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To Guide Us in These Latter Days
From a BYU–Hawaii devotional given February 18, 2020.
Following the prophets will always lead to promised blessings and personal growth.
As we make our way through life’s challenges, guidance from prophets becomes precious to us.
We see great blessings as we follow direction from prophets. I remember a very significant example that occurred less than three weeks after my wife, Jill, and I were married. We attended a devotional where the President of the Church at the time, Spencer W. Kimball, spoke about marriage.1 It seemed as if he were speaking directly to us. That one talk helped us set some patterns as we began our marriage and family, and it has helped us avoid the pitfalls the Lord inspired him to warn against. I have reflected over the years how blessed we were to receive that guidance at such a crucial time for us. Now, 47 years later, we are still being blessed because of that counsel we received as a young married couple.
When We Follow the Prophet, We Are Blessed
I am sure each of you could relate experiences when you have been blessed by following the prophet.
Following what the prophets are inspired to teach doesn’t guarantee we won’t be ridiculed or persecuted or that we won’t face other difficulties because of our obedience. But our willingness to obey does eventually bring “peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come” (Doctrine and Covenants 59:23).
Nephi and the portion of Lehi’s and Ishmael’s families who followed Lehi’s teachings faced significant challenges, but they ended up living “after the manner of happiness” (2 Nephi 5:27) in the promised land. Waiting and believing in future promised blessings can be a challenge in a day when we get frustrated if a computer search takes more than .62 seconds.
When Societies Start to Drift, Many Reject the Counsel of Prophets
When I was younger, I wondered why people in the Book of Mormon would ever reject the prophets. It almost seemed crazy to me. Couldn’t they see what the results would be? How could people get to a point where they would reject the prophets’ messages and even reject and hate the prophets themselves?
Several years ago, I decided to study reactions to messages from prophets. Sometimes people rejected the prophets because they were jealous of them and their power.
In the Book of Third Nephi when Nephi was ministering with great power, “they were angry with him, even because he had greater power than they” (3 Nephi 7:18). The people even saw Nephi raise his brother from the dead; “and the people saw it, and did witness of it, and were angry with him because of his power” (3 Nephi 7:20).
When Thomas Marsh came back to the Church after his disaffection, he explained what happened:
“I must have lost the Spirit of the Lord out of my heart. …
“I became jealous of the Prophet … and overlooked everything that was right, and spent all my time in looking for the evil; … I thought I saw a beam in Brother Joseph’s eye, but it was nothing but a mote, and my own eye was filled with the beam; … I got mad and I wanted everybody else to be mad. I talked with Brother Brigham Young and Brother Heber C. Kimball, and I wanted them to be mad like myself; and I saw they were not mad, and I got madder still because they were not. Brother Brigham Young, with a cautious look, said, ‘Are you the leader of the Church, Brother Thomas?’ I answered ‘No.’ ‘Well then,’ said he, ‘why do you not let that alone?’”2
There are other reasons people have failed to follow the counsel of prophets. One of the most common is that prophets testify of people’s sins and preach repentance. This doesn’t sit well with many people. Before the first verse in the Book of Mormon, in the brief introduction Nephi gives to the First Book of Nephi, we see this theme emerge. Nephi writes, “The Lord warns Lehi to depart out of the land of Jerusalem, because he prophesieth unto the people concerning their iniquity and they seek to destroy his life.” This pattern is repeated in the scriptures (see, for instance, 1 Nephi 16:2; Mosiah 13:4; Alma 35:15; Helaman 8:4; 13:26–28).
Most of us don’t want to hear that we are doing something wrong. We don’t like to be corrected. This becomes more of a challenge as society moves further and further from the teachings and commandments of God. In a righteous society, people drifting into sin become outliers; but in a society that ignores or rejects the teachings of the Lord, those who adhere to the commandments become the outliers and they come under strong pressure.
In the Book of Mormon, those societies that were most steeped in false philosophies and sin—such as the people of King Noah, the people of Ammonihah, or the Zoramites—were most likely to react negatively to the messages of prophets. As society drifts, the great and spacious building exerts a stronger influence on individuals. It seems closer and larger. The mocking seems more intense and more pointed. There seem to be more fingers pointing—and this is because there are. The pressure is on us not only to turn away from the path and the fruit of the tree but to join in mocking and attacking those trying to stay on the path.
What did it take for those societies to get to the point where they would reject the prophets and even thirst for their blood? How did the false philosophies and doctrines become embedded in the hearts of the people? What factors enabled them to move from humility to pride and from obedience to belligerence? This is maybe a topic for another time.
As we look at these societies and individuals who turn from the prophets and from the Lord, we can see the results in hindsight. The city of Ammonihah was destroyed in one day. The people of Noah were put in bondage, and many were killed. The Zoramites were upset that some of the poor among them who had accepted the gospel were warmly received in the Land of Jershon. This triggered their joining in a war against the Nephite nation.
We Make a Personal Choice to Follow the Prophet or Not
We each have the choice to follow the prophet, no matter the state of the particular society in which we live. We may feel pressure from society to ignore or even reject the prophet’s message, but we still retain the ability to choose. If we keep our covenants and stay close to the Lord, it will be much easier for us to follow the prophet. We will have the Spirit to both guide us and strengthen our resolve to submit our will to that of the Lord. And then we are recipients of the Lord’s blessings.
I was in a conversation a few years ago about a certain topic that has some political ramifications, but the topic hasn’t really been addressed by the Church or the prophet. The person made a comment that if the prophet ever asked us to do what we were discussing, this person would not do it and for him it would mean that the prophet was no longer a true prophet. I was taken aback and thought that was a very rash decision. But after the conversation, I wondered: was there something that I felt strongly enough about, or that society’s current trends were so powerfully against, that could cause me to reject the prophet?
