Agency--It's A Choice

My study this week began with the buzz word from last week: "expedient." I pondered on what it meant to have expedience, or to be expedient. I found this verse to be a helpful catalyst:

Wherefore, 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; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.
--2 Nephi 2:27

From that scripture, I moved on to 2 Nephi 26:24, which helped me understand that to be "expedient unto man" means to be of benefit to man. I searched the connection with Jacob 5:41, wherein the Lord of the Vineyard laments that the vineyard has died; moreover, he could not do more for the vineyard, as its trees chose to be overrun by wild fruits. I learned in Alma 26:37 that God is mindful of all this, and that he lets us choose liberty or captivity, because it is expedient unto us. In Mosiah 2:21, King Benjamin tells us that God created, preserved, lent breath to, and preserved us just so that we may have the ability to choose. The good king also said that we receive agency upon entering into a covenant with God (Mosiah 5:8).

I know that that was a lot of spurious information, so let's perform a little synthesis:

Expedient="of Benefit"
FREEDOM TO CHOOSE=What is most expedient

God is ever mindful of us and our choices

God has created and preserved us that we may have agency

God laments our bad choices, but lets us make them for our eternal benefit

The most freedom we can attain is when we enter into sacred covenants

It is apparent that agency is essential to the great Plan of Happiness. It is true that we must have the choice in order to learn, grow, and become more like our Father in Heaven. In this life we must undergo a refining process that involves the constant play between our choices, and the consequences that they elicit. This is the Plan we chose in the preexistence, and it is the Plan that we must choose to follow if our goal as Christians is to live with God and Christ once again one day, for nothing unclean can gain inheritance in the Kingdom of God (Ephesians 5:5). May we choose the better part is my hope and prayer for y'all this week, that we may gain eventual happiness in the eternities.

--Sean

What is Expedient

In my studies this week, I was particularly struck by these verses:

Wherefore, my beloved brethren, have miracles ceased because Christ hath ascended into heaven, and hath sat down on the right hand of God, to claim of the Father his rights of mercy which he hath upon the children of men?

For he hath answered the ends of the law, and he claimeth all those who have faith in him; and they who have faith in him will cleave unto every good thing; wherefore he advocateth the cause of the children of men; and he dwelleth eternally in the heavens.

And because he hath done this, my beloved brethren, have miracles ceased? Behold I say unto you, Nay; neither have angels ceased to minister unto the children of men. ...And Christ hath said: If ye will have faith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in me.
(Moroni 7: 27-29, 33)

This is kind of a continuation of an impression received during Elder Ballard's talk now two weeks ago in the Trinity Chapel in Boston. I would like to flesh out here two aspects of miracles: their existence (and what they look like) and how to become an agent by which miracles come to pass.

I think it's obvious from the verses above that miracles do exist. In fact, this is a doctrine that is not confined either to just our Church; many people around the world believe that God is full of grace, and enacts miracles, imparting his tender mercies upon his children. But what do these miracles look like?

I submit that a miracle is anything that happens within God's will for our good, but beyond our mortal conception. And even if we do conceive it, miracles come when we recognize that the blessing received would not have been possible had it not been for the Lord's intervening hand.

For example, a family decides to pay their tithing in faith, but nevertheless does not know how they will pay their pending expenses. But somehow, some way, they are able to make ends meet. Someone comes to the plate, impulsed by the Spirit to lend a helping hand in some way. This, my friends, is a miracle.

But notice that miracles come to those who believe. If we do not have faith that the Lord can make miracles happen in our lives, then they will not come to pass. Likewise, if we don't have faith in God's power we will not be an instrument by which miracles come to pass.

I included verse 33 in the above excerpt because we must understand that God works through his children, and thus we must be ready to serve others around us. We must have faith that we may gain power to do whatever is "expedient in him," only expecting to do that much. Into play comes the balancing act between our will and His, which I am convinced can only be performed on our knees. Pleading with Heavenly Father to grant us faith and charity for his children, we may be able to exact miracles that he sees fit to happen.

The picture above is of the prophet who wrote the above verses. His name is Moroni, and he had the singular fate of being the last believer on the earth in his time. It was his great hope that the Lamanites, his distant and unbelieving relatives who now populated the land, would one day come to believe. He knew that it would take a miracle. He knew that only God would restore the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth, and that this would be a miracle as well. Basically, he wrote these verses from personal experience. Now, we will never be in Moroni's shoes, but we can emulate the faith he had. When was the last time you saw a miracle? What did it look like for you?

I am grateful for the knowledge that miracles do exist. I am grateful for the knowledge that I may be an instrument in God's hands to bring about miracles, as well. And finally, I am grateful for the veil that he puts over my eyes to not see that miracles that do enact on his behalf, that I may maintain a semblance of deference and devotion to God's will.

