Have you ever wondered why young children are so exhausted
at the end of the day? It’s not only because they have shorter legs but because
they have more open and fillable minds. They have vacuumed up a daily world of
new information and their minds are frazzled from the torrent of new
information that has poured in. From the ant they noticed crawling out of a
crack in a brick to the new flavour they tasted at dinner (and maybe spat out!)
– they are continually discovering and delighting in it.
What if you were told today that you would never see or do
or learn anything new?
What if today was the end of any opportunity to develop and
better your-self?
What if all of the uplifting and meaningful experiences you
had up ‘til today; were all you would ever have? That you could draw only on
memories but not look forward to anything else?
These are scenarios that would make me incredibly sad if
they were true. I delight in the concept of ongoing progression and
development. Not only in the eternities, but in my life here and now. I love
the idea that tomorrow there is something new to learn, a fresh experience, a
different view.
And yet… I don’t always show this in my behaviour. I’m often
comfortable in routine and repetition. I’m usually willing to stick to the old
habits and similar processes. There are 45billion web pages on the internet. If
I started today and read a page a minute, non-stop, it would take me 85,000
years to read them all. There’s a wealth of information available to me and yet
I only use 5-6 of those 45billion pages.
Elder Hugh B. Brown said: “I admire men and women who have
developed the questing spirit, who are unafraid of new ideas as stepping stones
to progress… Thoughts and expressions compete in the marketplace of thought,
and in that competition truth emerges triumphant… Neither fear of consequence
or any kind of coercion should ever be used to secure uniformity of thought in
the church. People should express their problems and opinions and be unafraid
to think without fear of ill consequences. . . . We must preserve the freedom
of the mind in the church and resist all efforts to suppress it.”
Hugh B. Brown, “An Eternal Quest—Freedom of the Mind,” Brigham Young University, 13 May 1969
Hugh B. Brown, “An Eternal Quest—Freedom of the Mind,” Brigham Young University, 13 May 1969
I love the imagery of having a questing spirit and
discovering stepping stones to progress. Elder Uchtdorf said:
“…we continually
seek truth from all good books and other wholesome sources. “If there is
anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after
these things.”… In this manner we learn the truth “precept upon precept; line
upon line.” And we will learn that intelligence cleaves unto intelligence, and
wisdom receives wisdom, and truth embraces truth."
And Joseph Smith said: "One
of the grand fundamental principles of Mormonism is to receive truth, let it
come from where it may."
History of the Church, 5:499
History of the Church, 5:499
I want you to imagine your mind is like a cup or glass. Perhaps,
at birth, it might be a small thimble sized receptacle which is why it can be
quickly filled to overflowing with something as amazing as discovering you can
move your own fingers. As we go through life and as we continue to learn new
things, our minds, like muscles, have the ability of stretching and growing.
For each of us, the fullness of the gospel is, in effect,
all of the living waters we can receive in our personally sized mental and
spiritual cups.
Cups and water are symbols that run throughout the
scriptures. The psalmist said: “my cup runneth over.” (Psalms 23:6) (D&C
10:66 Yea, if they will come, they may, and partake of the waters of life
freely).
A 1974 Ensign article discusses the different translations
through the ages of Psalm 23:
One
version says: “Thou hast anointed my
head with oil, and my cup shall be brim full.” … The expression “brim full” is
delightful and possibly acceptable, were it not for the more excellent
alternative in the Geneva text (which influenced the King James translation):
“my cup runneth over.” The goodness of the Lord is limited if the cup is filled
only to the brim; his graciousness actually exceeds our capacity to receive… The
very sound of the words… suggests the full and overflowing cup.
If our cup is full, to the point of running over, what
should we do? Turn off the tap or get a bigger cup?
Psalm 119 talks about growing our heart to receive truth, in
a similar analogy to a growing cup.
33 Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy statutes… (34) Give me
understanding… I shall observe it with my whole heart. (32) I will run the way
of thy commandments, when thou shalt enlarge my heart.
