Faith to Move a Mountain

While studying my scriptures one morning I came across the verse in Matthew 27:20 where the Savior teaches that if we have faith the size of a mustard seed, we can move mountains.

I pondered that verse for several days. I am certainly no prophet, and my faith may be much smaller than most, but I was pretty sure I at least had faith the size of a mustard seed! After all mustard seeds are tiny!! You can barely see them! Certainly my faith is at least that big!!

So I thought I would give it a try. There is a mountain by my house I wouldn’t mind having moved. Well, in the spirit of full disclosure, I must admit it really isn’t a mountain. Not by the Rocky Mountain standards, anyway. It is just a small hill. And a hill, I thought, would be a good place to start.

But the hill didn’t move. Not at all. I realize I didn’t really have a purpose to move the hill, other than my desire to say to someone, “Guess what I did today? I moved a mountain! Yep! That is what happens when your faith is as big as a mustard seed! You move mountains! Whether they want to be moved or not. . . .”

But I failed.

And so I continued to ponder the verse.

Then one day I had an experience that gave me some added insight.

Our son-in-law was applying to several graduate schools. The school that had the program he liked the most, didn’t have all the classes necessary to meet his particular needs and so it didn’t appear he would be able to attend there.

One morning my daughter called to tell me they had received an email from the school saying the dean of the college had agreed to adapt the program to his needs and if he were interested, they would love to have him come and be the first student in his specific area of study.

Later that day, in gratitude, I knelt in prayer to thank Heavenly Father for this blessing. While expressing appreciation that the program was being adapted to our son in law’s needs, a very clear voice came into my head saying, “A mountain was just moved.”

And then I understood the lesson the Savior was teaching much better.

We know Enoch literally moved mountains (Moses 7:13) but there was a necessity for him to do so. Most of us, at least at this time in our lives, don’t need to move the Wasatch Front, the Andes or the Alps to a different location. But most of us do encounter obstacles on our paths.

And when the Spirit has confirmed we are on the right path, and an obstacle arises to block our way, we can pray in faith to have the obstacle, the mountain, moved. And then, just as Moses told the people of Israel, as he stood on the shore of the Red Sea,

“Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord.” (Exodus 14:13)

Lori Wagner,

One Mormon Voice

The Purpose of Life--And it ISN'T just about being tested!!

As a young girl I was taught our purpose in life was to get a body and be tested to see if we would always be obedient.  I have to admit, thinking I existed solely to take a test wasn’t very motivating. It left me to wonder, isn’t there more to life than getting a body and taking a test? After all, what is the purpose of having a body? And why is obedience so important?

The simple answer lies in the teachings of the Book of Mormon prophet Lehi to his children, found in 2 Nephi 2:25. “Adam fell that men might be, and men are that they might have joy.” There is the answer!

The purpose of life is to find joy and happiness.

And joy and happiness is found in becoming like our Heavenly Parents

Our Heavenly Father is a perfected glorified being who is literally the father of our spirits. His purpose, His work and His glory is to help us become like Him, whereby we can receive the fullness of His joy. That is why the plan that allows for us to learn and do what we need to do here, to qualify to return to God’s presence, is often called “The Plan of Happiness”.

Joseph Smith taught, “Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be in the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it. . .”

And while visiting His disciples in the Americas, the Savior promised them, “ . . .

and ye shall sit down in the kingdom of my Father; yea, your joy shall be full, even as the Father hath given me fulness of joy; and ye shall be even as I am, and I am even as the Father; and the Father and I are one” 3 Nephi 28:10

Our Heavenly Father and Savior experience a fullness of joy because they are glorified perfected beings. Likewise we will not experience this fullness until we too have reached perfection. However, perfection is a process, not an event,  and as we move forward, progressing on the covenant path, which is the path to exaltation, we can experience joy and happiness now.

