Today at church in our new ward, JB and I were asked to speak in sacrament meeting. What follows below is the text of my talk.
My topic today is: “How living the gospel of Jesus
Christ protects my family.”
I think many of the most powerful sermons are taught
in the Primary songs. I love the messages they convey. They are simple, direct,
and powerful.
In the Primary song (and in Hymn no. 303), we
sing:
“Keep the commandments; keep the
commandments!
In this there is safety; in this there is
peace.
He will send blessings; He will send
blessings.
Words of a prophet: Keep the commandments.
In this there is safety and peace.”
There is protection in keeping the commandments. When
we keep the commandments, our Heavenly Father sends the blessings we can claim
by no other means than by choosing to obey Him. It teaches us to be truly
happy, because “wickedness never was happiness” (Alma 41:10). The adversary
would have us choose poorly and even become addicted to things that would take
away our free agency and will make us miserable.
When we make mistakes and break a commandment,
however, there is protection in repentance through the Atonement of Jesus
Christ. When we come to our Heavenly Father in humility and prayer, how long
does it take for the Atonement to take effect in our lives? Alma answers this
question in Alma 34:
“Now is the time and the day of your salvation; and
therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately
shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you” (Alma 34:31;
emphasis added).
The Atonement will begin to work in our lives just as
soon as we ask for it! Immediately the Savior’s healing process begins.
In another Primary song, we sing: “The wise man built
his house upon the rock” (Children’s Songbook, no. 281).
In Helaman chapter 5, Helaman teaches us about this
rock:
“Remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our
Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that
when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the
whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it
shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless
wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a
foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.”
Christ will help us to weather the storms of this
life. Sometimes, the storm can be quite literally an actual storm. When I was
13 years old, I lived with my family on the island of Puerto Rico. When I first
learned that Hurricane Hugo was headed our way, I was terrified. I’d never been
through anything like this before. But we were prepared. The prophets had long
taught (and are still teaching) us to prepare for calamities with food storage,
including also a first aid kit, clean water, clothing, batteries, etc. As the
storm approached, the store shelves became emptied and bare as others panicked
and rushed to buy what they would need to get them through the next days and
weeks. But we never had to worry about that. All around us there was
destruction, but we were OK. Our community and our island rebuilt. Home
teachers ensured we were doing well and had everything we needed.
In yet another Primary song, we sing: “Mine is a home
where every hour is blessed by the strength of priesthood pow’r” (Children’s
Songbook, no. 190). The priesthood can bless not only our homes but every
aspect of our lives. Through priesthood ordinances, we make covenants with our
Heavenly Father that will protect us as we journey through life.
Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve
Apostles has taught:
“By making and keeping temple covenants, we learn more
about the Lord’s purposes and receive a fulness of the Holy Ghost. We receive
direction for our lives. We mature in our discipleship so that we do not remain
perpetual, unknowing children. Rather, we live with an eternal perspective and
are more motivated to serve God and others. We receive increased capacity to
fulfill our purposes in mortality. We are protected from evil, and we gain
greater power to resist temptation and to repent when we stumble. When we
falter, the memory of our covenants with God helps us return to the path. … Ultimately,
our destinies are changed because the covenant path leads to exaltation and
eternal life.
“Keeping covenants made in baptismal fonts and in
temples also provides us with strength to withstand mortality’s trials and
heartaches” (“Accessing God’s Power through Covenants,” April 2023 general
conference).
The gift of the Holy Ghost is indeed one of our Father
in Heaven’s greatest blessings and a source of protection. He warns us of
danger and reminds us of what is good and true. The Comforter has accompanied me
when I have experienced the loss of loved ones, including most recently my dear
mother, who passed away this past November. In the days and weeks that followed
her death, I became reacquainted with the Comforter in ways I never expected. I
love her and will always miss her, but I am at peace because of His comfort. I
testify that He is real.