Elder Uchtdorf said: "Brothers
and sisters, as good as our previous experience may be, if we stop asking
questions, stop thinking, stop pondering, we can thwart the revelations of the
Spirit… We can block the growth and knowledge our Heavenly Father intends for
us. How often has the Holy Spirit tried to tell us something we needed to know
but couldn’t get past the massive iron gate of what we thought we already
knew?"
What Is Truth? CES Devotional, Jan 2013
What Is Truth? CES Devotional, Jan 2013
He went on to say…
“We have some
measurable ways to indicate activity in the Church, such as sacrament meeting
attendance, ordination to the priesthood… Perhaps the more accurate indicators
of real growth in the gospel of Jesus Christ are those that we can’t measure as
easily, such as… love at home and for our neighbor, and personal experiences
with Christ’s Atonement. These are recorded not by a clerk in Church records
but in our hearts and in heaven.”
God has prepared a way for all of his children to enjoy an
eternal progression towards a better self.
http://www.lds.org/general-conference/print/1991/10/the-gospel-a-global-faith?lang=eng
http://www.lds.org/general-conference/print/1991/10/the-gospel-a-global-faith?lang=eng
Alma taught that “…the
Lord doth grant unto all nations, of their own nation and tongue, to teach his
word, yea, in wisdom, all that he seeth fit that they should have; therefore we
see that the Lord doth counsel in wisdom, according to that which is just and
true." (Alma 29:7-8)
His close friend, Ammon, taught that “God is mindful of every people, whatsoever
land they may be in; yea, he numbereth his people, and his bowels of mercy are
over all the earth.” (Alma 26:37)
President Uchtdorf elaborated on this principle when he
taught that:
“Latter-day Saints
believe that all human beings are God’s children and that He loves all of us.
He has inspired not only people of the Bible and the Book of Mormon but other
people as well to carry out His purposes through all cultures and parts of the
world. God inspires not only Latter-day Saints but also founders, teachers,
philosophers, and reformers of other Christian and non-Christian religions. The
restored gospel holds a positive relationship with other religions. Intolerance
is always a sign of weakness. The Latter-day Saint perspective is that of the
eleventh article of faith: “We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God
according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same
privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may” (Articles of Faith
1:11).”
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf (Aug
2003, The Church in a Cross-Cultural World)
My mission president taught, in a slightly yoda-style phrase: Grow you must or
shrink you will; we were never designed to just stand still.
The process of conversion does not end on the day we are
baptised. Nor on the day we go to the temple. It is my hope that does not even
end the day after we pass from this life into the next. The word Conversion
means to “Change or be able to change from one form to another.”
What is conversion really for? Why should we change? To what
end?
In a parting piece of advice to Peter, Jesus said “…when
thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.”
There are many ways to use our talents and abilities.
Using them to improve our own lives has merit… but using them to improve the
lives of others has even more.
1 Corinthians 13:8 Charity never faileth: but whether there
be prophecies, they shall fail… whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish
away. 9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is
perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away… 12 For now we
see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but
then shall I know even as also I am known. 13 And now abideth faith, hope,
charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
Nephi was taught by his father, Lehi, that “…the weakness of their words” would be
made “strong in their faith…” (2
Nephi 3:21) Nephi later repeated this message when he taught that “…the words which I have written in weakness
will be made strong unto them; for it persuadeth them to do good.” (2 Nephi
33:4)
"O man, what is good, and
what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to
walk humbly with thy God?" Micah 6:6-8
When I think of all of the amazing things available to learn
and experiences to gather; when I realise that it would take 10s of 1000s of
years to discover all the information in the world (never mind the universe) I
hope I am able to prioritise those things that persuade me to do good. When thou art converted, strengthen each
other. Neither instruction is a completed action. We can continue changing
and converting; we can continue supporting and strengthening throughout our
lives. As our "cup runneth over" let us both expand our cups to receive more and
share the living waters we have already have to refresh the lives of others
around us.
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