Fight the Good Fight!

Last weekend was a semiannual conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Basically, twice a year the living prophets and apostles give addresses for two days of things that they feel inspired to share with members of the Church and the world.  One of the talks, given Saturday night by Jeffrey R. Holland, an apostle, was possibly one of the most stirring I've ever heard.  For all intents and purposes it was a reiteration of the clarion call to keep fighting  the good fight and to not surrender to the declining morality of our society.  (I took tons of notes!)

I've thought about this battle a lot.  Paul's words to the Ephesians come to mind:

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

I meet a lot of people everyday, and I wonder how they're faring in the battle.  With some, the wounds are obvious; with others, it is more difficult to tell what demons they may be facing.  No one goes through this life untouched by strife or unharmed by the buffetings of the enemy. 

But lately, I've come to an understanding of a different tactic to which we often fall prey.  Satan doesn't usually come right out and attack us or parade around touting evil as good and good as evil (although that has unfortunately become much more and more common).  No, he simply distracts us, blinding us with a glittery new toy or money or job or car or house until we've forgotten that this life is temporary, and the things of this world don't go with us when we're gone.  We become wrapped up in the here and now and forget about who we are and where we're going. 

He doesn't beat us by hitting us with a bigger stick; he beats us by making us forget to fight. 

It's for this reason, I'm convinced, that the word remember is one of the most often repeated words in the scriptures.  If we've forgotten to fight or why we're fighting or that there is a fight at all, then Satan has free reign to drag us through the mud and lead us carefully astray; however, if we remember that it is upon the Rock of Jesus Christ that we must build our lives, and we "always remember Him and keep His commandments" that He gives us to be safe and free from the wiles of the devil, to read His words and pray to Him and never ever let something temporary become more important than something eternal, then we will come off conqueror.  We will win the fight, because in all actuality, the fight's already won.  We just have to do everything we can to be on the right side of the line in the sand every single day.

I invite you to reevaluate your priorities.  Are they God's priorities?  Are they eternal in nature?  Are they bringing you closer to Christ or closer to the enemy of your happiness?  I invite you to be honest and brave in rejecting the world's view of happiness.  It's difficult, I know, in this world of glittery things and tangible pleasures.  But I can promise you, as does the Savior, that as you "seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness...all these things shall be added unto you." (Matthew 6:33)  So get back in the fray, fight the good fight, and follow Paul's counsel to Timothy: "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ." 

This fight ain't over yet, soldier.  We're in this till the end!

Much Love,

Elder Spendlove

"And He Gave Some, Apostles..."

My super awesome older brother (who finished his missionary service in Peru this August) posted this video on my facebook page today.  It is a really tender and sweet video about the chance that we have to come unto Christ and feel His mercy, love and understanding every day.  I especially love the fact that it is narrated by apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ ("We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth" [Articles of Faith 1:6, emphasis added].  Essentially, the apostles called by the Lord today have the same calling and commission to testify of Jesus Christ, direct the affairs of His Church, and stand as special witnesses of the Savior.); these men, these "special witnesses of Christ", tell of the glory of the Atonement so beautifully and so simply. I am grateful to know that God is a God of Order and has established His Church on the earth once more, built upon the same "foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone" (Ephesians 2:20). 

Some have said, "well, isn't it enough to just believe in Jesus Christ?  Why do I need some organized religion to tell me how to believe or act?"  The answer lies in the 4th chapter of Ephesians, verses 11 through 14:

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man...
That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive...

We need these apostles and prophets, teachers and pastors, so we can, like the scripture says, come in the unity of the faith!  It is plain to see in today's world that there is much disunity, especially among the sects of Christianity!  Thus, it is imperative that we rely upon the men whom God has chosen to be our guides, to be our "foundation", with, of course, Jesus Christ as the "chief cornerstone".  And how can we be certain they are actually called of God?  It all goes back to the Prophet Joseph Smith.  He received the priesthood (the power and authority to act in God's name) from Peter, James, and John themselves, fulfilling the declaration "no man taketh this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron [by the laying-on of hands]" (Hebrews 5:4).  Through an unbroken line following this pattern, the apostles and prophets of today hold that same authority.

I am grateful that there are authorized servants of the Lord upon the earth today.  I know that if we follow their counsel we will be safe and we will be built upon a firm foundation.

MUCH LOVE,

Elder Spendlove

P.S.  Here's some additional reading/listening/viewing about prophets today!