Here are three main ways we can experience joy in this life as we prepare for a fullness of joy in the hereafter:

Joy is found in obedience

There are two forces at work in the universe. Good and evil. Whereas God’s purpose is to help us be good and choose freedom and happiness, Satan’s purpose is to trick us into choosing evil, captivity and misery. The more we become like God, the happier we are. The more we become like Satan, the more miserable.

The reason we are “being tested” to see if we will choose obedience, is not so we can learn obedience simply for obedience sake, it is so we can learn Godhood and be happy.

Moroni taught, “Come unto Christ and be perfected in him”  . . . And the Savior taught us that we “come unto Him” by following the covenant path of faith in Jesus Christ and His atonement, repentance, baptism for the remission of sins, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring in righteousness until the end of our lives.  This is the path that leads us back to our Heavenly home. Choosing to follow this path is “the test” of our obedience.

But it is not just a path we follow so we can receive a reward at the end. It is also the way we become like our Heavenly Father. With every commandment we keep we are developing a Christlike attribute, and with every Christlike attribute we develop, we are becoming more like God. And the more we become like God, the more joy and happiness we will have in this life and in the life to come.  

Alma the Younger in the Book of Mormon is a good example of both the power of Satan’s misery and the greater power of God’s happiness. Alma not only rebelled against God personally, but he spent his time persuading others to also participate in his wickedness. In answer to the prayers of his father and the people, an angel appeared to him and called him to repentance. In his own words he taught:

“I was racked with eternal torment, for my soul was harrowed up to the greatest degree and racked with all my sins. Yea, I did remember all my sins and iniquities for which I was tormented with the pains of hell . .  . .”

For three days and three nights he suffered this anguish. But then he remembered what his father had taught him about Christ and His atonement and he cried out to Christ for deliverance. He then continues, “And oh, what joy and what marvelous light I did behold, yea my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain.” (Alma 36:12-20)  When Alma later taught his son Corianton, “wickedness never was happiness” he knew of what he was teaching.

Joy is found in the family

God is literally our Heavenly Father, or in other words, the Father of our spirits. We are part of His eternal family. His entire work and glory, and therefore His joy and happiness, comes in helping us become like Him and receiving the joy and happiness He has.

Therefore, in order for us to receive a fullness of joy, His purpose must become our purpose. His work must become our work. And His purpose and work is all about the family.

That is why the family is central to God’s plan for the happiness of His children. That is why we needed to come to earth to have bodies—so we could then have children. That is why being sealed for time and eternity is the crowning ordinance of the gospel. That is why when we speak of being exalted (God’s greatest blessing offered to His children) we are speaking of having an eternal family.

But we don’t have to wait until the next life to have joy in family life. That joy and happiness can and should be found in family relationships right now, here on earth.

I realize that sometimes when we are surrounded by messy diapers and dirty dishes, crying babies and sick toddlers that happiness in family life may seem like a fairytale. I have not found marriage easy, nor raising children to be all roses and butterflies. But I have experienced a lot of joy in my family.

I rejoiced when I over heard a son in law teaching his two year old daughter how to pray. My heart smiled when I was visiting my son’s home, and in the middle of the night heard him lovingly say to his little boy, who had been throwing up, “You have to get it into the bucket, Buddy.” I find great happiness in watching my children gather their little ones around at night to read the scriptures, or see them all kneel to say prayers. I still get stomach flutters when my husband winks at me across a room. And I think growing old together is wonderfully romantic.

We recently were separated from our children for three years while we served a mission in Mexico. When we were released, we drove straight to Utah where we met all of our children and their families for a family reunion. It was at the moment they arrived and all 19 of us gathered together in the family room that I truly understood the meaning of the phrase “joy and rejoicing in your posterity.” It was the most beautiful sight!! And it was my greatest joy!

No wonder Satan fights so hard to destroy the family!

Joy is found in loving service

The Savior taught that the first and greatest commandment is to love God. The second commandment is to love others.

Love is the motivating force behind all that God does. Love is why He created this world so we could come here, receive our bodies and progress toward perfection. Love is why He sent His Son to earth to live, suffer and die for us. Love is why the Savior was willing to sacrifice His life so we could live again in the presence of our Heavenly Father. Love is why God hears and answers our prayers.

