Righteousness with Riches

Much is postulated about the evils of wealth. The love of money is a cankerous vice, but is there ever a righteous role for wealth? Jacob in The Book of Mormon suggests that there is. In addition to not placing your heart on riches (if you should be blessed to obtain them), their righteous roles include being free with them to others, and in relieving the afflictions of others.

 Jacob 2:17 Think of your brethren like unto yourselves, and be familiar with all and free with your substance, that they may be rich like unto you.

 19 And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good—to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted.

LESSON LEARNED: The possession (and coveting) of wealth can be cankerous to souls. But there are righteous uses of wealth that can bless both the giver and receiver.

FEEDBACK: WHAT ARE YOUR FEELINGS ABOUT WEALTH, AND THE RIGHTEOUS OPPORTUNITIES IT PROVIDES?

The Wasted Earth

There is a sentiment in the secular world today that the atmosphere of earth is going to heat up to an intolerable level, and that the earth is going to perish and waste away. There is even talk of colonizing the moon or Mars as a solution, though one has to wonder how such colonization could last without the support of our mother Earth. But there is a way that the Earth could have been wasted in its purpose, and that would be if Elijah had not returned with the keys of the temple sealing work. This sealing power is so important that the Lord compares it to the whole reason the earth was created and man was placed upon it: to perform the saving ordinances for those who have already passed away. And the sealing ordinances we performed here will transcend the bonds of death.

Helaman 10:7 Behold, I give unto you power, that whatsoever ye shall seal on earth shall be sealed in heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven; and thus shall ye have power among this people.

LESSON LEARNED: Sealing work through the Holy Priesthood allows for family relationships in this life to continue in the next.

FEEDBACK: WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE IMPORTANCE OF THE TEMPLE AND SEALING WORK?

Obedience Brings Sanctification

Sanctification is the act or process of acquiring sanctity, of being made or becoming holy. With an emphasis on the “becoming” aspect, Elder Loren C. Dunn of the Seventy described this purification process as follows: “Sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit by which he who is justified is enabled to keep the Commandments of God and grow in holiness. Sanctification comes from heaven and only comes as the Holy Ghost begins to work within a person. What creates the setting so that fire and the Holy Ghost might be sent from heaven to bless the lives of members? It comes by following the scriptures and the teachings of the leaders of the Church.” The prophet Jacob in The Book of Mormon reiterated this pathway of purposeful worship and of keeping our covenants that will lead to sanctification.

Jacob 4:5 Behold, they believed in Christ and worshiped the Father in his name, and also we worship the Father in his name. And for this intent we keep the law of Moses, it pointing our souls to him; and for this cause it is sanctified unto us for righteousness, even as it was accounted unto Abraham in the wilderness to be obedient unto the commands of God in offering up his son Isaac, which is a similitude of God and his Only Begotten Son.

LESSON LEARNED: Sanctification is the process of purifying ourselves through regular, purposeful worship, scripture study and honoring our covenants.

FEEDBACK: HAVE YOU FELT THE SANCTIFICATION OF THE HOLY GHOST IN YOUR SOUL BY TESTED THIS PROMISE IN YOUR LIFE?

Your Life's Fingerprint

What is the greatest measure of success in this life? Is it riches, fame, influence, or maybe knowledge? As one considers these successes, the ramifications of them fall into one of three catagories: successes that impact us in this life, those that preparation us for the next life, and those which will leave a fingerprint of influence for others to observe and follow. The latter of these is provocative, but the one that is often given the least thought. Life is fleeting, and we risk having our sphere of influence flicker out the moment we depart. But with regular minimal effort, our influence can ripple on for generations. By sharing family traditions through journal writing and performing temple and family history work, our purpose on earth takes on a whole new dimension. Journal writing in particular is neglected due to the regularity and time it requires. But once one comes to the realization that the audience will be future generations and not just to yourself, it takes on a whole new significance. The authors of The Book of Mormon understood this, and they faithfully performed this task in spite of the limitations and difficulties it imposed upon them.

 Jacob 4:1 Now behold, it came to pass that I, Jacob, having ministered much unto my people in word, (and I cannot write but a little of my words, because of the difficulty of engraving our words upon plates) and we know that the things which we write upon plates must remain;
 2 But whatsoever things we write upon anything save it be upon plates must perish and vanish away; but we can write a few words upon plates, which will give our children, and also our beloved brethren, a small degree of knowledge concerning us, or concerning their fathers—
 3 Now in this thing we do rejoice; and we labor diligently to engraven these words upon plates, hoping that our beloved brethren and our children will receive them with thankful hearts, and look upon them that they may learn with joy and not with sorrow, neither with contempt, concerning their first parents.

LESSON LEARNED: Our mark of influence in life can ripple on for generations. To do so, we must take the time to document it for future posterity.

FEEDBACK: WHAT STEPS ARE YOU TAKING NOW TO ENSURE YOUR LIFE’S FINGERPRINT OF INFLUENCE IS FELT BY FUTURE GENERATIONS?