When a prophet’s counsel clashes with our personal feelings, desires, or convictions, or when that counsel opposes widely held views of society, what is our reaction? Joseph Smith said, “I have tried for a number of years to get the minds of the Saints prepared to receive the things of God; but we frequently see some of them, after suffering all they have for the work of God, will fly to pieces like glass as soon as anything comes that is contrary to their traditions: they cannot stand the fire at all.”3
President Henry B. Eyring, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, spoke about responding to counsel from prophets:
“When the words of prophets seem repetitive, that should rivet our attention and fill our hearts with gratitude to live in such a blessed time.
“Looking for the path to safety in the counsel of prophets makes sense to those with strong faith. When a prophet speaks, those with little faith may think that they hear only a wise man giving good advice. Then if his counsel seems comfortable and reasonable, squaring with what they want to do, they take it. If it does not, they consider it either faulty advice or they see their circumstances as justifying their being an exception to the counsel. Those without faith may think that they hear only men seeking to exert influence for some selfish motive…
“… The failure to take prophetic counsel lessens our power to take inspired counsel in the future. …
“Every time that I have listened to the counsel of prophets, felt it confirmed in prayer, and then followed it, I have found that I moved toward safety…
“Sometimes we will receive counsel that we cannot understand or that seems not to apply to us, even after careful prayer and thought. Don’t discard the counsel, but hold it close. If someone you trusted handed you what appeared to be nothing more than sand with the promise that it contained gold, you might wisely hold it in your hand awhile, shaking it gently. Every time I have done that with counsel from a prophet, after a time the gold flakes have begun to appear, and I have been grateful.”4
Blind Guides Try to Separate Us from Jesus Christ
After Samuel the Lamanite described to the people how they had rejected the prophets and listened instead to others who taught them to “walk after the pride of [their] eyes, and do whatsoever [their] heart desire[d]” (Helaman 13:27), he asked two penetrating questions: “How long will ye suffer yourselves to be led by foolish and blind guides?” and “How long will ye choose darkness rather than light?” (Helaman 13:29).
No one would admit they wanted to be led by blind guides. Those who had been misled would not have labeled those who taught them the false philosophies as “blind guides.” In fact, it’s likely that those who did the misleading were often viewed as enlightened, forward-looking, brilliant, and socially aware.
I wonder how some of those blind guides from the Book of Mormon would fit in today. Think of Sherem, who was learned and had a perfect knowledge of the language of the people so he could use much flattery. With his command of the language, it’s certain he would take the Twitter world by storm. He would have many catchy, clever tweets that would be retweeted because he knew just how to turn a phrase or place a barb.
With Nehor’s great strength, costly apparel, and appeal to the people, he would garner a huge following on Instagram—modeling the “good life” without the constraints of commandments and use his pattern of bearing down on the Church and its teachings.
And Korihor would have millions of subscribers to his YouTube channel where he would have the freedom to make fun of believers and teach things that were “pleasing [to] the carnal mind” (Alma 30:53). He would “rise up in great swelling words … and … revile against” (Alma 30:31) the prophets and leaders of the Church. He would gather more subscribers as his message got out that “whatsoever a man did was no crime” (Alma 30:17).
Of course, the underlying current of all their communications would be that there is no Christ. Their teachings are not so modern or original. They are plagiarized from the author of lies. Even Korihor finally admitted that the devil taught him what to say (see Alma 30:53).
When individuals or societies separate themselves from the teachings of the Lord, which come through the prophets, they look for alternate teachings that allow them to live the way they want—without that pesky guilt.
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles explained, “Sadly enough, my young friends, it is a characteristic of our age that if people want any gods at all, they want them to be gods who do not demand much, comfortable gods, smooth gods who not only don’t rock the boat but don’t even row it, gods who pat us on the head, make us giggle, then tell us to run along and pick marigolds.”5
Blind and foolish guides will never lead us to the joys and blessings the Lord would have us receive. As we follow the prophets, we need to be willing to stand up for what is right in the face of scorn and persecution, even if it is not popular.
Prophets Beckon Us to Come to the Savior
While blind guides and the scorn of the world try to lead us away from God and his blessings, prophets beckon us to come to the Savior. Prophets don’t try to convince us to worship them but beckon us to worship and draw nearer to our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ (see, for example, Lehi in 1 Nephi 8:12).
A few years ago, Jill and I were speaking with President Russell M. Nelson. He asked us if we would be willing to accept a different assignment. President Nelson has always been so kind to us and has treated Jill with great love and respect. After he asked the question about our willingness, Jill said, “We’d do anything for you, President Nelson.” He immediately responded, “Do it for Him.” This was striking for both Jill and me. He taught us a great lesson. President Nelson wanted us to have the proper motives and to keep our eyes where they should be directed.
When we are guided by the prophets, we actually follow the counsel because of Him—the Savior. His grace is sufficient for each of us.
Conclusion
We know of President Nelson’s own willingness to follow prophets throughout his life. He gave up a prestigious career opportunity as a result of counsel from the prophet. As a very busy surgeon with a large family, he studied Chinese because the prophet made a comment about needing members of the Church who could speak Chinese. We know that when President Thomas S. Monson asked the Church members to study the Book of Mormon, President Nelson dove right in. What would the Church or the world be like if each of us were as willing to follow the prophet as President Nelson has been?
I know that there are tremendous blessings as we follow the guidance the Lord gives through His prophets. If what they say clashes with current trends in society, let’s have the courage to follow, sustain, and defend. It won’t always lead to smooth sailing, but it will always lead to promised blessings and personal growth.