Sister Lyle talked about humility in sacrament meeting yesterday. She did a great job. As she tracked through passages of scripture from the Topical Guide, a new image settled into my mind.
Maybe humility is like shedding the cloak of self-sufficiency and worldly concerns in order to have the Lord “encircle [us] around in the robe of [His] righteousness” (2 Nephi 4:33). Maybe God is inviting each of us to shed our identities and pretenses and put on His identity and purposes. Only when His purposes guide our perceptions and actions will we be on that strait and narrow way.
God tells us why some of us are not chosen: “Because [our] hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men” (D&C 121:35).
Funny, isn’t it? The things that demand out time and attention most in this life—work, home maintenance, shopping, recreation—are, in the eternal perspective, distractions. They are a test intended to see if we will stay focused on eternity.
“And if your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things” (D&C 88:67).
I’m inviting the Lord to encircle me in His robes.
9 Comments
I like all your thoughts. You have great perspective. Thank you.
Reminds me of an analogy a friend made. Following God is like setting your alarm clock the night before work. You know what you need to do, and the amount of time you need, in order to get work on time, and and be prepared. The night before…it makes COMPLETE sense. But, as morning hits, and that alarm goes off, we hit snooze 1,2, 3 times, making compromises on what we need to do. All of a sudden, it makes no sense why we should get up at that time. When we decide to wholeheartedly follow Jesus, our focus is there, our heart and being is into it; but often times we hit snooze on following Christ, in a fog, making bad decisions, when we are choked by lifes worries, demands…even feeling tired. It’s important to evaluate your discipleship, and take note of the “unconscious” habits we have formed that lead us astray. Start witht the small ones.
Amen, Kelly! By small and simple things…
Great thoughts and insights – as always.
Thanks!
“The things that demand our time and attention most in this life…are, in the eternal perspective, distractions.”
I LOVE that line. It’s so completely true. I think our Heavenly Father is letting us know what He values by what He allows us to take into the next world: families, relationships, intelligence, experience. These are the things that truly matter.
Only when we are naked from earthly things do we earn the right to be encircled in His robes.
Thanks for a lovely, though-provoking post, Brother Goddard.
“Fortunately, I believe that the Lord only requires partial, gradual undressing or ‘line upon line’ nakedness.
I think it was Stephen Robinson (?) who re-interpreted the Savior’s saving grace process in 2 Nephi 25:23 as being concurrent with our efforts instead of occurring after our efforts, perhaps more appropriately substituting an “as” instead of an all-or-nothing “after.”
“For we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.” Try instead “as we do all we can do.”
I don’t think all those daily events that take our attention are really distractions but the soil of our mortality where we learn to be patient, long suffering, kind, not puffed up…all those characteristics of charity that are difficult to remember in the mundane comings and goings of our life. We are all nice at church and on our knees at prayer but can we maintain our goodness when kids are late for school and someone is rude while shopping or a million other irritations that make up a day. How does the Lord encircle me in his robes to keep these daily mortal trials from breaking us down?
Dr Wally,
Your wonderfully worded article came to me a few weeks ago, and I left it sitting in my Inbox, because my life has turned topsy-turvy lately, and I haven’t been able to concentrate enough to read much.
This morning, I opened it up, and found that it holds, in part, an answer to my prayers.
I just wanted to thank you and let you know that you make a difference for good!
Bless you for your efforts in communicating the inspirations you receive.
Have a wonderful day!
“SOIL of mortality.” Beautiful phrase Charmaine. Thank you for sharing it.