Wealthy Tent Dweller

I recently spoke with a new High School graduate and asked him what he wanted to be someday. “Rich”, he responded. We discussed further the pathway of getting there, including education, hard work and, most importantly, putting the Lord first. He dismissively acknowledged these things, and then went on about “needing a lot of money right now” so he could start investing it. This from an eighteen-year old with no job, education, and no apparent interest in either. Wealth and its draw are interesting things. When one lacks wealth, most desire it fervently and the things it can purchase. For the older and wiser (please note the caveat wiser), once you have wealth, you are more inclined to not be enticed to squander it. Rather, with the help of the Spirit, you begin to desire the things of eternity once you have this temporal security – to the point that you could give it all up and leave it behind if necessary. Such was the precarious polarized experience of Lehi and his two oldest sons, Laman and Lemuel.

 1 Nephi 1:4 And it came to pass that he departed into the wilderness. And he left his house, and the land of his inheritance, and his gold, and his silver, and his precious things, and took nothing with him, save it were his family, and provisions, and tents, and departed into the wilderness.
 11 Now this he spake because of the stiffneckedness of Laman and Lemuel; for behold they did murmur in many things against their father, because he was a visionary man, and had led them out of the land of Jerusalem, to leave the land of their inheritance, and their gold, and their silver, and their precious things, to perish in the wilderness. 

 15 And my father dwelt in a tent.

LESSON LEARNED: The allure of money wanes once it is acquired, for the wise discover where true riches really lie. Lehi understood this, and his willingness to give it all up when asked to do so will secure even greater riches for him in the eternities.

FEEDBACK: WHAT ARE YOUR FEELINGS ON THE ACQUISITION OF WEALTH AND THE WILLINGNESS TO GIVE IT UP FOR THE LORD?

Apostasy's Slippery Slope

Apostasy is a subtle slippery slope, and can occur in anyone who chooses to follow the vain spiritual imaginations or speculations of his or her mind rather than true doctrine. In our modern days, this can easily happen with the plethora of false information flying around the internet. President Harold B. Lee taught: “If [someone] writes something or speaks something that goes beyond anything that you can find in the standard Church works, unless that one be the prophet, seer, and revelator—please note that one exception—you may immediately say, ‘Well, that is his own idea.’ And if he says something that contradicts what is found in the standard Church works, you may know by that same token that it is false” (The Teachings of Harold B. Lee, ed. Clyde J. Williams [1996], 540-41). The prophet Alma was confronted with this in the heretical worship practices of the Zoramites.

 Alma 31:12 Now, when they had come into the land, behold, to their astonishment they found that the Zoramites had built synagogues, and that they did gather themselves together on one day of the week, which day they did call the day of the Lord; and they did worship after a manner which Alma and his brethren had never beheld;
 13 For they had a place built up in the center of their synagogue, a place for standing, which was high above the head; and the top thereof would only admit one person.
 14 Therefore, whosoever desired to worship must go forth and stand upon the top thereof, and stretch forth his hands towards heaven, and cry with a loud voice, saying:
 15 Holy, holy God; we believe that thou art God, and we believe that thou art holy, and that thou wast a spirit, and that thou art a spirit, and that thou wilt be a spirit forever.
 19 Now it came to pass that after Alma and his brethren and his sons had heard these prayers, they were astonished beyond all measure.

LESSON LEARNED: Heresies and false beliefs are vanity tools of Satan in an attempt to dilute pure religion and to replace God's teachings with man's. They can be subtle and dangerous.

FEEDBACK: HAVE YOU HAD AN EXPERIENCE WHERE YOU HAVE WITNESSED FALSE TEACHINGS ENCROACH INTO SOMEONE'S BELIEF SYSTEM?

Predatory Finger Pointing

The transition from baptism to full gospel participation is a tenuous one for new converts. Like new turtle hatchlings in the sand, it is a mad dash to get into the ocean for protection before they can be devoured by predators. In this case, the predators are the scoffers and antagonists of the church. The ocean is the support system that full church immersion and temple covenants can provide. The protective shield will be the friendshipping of these new converts by seasoned members who can help bridge this important gap. The pointing finger of scorn will be there, and Satan will attempt to shame converts during the transition. Unfortunately, many members fail to take friendshipping as seriously as they should. Those of us who are Latter-day Saints must buffer this scorn by giving our full attention to new gospel members, including creating genuine friendships, providing engaged visiting and home teachers, teaching the new member lessons, and assigning immediate new callings for them.

 1 Nephi 8:24 And it came to pass that I beheld others pressing forward, and they came forth and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron; and they did press forward through the mist of darkness, clinging to the rod of iron, even until they did come forth and partake of the fruit of the tree.
 25 And after they had partaken of the fruit of the tree they did cast their eyes about as if they were ashamed.

 26 And I also cast my eyes round about, and beheld, on the other side of the river of water, a great and spacious building; and it stood as it were in the air, high above the earth.
 27 And it was filled with people, both old and young, both male and female; and their manner of dress was exceedingly fine; and they were in the attitude of mocking and pointing their fingers towards those who had come at and were partaking of the fruit.
 28 And after they had tasted of the fruit they were ashamed, because of those that were scoffing at them; and they fell away into forbidden paths and were lost.

LESSON LEARNED: Satan will not let go easily of those who enter the waters of baptism. A similar support structure as the one provided before baptism is necessary for new converts.

FEEDBACK: HAVE YOU WITNESSED THE SUCCESS (OR FAILURE) OF CONVERSION IN SOMEONE DUE TO THE SCORN OF THE WORLD?