Jesus taught, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” Therefore, love becomes our motivating force in keeping God’s commandments, because we want to live with our Heavenly Father again!

And when we truly love our Heavenly Father, we also truly love all of His children, our spiritual brothers and sisters. One of the best ways to know if we are progressing toward our goal of becoming like our Heavenly Father is if we are increasing in love toward our fellowman.

Which is why Moroni taught in Moroni 7:48 that if we have charity, “ . . .when he [Christ] shall appear we shall be like him . . . “

One of my favorite examples of joy in service is found in the story of Ammon and the Anti-Nephi-Lehites.  The four sons of Mosiah were partners in iniquity with Alma the Younger, and repented when he did. The suffering they experienced as part of their repentance process, created in them a desire to share the gospel with the Lamanites—people they perceived to be the most wicked of all. Their love for their fellowman was their motivation to leave their own families, travel to another land, suffer numerous trials and deprivations to teach their enemies. And thousands repented and joined the Church.

Upon seeing the fruits of their labors, Ammon exclaimed, “. . .  my joy is full, yea my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God. . . .yea we will rejoice for our joy is full, yea, we will praise our God forever. . . “ (Alma 26:11-12)

Ammon didn’t just learn obedience. He learned love. And in so doing, he felt great joy.

The greatest service we can offer anyone is to share with them the gospel through either missionary work or temple work. But we have also been commanded to clothe the naked, feed the hungry, liberate the captive and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted. (Jacob 2:19) And it is in these acts of service, both great or small, that we learn to love others and feel deep and true joy.

Putting it all together . . .

Think for a minute about Lehi’s dream of the Tree of Life. The goal in the dream was to get to the tree, but in order to do that, a person had to follow the path to the tree by clinging to the iron rod. The rod, we learn in 1 Nephi 11, represents the word of God, which we can receive through reading the scriptures, listening to the prophets or personal revelation through the Holy Ghost.

In other words, clinging to the rod, means being obedient to God’s commandments, and being obedient is how we progress on the covenant path—which is the only way to get to the tree.

And what does the tree represent? We also learn in 1 Nephi 11 it represents the love of God for us, His children. But why would God use a tree and fruit to represent His love for us?

Because a tree is also the symbol of the family. The highest, most pure love is the love of Heavenly Parents for each other, and for their children. Love is not just a feeling our Heavenly Parents feel, it is what They do and who They are.

And, as the angel taught Nephi, that pure, perfect familial, Godlike love . . .

Is . . .  “the most joyous to the soul”. (1 Nephi 11:23)

And that is the purpose of life!

Happy Sabbath!!

Why The Mormon Church Does Not Support Gay Marriage

Recently a friend expressed to me, “What is the big deal? Why can’t The Church support gay marriage? Live and let live is a kinder approach to life, anyway, isn’t it?”

I have given this a lot of thought and here is my response to my friend and anyone else who may ask the same question.

There are three basic doctrines central to Mormonism, and in order to understand the Church’s position on any political or social issue, it is critical to understand these three doctrines, as they will always guide any decision made.

1.     At the very core of the doctrine of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) is the belief that we are literal spiritual offspring of Heavenly Parents, (a mother and a father), and our highest purpose on this earth is to prove ourselves worthy to become like Them.  “Like Them” means having a marriage that lasts throughout eternity where husband and wife become like God, have their own spirit children and help those children become as their parents are.  That is God’s work. It is His purpose. It is His glory. (See Moses 1:39)

2.     Jesus Christ is our literal spirit brother and the Only Begotten of God the Father in the flesh. Christ’s Atonement is so vast, so powerful, and so complete that it allows every single person who has ever lived on this earth to literally be resurrected. And for those who prove themselves worthy, it also provides the way for them to obtain the power, knowledge, wisdom and perfection necessary to become like our Heavenly Parents.