I am grateful for the Spirit by which I have been compelled to write today. It has filled my heart with hope for God's choicest miracles to happen in my life, granted that he is willing.

I know that God lives. I know that Christ is his literal Son, and that Jesus performed the Atonement for all mankind, that we may repent and believe on Him, one day returning to His presence. I know that the Book of Mormon, from which the above excerpt was extracted, is true Scripture, brought about in the modern era that we may have a bolstered testimony of Christ and His true Gospel. It is my prayer that we may all grow to know these simple truths.

Have a Great Week!

--Sean

It's the Resovle that Counts

I once again apologize for missing a post last week. I was on a drive back from New England, where I spent the weekend at the LDS Education Conference, held in Boston, Mass. Read on for a report of the conference:

The conference began at the large and spacious Trinity Church, which is owned by the Episcopal Church. It was the only place large enough to fit everyone on a Friday night; by my count there were more than 1,000 people in attendance to hear Elder M. Russel Ballard address us. As I sat by the massive pipe organs on one of the balconies, I was impressed by the fact that wherever the true Gospel is preached, it does not matter the venue, for it is the same. I was also impressed with the idea that moving to the East Coast has truly allowed me to forge a testimony of this in my own heart. I have seen miracles in only two months, and expect to see many more during my tenure, however long it may be. And Elder Ballard spoke on miracles that first night, saying that miracles occur any time that the power of God is manifest. How grateful am I for the knowledge that the Priesthood has been restored, that God's power can be made manifest to exact miracles!

Saturday's portion of the conference was dedicated to the Young Single Adults (YSA's), of which I am a part. There were 600 of us who gathered in Salon H of the Copley Marriott, a few blocks from the Trinity Church. Elder Ballard spoke to us again, stressing on that morning repentance, balance, and simplicity in life. In jest he said that none of us are perfect, and so we should just find someone and get married! Everyone had a laugh at that. Elder Ballard also said that life's great quest is learning how to feed the spiritual side of our being as well as the physical side, which takes a lot of "spiritual education." So true!

The rest of Saturday was dedicated to missionary work. It was presented in the guise of our great desire to do missionary work, but our fear of how and where to begin. We heard from David Neeleman, who is the former CEO of JetBlue, and a member of the LDS faith. He talked on using the internet as a missionary tool to drown out those voices that speak untrue doctrine about the Church. He is a chair of the MoreGood Foundation, which strives to flood the net with positive, truthful content. He talked about how they have about one baptism per week from people who see one of their 250,000 sites, feel the Spirit, and are converted.

The next speaker was Clayton Christensen, Harvard Business professor who I heard two weeks prior in the Philadelphia area. He brought up myths about missionary work, as seen below:

1. We have the power to judge who is ready for the Gospel and who is not
2. We need to prepare people for the Gospel through developing friendships
3. We should focus our Gospel discussion on how it will make your life better
4. We should teach what we think they should know
5. People already know how to pray
6. It's okay to put off till tomorrow what can be done today
7. You are successful only if your friend accepts baptism
8. If we can't find someone for the missionaries to teach, it's because we don't know anyone who is interested.
9. Perfecting the saints, then, must be our lot in life

Brother Christensen said that these 9 things actually keep many from hearing the Gospel that we know to be true. He said that most people in the United States have a deeper need to serve others than to be served, and therefore should be included in any service opportunity. He also said that to keep people accountable we should give out homework assignments; these would be questions about the reading the missionaries assign, with the prompt to answer in essay format. The protocol for homework is as follows:

1. Pray out loud to begin homework, telling God what you are about to do.
2. Read the assigned passage.
3. Formulate a rough draft in response to the questions assigned.
4. Pray again, asking God for inspiration as you read the passage again.
5. Read the passage again.
6. Revise your answers.
7. Pray a third time, asking God if the things you read and wrote are true.

I learned this method on my mission after Brother Christensen spoke to us there on the same topic. One might notice that this is the method that he used as a pupil at Oxford University, only with prayer added in place of being critiqued by a mentor. I believe that this method indeed works as we put God into the equation, making him a fundamental part of our spiritual inquiry.

The whole weekend was amazing, but I realized this: many will walk away from this spiritual feeding unchanged. Many of the 600 I am sure left apathetic to the things taught, not any more willing to fulfill their duty to help 'bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man' (Moses 1:39). I am convinced that it is the resolve that counts, fueled by a humble desire to be better, to be a greater instrument in the hands of the Lord. This desire is fueled by a testimony that must be burned into the soul; this testimony is a knowledge that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the entire human race, and it is a knowledge that His true Gospel lies in the hands of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is the Book of Mormon and the Bible; It is the Priesthood restored on the Earth; it is a Prophet and Twelve Apostles.

I am grateful to have this knowledge, which leads my path each moment of each hour of each day. It is my prayer that we may all come to know these things, and better serve the Lord.

Have a Great Week!