February 27, 2011

Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy. Psa 61:1-3

The ground was covered with snow this morning, crusted over from the freezing rain. As I looked out the back window I saw a young doe huddled under a large cedar.  Immediately it entered into my mind the hymn, “A Shelter in the Time of Storm.”

Often we feel overwhelmed by the storms of anxiety, frustration or offense.  We want to correct the situation but on our own are helpless.  We’re instructed to go in prayer to Jesus the Rock, for He is our strong and mighty tower, our sure defense, our shelter.

Your servant,

Dan

 

February 20, 2011

For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. Wherefore, man could not act for himself, save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other. 2 Nephi 1:81,100

The predominant attitude in the world is that there are no absolutes, that everything is a matter of opinion. Perhaps in choosing your favorite chocolate chip cookie it doesn’t matter, but in most situations there is a spiritual component, something that determines correctness.

Are there grey areas? Can something be right for me and wrong for you? Lehi instructed his firstborn son Jacob that in his decisions he would be influenced by either the Holy Spirit or the spirit of the adversary, “And men are instructed sufficiently, that they know good from evil.” God’s word is the absolute standard of right and wrong for all people. We have the freedom to choose and I pray that we will choose the good and abhor the evil.

Your servant,
Dan

February 13, 2011

And finally, I can not tell you all the things whereby ye may commit sin: for there are divers ways and means, even so many, that I can not number them. Mosiah 2:48

King Benjamin’s words were a foreshadowing of the concept that Christ’s law would be one of a spiritual attitude rather than an endless list of actions and consequences. The underlying theme of the Sermon on the Mount was the fulfillment of the Old Testament law. Just as the old law could not list every manner of sin, Christ taught us that all sin was a result of our thoughts and attitudes.

Human nature leads us to look for exceptions to rules so that we can do what we wish. This is why we’re told that since the natural man is an enemy to God we need to eliminate that attitude and be submissive, meek, humble, patient and full of love. King Benjamin’s solution was to watch our thoughts words and deeds and observe to keep the commandments of God.

Your servant,

Dan

February 6, 2011

And when they had ministered those same words which Jesus had spoken--nothing varying from the words which Jesus had spoken--behold, they knelt again, and prayed to the Father in the name of Jesus, and they did pray for that which they most desired; and they desired that the Holy Ghost should be given unto them. 3 Nephi 9:10

We have been conditioned by the mass media to have many desires, whether it be for the newest appliance or the tastiest hamburger. James tells us “ye desire to have, and cannot obtain . . . because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” His solution is profoundly simple: “Submit yourselves therefore to God.” We ask amiss when our greatest  desires are not spiritual.

Just as our Nephite brothers’ greatest desire was to receive the Holy Ghost, we should have this as our highest priority as we meet at the Lord’s table this day. Let us remember God's promise if the prayers offered over the emblems - that His Spirit might always be with us.

Your servant,
Dan

January 30, 2011

But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 1 Cor 11:28

Christ our savior has made it clear that those who partake unworthily of his body and blood are in grave spiritual danger.  Since Jesus said, “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you,” we must conclude that there is an avenue to worthiness.  He stated his doctrine three times in 3 Nephi: “Ye must repent and be baptized in my name, and become as a little child.”

If we will spend time this coming week in fasting and prayer, repenting of our sins and relying on Him, then the Lord will prepare us to come together next Sunday with a broken heart and contrite spirit, that we may partake worthily of the bread and the cup.

January 23, 2011

Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, To The Unknown God. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. Acts 17:23-24

As the Apostle Paul walked the streets of Athens, he beheld innumerable altars and statues dedicated to the Greek deities, so many that “his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry.” All his life he lived by the commandment “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” So superstitious were the Athenians that they built altars to an “unknown god” lest a god be offended that he had not been worshipped.

We need to take care that in our daily walk we do not elevate anything to the status of a god, whether it be a person, an idea, a desire or a material object. “For thou shalt worship no other god: for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”

January 9, 2011

My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. II Corinthians 12:9

The Apostle Paul repeatedly approached the Lord for relief from “a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me.” In Galatians he referred to this affliction as a temptation in his flesh. Although he was blessed in many ways, Paul was not relieved of this burden, but was told that through endurance comes strength from the Lord.

Moroni was told by the Lord, “I give unto men weakness, that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.” We suffer trials in this life to remind us to be humble and wholly dependent upon the Lord.  As David said, “I Will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.”

December 26, 2010

But in the gift of his Son, hath God prepared a more excellent way, and it is by faith that it hath been fulfilled. Ether 5:12

As I was sitting on the living room floor surrounded by mounds of wrapping paper and gifts lovingly given, I began to think of the many gifts that I have received in my life.  Around me was my precious loving family, now spanning three generations, sharing the comfort of a warm home and abundant dinner table. We’ve been blessed with good health and sufficient prosperity. More wonderful is the gift of faith that we share as a family.

All these gifts were made possible by that miraculous birth that we celebrate this season. The chain of events that unfolded encompassed the extremes of pain and sorrow, wonder and joy. The world was forever transformed by that babe who grew to manhood and taught the world “a more excellent way”, that we might walk by faith to fulfill his promise of abundant life, both now and in that eternal world.

December 19, 2010

And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  Luke 2:10-11

One of the joys of the Christmas season is hearing all the scriptures relating to the birth of Jesus. We love to recite the prophesies of Isaiah and Micah, Nephi and Alma. We wonder how Mary must have felt at the visitation of the angel Gabriel. We’re touched by the kindness of Joseph. Through the ages these passages have been put to song, poetry, prose and pageant.

When the angel of the Lord appeared to the humble shepherds that night, his few powerful words summarized the entire message of this sacred literary panorama. The long awaited Messiah had arrived that all men might be freed from the bondage of sin brought about by our first parents in the garden of Eden.  The great joy of life eternal had become a reality to those who would follow the Saviour who was born that day.