I was asked to speak on "persevering/enduring ______ for God". I chose to insert "the mortal experience". Persevering/enduring the mortal experience for God. The most logical place for me to start was going to the topical guide in the back of the Book of Mormon. Under "endure" are the words bear, continue, diligence, faith, firmness, obedience, perseverance, probation, and steadfast.
In the margin of page I highlighted 12 scriptures and wrote the following statement:
"Endurance is not suffering, but loyalty to Christ."
I like that. There are four scriptures that really stood out.
Moroni 8:26 And the remission of sins bringeth ameekness, and lowliness of heart; and because of meekness and lowliness of heart cometh the visitation of the bHoly Ghost, which cComforter dfilleth with hope and perfect elove, which love endureth by fdiligence unto gprayer, until the end shall come, when all the hsaints shall dwell with God.
Omni 1:26 And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should acome unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and boffer your whole souls as an coffering unto him, and continue in dfasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved.
D&C 24:8 Be apatient in bafflictions, for thou shalt have many; but cendure them, for, lo, I am with thee, even unto the dend of thy days.
Some of the common themes I see are obedience to the commandments, hope and faith in Christ, and especially enduring to the end. The end? The end of what? We are eternal beings, and this mortal probation is but a small moment in eternity. If we are to endure to the end, it must be the end of this mortal experience.
So how is enduring the mortal experience FOR God?
God wants to give us eternal life, but it can only be given if we continue in faith, endure, all the days of our life.
To say life is to endured is not to say that we cannot have joy.
Last fall I was working on something that I really wanted. I was very happy. One crisp fall morning my dad was weeding the flowerbed and I was keeping him company. I said to him that I was so happy but knew at any moment it would fall apart and I was going to miss being so happy. My dad pointed out that Adam and Eve were commanded to have joy. Joy is part of life and we should not expect it to just go away.
26And the aMessiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may bredeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are credeemed from the fall they have become dfree forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the elaw at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given.
The fall was harsh, living in the world outside the garden was hard...but we are to have joy and an important factor in that is choosing happiness.
Things didn't go according to MY plan after all last fall, and I had moments were joy was not part of the mix of emotions I was feeling, but my dad reminded me that I said all along I was going to enjoy the moment while it lasted. I had to do what 2 Nephi 2:26 says, I had to act for myself, take action, and endure- happily!
So how do we endure? I have 3 things that I'll discuss.
1.) Surround yourself with good friends, other covenant keeping people. There are a few friends in particular that I feel a special connection with. We rally together, have the take action attitude, support, strengthen, encourage, cheer lead, and cry together when boys break our hearts. Always persevering and reminding each other of hope and faith in Christ.
2.) Hope. Hope is essential to enduring to the end. Hope is knowing that with faith and patience, all promises will be fulfilled. Hebrews 6:10-20..
10For God is not aunrighteous to forget your work and blabour of clove, which ye have shewed toward his dname, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.
11And we desire that every one of you do shew the same adiligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end:
12That ye be not aslothful, but followers of them who through bfaith and cpatience inherit the dpromises.
13For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could aswear by no greater, he bsware by himself,
14Saying, Surely blessing I will abless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.
15And so, after he had patiently aendured, he obtained the promise.
16For men verily swear by the greater: and an aoath for confirmation is to them an end of all bstrife.
17Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his acounsel, bconfirmed it by an coath:
18That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to alie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for brefuge to lay hold upon the chope set before us:
19Which hope we have as an aanchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the bveil;
20Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an ahigh priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.
Abraham certainly had to endure. I love these verses. They teach so much about hope. I especially like how it teaches that with hope all strife can cease.
3.) We endure by utilizing the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
Alma chapter 7 teaches us this about the Atonement:
11And he shall go forth, suffering pains and aafflictions and btemptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will ctake upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.
12And he will take upon him adeath, that he may bloose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to csuccor his people according to their infirmities.
13Now the Spirit aknoweth all things; nevertheless the Son of God suffereth according to the bflesh that he might ctake upon him the sins of his people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance; and now behold, this is the testimony which is in me.
The Atonement helps us or rather is essential to enduring because we are not perfect for one, and have need of repentance as we fall short of keeping the commandments, and two life hurts sometimes and the Atonement can heal our hearts.
I have a testimony in the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I have a testimony that this is the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ, and if we can endure to the end and do all that He has asked of us, we will obtain Eternal Life.
Romans 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to aseparate us from the blove of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
2 Timonthy 4: 7 I have fought a good afight, I have bfinished my course, I have kept the faith:
8Henceforth there is laid up for me a acrown of brighteousness, which the Lord, the righteous cjudge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
1 comment:
Thanks for posting this Tamara! I felt like I got to hear you speak, all the way from Atlanta :)
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