3.     The vast power of the Atonement is available through sacred ordinances and covenants with Jesus Christ. The authority to administer those ordinances and validate those covenants was given to Joseph Smith through angelic ministers. Joseph Smith, as in days of old, was called by God to be His prophet, and the authority to govern Christ’s church has been passed down from Joseph Smith until Thomas S. Monson today.

So now to specifically answer the question . . .

Since Eternal Marriage and Eternal Parenthood are our highest goals, any practice or belief that hinders or prevents a person from reaching that goal can never be supported by the Mormon Church. The Church will never support something that is in direct opposition to its most core doctrine.

Based on that doctrine, the most fundamental reason to not support gay marriage is simply because two people of the same gender cannot procreate. Without the power of procreation, God’s purpose (that of helping His children progress), identity (that of a father) and glory (His glory increases as He helps his children obtain what He has) would cease to exist. (Moses 1:39)

Please take a minute and think about that. 

But if you still don't believe, then perhaps your next question will be, “Isn’t that doctrine discriminatory and hateful?”

If it were only gay marriage then perhaps that might be true. But remember the Church will not support any belief or practice that prevents a person from reaching their full potential. Gay marriage is only one of many practices that stop people from progressing toward Godhood.

An Invitation to Everyone . . .
The gospel of Jesus Christ is an open invitation to all mankind everywhere to “Come unto Christ and be perfected in Him.” (Moroni 10:32) For it is in becoming perfected, in other words, becoming like our Heavenly Parents, that true joy and happiness will be found. Inviting people everywhere to come and partake of that joy, is not hateful. It is God’s plan for His children.

The invitation also does not discriminate.  It does not matter your color, your creed, body shape, social position, marital status, or gender preference.  It does not matter what sins you have or crimes you may have committed. The invitation is an invitation to everyone to come and worship together. We are all God’s children and He loves us all! And he invites us to come to Him just as we are.

This invitation is so vast, and taken so seriously that each year thousands of young men and women, and senior couples, at their own expense, leave the comfort of their homes to journey to other towns and far away lands to extend the invitation to any who will listen.

The invitation is so inclusive that every person who dies without having received a personal invitation to follow Christ and become as He and our Heavenly Parents are, will be given that invitation in the next life. And through proxy ordinances done in temples across the world, those people will have the opportunity to accept or reject the work done in their behalf.

But remember, the invitation is to Come Unto Christ and be perfected in Him. God never intended us to remain just as we are. He always intended us to change. He always intended us to become perfect—to become as He is. 

So come now. Come just as you are. But come ready to change, because in perfection we receive our greatest happiness and in Godhood we receive our deepest joy. And that happiness and joy is what our Heavenly Father wants to give all of us.

Now to those who may reject the invitation and the doctrine, I ask you this,

Is there a better plan out there?

Is there a plan that places a greater value on mankind? Is there a plan that gives us greater potential than Godhood? Is there a plan that offers more hope and more peace than eternal families?

If you can believe just a little, your next question might be, “If it is all true, then why am I like I am?”

The answer lies in the words of Christ Himself. “. . . 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.” (Ether 12:27)

Every one of us falls much short of perfection. But imperfections, weaknesses, and challenges are some of the ways God has given us to help us realize our need for the Savior. And as we turn our hearts toward Christ, and apply His Atonement in our lives through covenant, we can receive the power to overcome.

Some of you may now ask, “But what if I don’t want an eternal family?”

Then you don’t have to have one. Agency has always been a guiding principle of the gospel. Those who reject the invitation to change their life, enter into sacred covenants and become like their Heavenly Parents, will not be forced to do so.  But the full blessings of the gospel and the fullness of joy are reserved for those who are willing to do all that God asks them to do. And the purpose of the Church is to help each of us be obedient to God.  

Because . . .

That is God’s plan for happiness. That is God’s plan of love.

Lori Wagner

One Mormon Voice

If you want to read more about Mormon belief on life after this life or same sex attraction, you can do so by clicking on the links below.

 Becoming Like God

Same Sex Attraction