the same thing He did. This is a very important concept of the father-son relationship. The Pharisees said Abraham was their father, and Jesus told them, "If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham." (John 8:39) Abraham completely submitted his will to Jehovah, even to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, on an altar.
The Father and Son within
Now, lets look at how the relationship between God the Father and God the Son can apply to us.
Within each of our bodies is a spirit that is subject to the will of God. Our spirits made covenants with God before we came to Earth, that we would be obedient to our Lord, and sacrifice all things, even our very lives. Lets call the spirit the father, because it is subject to God, as Abinadi described.
However, when we actually receive a body, we allow the body to control our actions. The body has feelings, and needs. If we don't eat, we are hungry, if we don't eat, we are thirsty. We want to avoid all forms of pain, and seek only pleasurable things. Lets call the body the son, because it is the flesh, as Abinadi described.
Looking again at the speech by Abinadi in this light, we could see how we would do the works of Jesus, and become His children:
And because he dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son—We dwell in the flesh, the body being the son and the spirit being the father. When we subject our flesh to our spirit we have both.
And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth.When the spirit is in control, the body follows, there is unity within us. The progression of unity is ultimately the same, and follows an Eternal pattern:
God the Father --> Christ --> our spirit --> our flesh
Each is progressively subject to the Lord above him, bringing unity within ourselves, and at the same time unity with Christ, who is one with the Father. We are all One. Now we can discuss how we actually achieve this unity.And thus the flesh becoming subject to the Spirit, or the Son to the Father, being one God, suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to the temptation,When we subject our flesh, or son, to our spirit, or father, we become one with God. The way we do this is by not giving in to temptation. The flesh wants things that are destructive. We want certain foods because of taste; we want comforts and pleasures; the flesh is lazy and wants to avoid work and effort. All of these temptations are part of the flesh, or the son. When the spirit is in control we will not give in to needs, desires, addictions, or wants of the flesh, rather we will choose to nourish the flesh and the spirit. We will not give in to the lusts of the flesh, or temptation. Also, we will allow all forms of discomfort of the body, including pain, hunger, thirst, fatigue, and so forth. This is not to say that we should be completely Spartan or Stoic, beating the flesh into submission, but rather simply having the father (spirit) take control of the son (body).
but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people.The word "suffereth" is "to allow." We will also allow others to mistreat us. We will allow rejection of all kinds, and not seek the approval of our fellow-men, even our own families.
Love of Father
The metaphor is beautiful. If we look at any father-son relationship we find love at the core and foundation. Fathers love their sons. The son is the heir to the father. The father nourishes the son, provides for the son, and teaches the son to grow up and become a man. A father wants the best for his son, but doesn't allow the son to wander aimlessly. A loving father gives strict guidelines and rules, reproving his son when he strays from them, but lovingly bringing him back in line.
If we look inside ourselves and understand that we have two parts that are separate and distinct. The flesh is like a child with wants and needs that must be addressed, while the spirit is like an adult that provides and teaches. In order to become one, the child must be subject to, obedient to, and learn from the father.
Many people, however, allow the child to run their being. They are as wild horses, roaming free with no bridal to tame them. They are as two-year-old children just wanting, needing without regard to consequences. It's like the inmates are running the asylum. These indulge every whim of the body, being more and more destructive to themselves and those around them. They have addictions because they cannot control themselves, there is no bridal, nobody is in charge. The spirit has completely given up controlling the body. They have absentee fathers, creating chaos.
When the father is in charge of the son, or the spirit is in charge of the body, the picture is just the opposite. Everything changes. There is control. There is peace. There is happiness. There is civility. There is unity and love.
A parent loves a young child by providing for needs instead of wants, and giving guidance. When a child asks for ice cream for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, the parent wisely listens, kisses him, and gives him broccoli. Then, after a strenuous day of labor, they go get some ice cream. A loving parent allows a child to roam, but when the child gets too close to the street, or any danger, the parent physically picks him up and moves him to safety. The parent lovingly listens to all the idle chatter, the dreams and crazy ideas of the child, just allowing the child to be himself. A loving parent also teaches the child to be clean, healthy, and independent. Love is found in the parent making sacrifices for a child -- giving time and resources, setting guidelines, and not paying too much attention to temper, screaming, crying for wants.
Our spirit, or father, can do the same for our body, or son. We can allow the body to be, allowing hunger, thirst, fatigue, or pain, at times, but wisely seeking relief when it's too much. The spirit can look lovingly at the body as a two-year-old child that will have temper tantrums for wanting things, and just smile, waiting for it to go away. Hunger lasts only a few minutes, we can wait to eat. Desires for tasty treats, water, sex, relaxation, and other pleasures can be postponed, or put in proper order. The "father" can tell the "son" when it is time to eat, what to eat, or when certain pleasures are appropriate. Thus, we subject the son to the father, as Jesus was subject to God. "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;" (Hebrews 5:8)
Becoming One
The unity created by doing this is powerful. We will be able to become adults in the full sense of the word, providing for others according to our gifts, helping many people. Those who do good, however, are often not appreciated. The prophets may get stoned, verbally and physically, in spite of the good they do, or because of it. Again, Christ is the example:
And after all this, after working many mighty miracles among the children of men, he shall be led, yea, even as Isaiah said, as a sheep before the shearer is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. Yea, even so he shall be led, crucified, and slain, the flesh becoming subject even unto death, the will of the Son being swallowed up in the will of the Father.
Ultimately, the spirit will ask the body to die so that they may become one. It may be a painful death. The body must be willing to die without complaint or objection because it is totally submissive to the spirit.
The process of subjecting our body to our spirit is exactly the same as the story of Christ and His Father, as well as our spirit to Christ. Power is found in unity. Each with separate wills must come together in order to receive power. Jesus didn't want to suffer for all of mankind, but was willing because His body was subject to his spirit, or the Son was obedient to the Father. The Father asked Jesus to do it, and He said, "not my will, but thine, be done." (Luke 22:42) In doing so, He allows all of us to become one with Him, and consequentially, one with God.
As Jesus Christ is completely obedient to God the Father, our spirits must be subject to Christ, and our bodies subject to our spirits. This is the pattern of unity. It is how we become one with the Father, becoming the children of God. "And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together." (Romans 8:17) That we all may become the children of God is my prayer in the holy name of Jesus Christ.
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