Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God; (Doctrine & Covenants 88:119)
This week's post will focus on the above scripture, and what it really means to "organize". This scripture was received as revelation to the Prophet Joseph Smith during the Kirkland period of the Church. It was the precursor to the organization of the "School of the Prophets," which thereafter met regularly to discuss the workings of God, how to run the Church, and what Heavenly Father's ultimate vision was for the Church, and how the Saints might fulfill that vision.
If one studies this verse closely, the definition of godly organization comes quite easily. It is defined by the nouns in succession: prayer, fasting, faith, learning, glory and order. Interestingly enough, these things seem simple when placed by themselves, but I believe that a type of spiritual synergy occurs when one successfully strives to put all six together. This involves hitting what I call the spiritual "leading edge," where the capacity to perform meets the effort to do so. This is always the ideal, with the hope that if we go there God will add upon that leading edge, that we may work and do more. Let's take a look at the ideal for these six things:
Prayer. When speaking to his son Helaman, the prophet Alma said the following: "Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day." (Alma 37:37)
Fasting. This builds upon the first, as is evident in the words spoken by Elder Russel M. Nelson in the April 2009 General Conference: "A man may fast and pray till he kills himself; and there isn’t any necessity for it; nor wisdom in it. … The Lord can hear a simple prayer, offered in faith, in half a dozen words, and he will recognize fasting that may not continue more than twenty-four hours, just as readily and as effectually as He will answer a prayer of a thousand words and fasting for a month. … The Lord will accept that which is enough, with a good deal more pleasure and satisfaction than that which is too much and unnecessary."
Faith. The leading edge here encompasses all the other aspects, but I believe we acheive our leading edge of faith when we exercise it. In 1999, President Gordon B. Hinckley said: "Faith is like the muscle of my arm. If I use it, if I nurture it, it grows strong; it will do many things. But if I put it in a sling and do nothing with it, it will grow weak and useless, and so will it be with you. If you accept every opportunity, if you accept every calling, the Lord will make it possible for you to perform it. The Church will not ask you to do anything which you cannot do with the help of the Lord. God bless you to do everything that you are called upon to do."
Learning. We have been asked to get as much education as possible. Just like the others, the Lord will improve upon that which we diligently turn back to him. President James E. Faust said " [You] should strive very diligently to acquire a skill and as much education as possible...If you fail to prepare in your youth, it will be too late to begin preparation when you reach adulthood."
Glory. The Apostle Paul's words to the Corinthians sum it up nicely: "For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s." (1 Corinthians 6:20)
Order. Order can mean a couple things, with the "holy Order of God" often referring to the priesthood. But for our purposes, I would like to establish order's leading edge as a type of spiritual conscientiousness, hearkening back to the crux of the blog, which is being organized. I hope that this post has shed some light on how to do so. I know that it is possible to increase upon our faith and talents, but we cannot do so by any asserted personal effort. Like in most all of my posts, I submit this week that it is still only through the Atonement of Jesus Christ that such things are made possible.
I believe that the biggest reason for improving, for becoming more spiritually organized, is to better serve Heavenly Father and his children. As we strive to overcome the vicissitudes of life in this coming week, I hope that we all, myself included, may remember this. May we be a little more organized, as well as a little more loving, that the Spirit of God may more fully descend upon our hearts, enabling us to reach and extend that leading edge.
Have a great week!
No comments:
Post a Comment