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

Ch-Ch-Changes!



Yup.  It was time for some Spring cleaning--I revamped the blog.  I hope you like the new layout and new face of what was previously "He Hath Filled Me With His LOVE", now A Christian's Mormon Mission. 

Turn and face the strange!

It's been a time of change for me as a missionary and as a person.  I've come to a new area (Sebastopol, California), I'm with a new companion (Elder Darion Bevan, who was actually my first companion!), and I've got new responsibilities.  I'm visiting new people, driving to new places, and trying new things.  It's all been a whirlwind affair, but it's been great. 

I really like what Thomas S. Monson, a prophet of God, has said about change.  He sums it up really well:

At one time or another we’ve all heard some form of the familiar adage: “Nothing is as constant as change.”

Throughout our lives, we must deal with change. Some changes are welcome; some are not. There are changes in our lives which are sudden, such as the unexpected passing of a loved one, an unforeseen illness, the loss of a possession we treasure. But most of the changes take place subtly and slowly.

...

Day by day, minute by minute, second by second we went from where we were to where we are now. The lives of all of us, of course, go through similar alterations and changes. The difference between the changes in my life and the changes in yours is only in the details. Time never stands still; it must steadily march on, and with the marching come the changes. (General Conference, October 2008, emphasis added)

I've thought a lot recently about the changes I've made as a missionary and especially as an individual these last 18 months.  I think about who I was, what got under my skin, what I liked, what my thoughts were back then compared to now and I have to stop and thank God for the help He's given me.  Like he says, the changes have come slowly, almost imperceptibly, but they have come.  I know that there are lots more changes to come in my life, especially when I get tossed back into the "real world" when my time as a missionary is through, but that's OK!  I know that with the changes come the blessings.  Sometimes they're hidden, sometimes they don't come right away, but if we are trying our best and leaving to God the rest, we'll come out alright in the end.

Life changes.  Things change.  People change.  The world changes.  God's love never changes.  And for all the changes that do happen, I'm thankful for that constant. 

Much Love,

Elder Spendlove