Leader’s Inspiration
Are We Too Busy?
President Russell M. Nelson recently introduced to us a new and holier approach to caring and reaching out (ministering) to one another. He invited us to be true disciples of the Savior in words and in action. Ministering is a sign of our discipleship as true followers of the Savior Jesus Christ. We also have been introduced to “a new balance and connection between gospel instruction in the home and in the Church”1 to help members learn the gospel and doctrine, fortify faith and foster heartfelt worship. What a great privilege this is to learn the gospel at home where we really live it most and with those with home, to whom we often show our true self. What a change this can bring to our lives and relationships as we study and learn together.
There are several things that we need to do to stay on the straight and narrow way that leads to eternal life. It includes really loving God and loving our neighbor as ourselves (see Matthew 22:37–39). making and keeping covenants, being honest in our dealings, keeping the sabbath day holy, being chaste, living the law of tithe and making no image of worship besides our God (not allowing or putting material things, people, or interests before God; see Acts 15:20).
Becoming and remaining faithful disciples of Jesus Christ requires constant work, not a casual approach, not a faint understanding but a perfect knowledge of who we are, of the plan of salvation and our role in it. One will live a more realistic life if he understands the real purpose of it (Alma 34:32), his or her divine origin, and that we are truly all sons and daughters of Heavenly Father regardless of our tongues, tribe and colour.
The adversary will not tell us that these things are not true but will make it difficult for us to learn and live them, changing our priorities and having us preoccupied by other things, forgetting things of great value that will guide us through the straight and narrow way. We could easily be occupied day in and day out with things that have no positive bearing on the outcome of our eternal happiness. Our lives could be very busy, and we will be swamped by the pursuit of work, education, fame or interest that we will not have time for things of eternal consequence. Our life becomes a cycle of the same trivial things though maybe important but have been over indulged in and are not essential to eternal peace. At the end, we rob ourselves of the opportunity to learn and improve.
It is said that Satan told his followers that:
“We can’t keep Christians from going to church. We can’t keep them from reading their Bibles and knowing the truth. We can’t even keep them from forming an intimate, abiding relationship experience in Christ. If they gain that connection with Jesus, our power over them is broken. So let them go to their churches; let them have their conservative lifestyles, but steal their time, so they can’t gain that relationship with Jesus Christ... Keep them busy in the nonessentials of life and invent innumerable schemes to occupy their minds . . . Every minute of every hour, all through the day. Tempt them to spend, spend, spend, and borrow, borrow, borrow. Persuade the wives to go to work for long hours and the husbands to work 6-7 days each week, 10-12 hours a day, so they can afford empty lifestyles. Keep them from spending time with their children. As their family fragments, soon, their home will offer no escape from the pressures of work!”2
When this is the situation there will be no time for temple worship, family history work, ministering and the simple acts of discipleship to love one another as yourself. Personal and family prayer will not happen or when it does it will be a casual practice. In Exodus 20:3 we read “Thou shalt have no other gods before me”. Idolatry was a predominant sin of the Old Testament. It involves the worship of images and idols. But it is also a current sin of the latter days, contrary to our knowledge. It is the excessive attachment or devotion to anything but Heavenly Father. It could be in our work, internet, social media, sports, interest, persons, education and any other pursuit of life that is set before God and takes the preference to our devotion, learning the gospel, living the gospel, paying our tithes and being a good Latter-day Saint.
We can overcome these tendencies by following the path to discipleship, becoming fellow citizens of the household of God (Ephesians 2:19–20). We belong to the team of the Savior and we learn and follow His instructions. Just like in many sports and in the game of football when we play by the rules, observe the fair play, train regularly, practice to perfection, and with the guide of a knowledgeable coach, the team succeeds.
The Savior Jesus Christ is the coach of our lives. The prophet is our captain. All of us are players in the world today against the adversary’s team. In the premortal life, Satan, or Lucifer, entered this challenge to deceive man to lose the fight (football match).
As we visit the temple and study Come, Follow Me the purpose of the plan of salvation will become clearer to us. We would become more committed to “put [our] shoulder to the wheel [and] push along.”3 We would be up and doing in our ministering assignments and follow the example and teaching of our coach and Master, knowing that he cares for and loves us.
I recently heard some concerned persons wonder what a terrible world we live in and the many evils that exist; where many go to bed without food. Life full of war, hatred, violence, extremist behaviors and all sorts of wickedness. With pestilence, natural disaster and many dying and suffering from strange diseases due to, sometimes, no fault of theirs. And they wonder if there is a God, if there is really a loving God. The irony is that the world has defined what life is all about and what success is. Some have said that you must attain certain level of accomplishment to be successful, that if you don’t have a child, a family, wealth, longevity, own the good things of the world or attained a certain level of education or accomplishment you are not successful. That if you suffer pain and difficulties the world brings, you are unsuccessful and reaping the law of repercussion. That has made many good people who strive to be faithful but who face challenges in life to sometimes wonder and question their divine heritage from a loving Heavenly Father. I testify that God lives, that His son lives and that the Holy Ghost is the third member of the Godhead. They love us and care for us. As the purpose of life is to prepare to meet God, success is our ability to be prepared and be able to stand worthy in His presence when we meet again. The pains of life are the roads we have to travel in the journey of mortality. Life is a refiner to the faithful and that it will make us better and more experienced for the joy of eternity.
Our Savior, the coach, has shown us by example, how to lift this trophy. He has provided us with guidelines through the scriptures. We have a living prophet, we have our leaders (stake and branch presidents, bishops, auxiliary leaders, ministering brothers and sisters) to work with us just like the paramedics on the side of the pitch during a football game. Make time to learn, teach, serve, participate in ordinances of the gospel, love and care for others. Organize yourselves and prepare every needful thing on the journey to eternity. (See D&C 88:119.) This is a daily task.
During the Savior’s ascension into heaven, He promised His disciples that He would send them the Comforter which is the Holy Ghost. May we rely on the Holy Spirit for inspiration and motivation as we display our football skills on life’s pitch.