The gospel of Jesus Christ protects us in so many
other ways, both temporally as well as spiritually. The Word of Wisdom, for
example, protects us from many avoidable illnesses, including freedom from
addiction to harmful substances. The law of chastity helps us to avoid
unnecessary pain and suffering and things that would poison our minds and
spirits. Tithing and fast offerings help us learn to be less selfish while also
bringing with them specific blessings of a financial nature. In my previous
calling in our last ward, I had the privilege to see up close on a weekly basis
how our bishop used fast offering funds to help people in our ward in numerous
ways. It never ceased to amaze me what good could be done.
I love how devoted the Church is to helping us succeed
in every aspect of our lives. From self-reliance, job training, and money
management classes to LDS Social Services, including mental health and
addiction recovery counseling, to its welfare and humanitarian projects, the
Church helps us to make of ourselves the best disciples we can be.
One final thought before I close: Though the gospel protects us from many
things, we may not always be “protected,” at least not in the way we might
think, from the difficult, gut-wrenching trials of life. The gospel can help us
to protect ourselves against unwanted consequences, yet adversity comes to us
all.
For example, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were
protected from burning to death in the fiery furnace, while Abinadi was not. John
Taylor was shot and survived assassins’ bullets, while Joseph and Hyrum Smith did
not. The 2,060 stripling warriors were saved from death in battle, while other
righteous warriors weren’t. Some are healed from devastating illness, and some
are not. Some struggle with money problems and job loss, and others don’t. Some
missionaries serve with no significant health problems, yet others must return
home early and even some contract illnesses, injuries, or challenges that
remain with them for the rest of their mortal lives. And so forth.
In my experience, it is not good to dwell on the why
or the how of these kinds of things. It doesn’t do any good to speculate
when Heavenly Father has not provided a reason. “(We) cannot behold with (our)
natural eyes, for the present time, the design of (our) God concerning those
things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much
tribulation. For after much tribulation come the blessings. Wherefore the day
cometh that (we) shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is
nigh at hand” (D&C 58:3-4).
What we can do, however, is to decide how we will
respond to life’s difficulties and what we will make of the talents that have
been given to us. (See Matthew 25:14-30.)
Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught: “The great challenge is
to refuse to let the bad things that happen to us do bad things to us. That is
the crucial difference between adversity and tragedy” (“But for a Small Moment,”
address delivered at Brigham Young University, September 1, 1974). Our free
agency is the only gift we really have that is ours to offer our Savior, and
His greatest and everlasting blessings are reserved for those who do so.
Elder Dennis E. Simmons of the Seventy spoke on this
point in the April 2004 general conference, in one of the best general
conference talks I’ve ever heard. I may be a bit biased, as I was sitting in
the choir seats behind Elder Simmons for this talk. (Elder Maxwell also spoke
in that session; it was his last conference talk before he passed away.)
He said: “When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego
refused to bow down and worship a golden image set up by the king, a furious
Nebuchadnezzar told them that if they would not worship as commanded, they
would immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. ‘And who is that God
that shall deliver you out of my hands?’
“The three young men quickly and confidently
responded, ‘If it be so [if you cast us into the furnace], our God whom we
serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will
deliver us out of thine hand.’ … But then they demonstrated that they fully
understood what faith is. They continued, ‘But if not, … we will
not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.’ That
is a statement of true faith. …
“Our God will deliver us from ridicule and
persecution, but if not. … Our God will deliver us from
sickness and disease, but if not. … He will deliver us from
loneliness, depression, or fear, but if not. … Our God will
deliver us from threats, accusations, and insecurity, but if not. … He
will deliver us from death or impairment of loved ones, but if not, …
we will trust in the Lord.
“Our God will see that we receive justice and
fairness, but if not. … He will make sure that we are loved
and recognized, but if not. … We will receive a perfect
companion and righteous and obedient children, but if not, … we will
have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, knowing that if we do all we can do, we
will, in His time and in His way, be delivered and receive all that He has”
(“But If Not …,” April 2004 general conference).
I testify that our Heavenly Father loves us, so much
so that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, into the world to take our pains,
sicknesses, and sins upon Him so that we may return to Them, safe and sound. In
the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
