THE PRIDE OF TYRE

 

I was mesmerised with the fall of Tyre as I studied Ezekiel this year. This island was anciently located between Carmel in Israel and Beirut in Lebanon. In short, Tyre was a major destination for merchant ships in the eastern Mediterranean. Because of this commerce Tyre amassed obscene wealth and became the crown jewel of the seas (Ezekiel 27:5-9). The Lord compared it to the Garden of Eden….until iniquity was found in her (Ezekiel 28:15).  So great was Tyre that Ezekiel devoted three chapters to lament the fall of its glory (chapters 26,27,28). Chapter 26 states the reason for the fall is Tyre’s rejoicing in the fall of Judah but an even more serious crime becomes evident by chapter 28: “Thus saith the Lord God: Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou has said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God.” (v2). Sound familiar???

 

Because Tyre had set its heart as the heart of God (Ezekiel 28:6) Jehovah pronounced: I will destroy thee…I will cast thee to the ground….I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth…and never shalt thou be any more (vs 16-18). Because of its strong fortifications, nobody could conquer Tyre and so the more detailed prophecies of its destruction remained unfulfilled for nearly three hundred years….until 332 B.C. when Alexander the Great swept in and reduced this island to rubble. Today the island of Tyre is nothing more but a small peninsula jutting into the sea where the local fishermen come to spread their nets to dry. 

 

I look at the world today and I see the pride of Tyre….even those who are not swimming in wealth are lifted up in the pride of their hearts elevating themselves and fortifying the culture of self-importance and self-identity. We are encouraged from all sides to put ourselves first so we can become our own gods and worship the father of me-ism who is Lucifer, son of the morning (Isaiah 14:12);  the author of all sin (Helaman 6:26-31); the source of ultimate pride (Moses 4:1); the thief in the night who comes to steal our spiritual identity, kill our faith in God and destroy our commitment to Christ (John 10:10).

 

Imagine there was no Atonement and we were heading for certain destruction without any hope of delivery. Imagine we were destined for death and hell without any hope of saving grace. But there IS hope…..He who loves the Father without compare has ensured the penitent will not be swallowed up in the despair of the damned. He has ensured our victory over death and sin. He has saved us and paved the way to our safety. He is the antidote to all the destruction the adversary can bring upon us. He is the light, the truth and the way. To all who want to be saved He says:

 

I wait for you to come

Into the shadow of my wings;

I have paid the price: come unto Me,

Your God and Your King. 

 

 - CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: The Invitation by Jenedy Paige)

SHEPHERDS OF ISRAEL

 

 

There is a significant promise in the Book of Jeremiah that should make us grateful for General Conference. In chapter 3, we read of ancient Israel’s betrayal of the covenant they had made with Jehovah by pursuing other gods through idolatry. This wandering away was attributed heavily to ‘the shepherds of Israel’, meaning their leaders, who led the flock astray. However, the Lord made an amazing promise through Jeremiah that in the days of ‘gathering’, meaning our day, He will give us worthy Church leaders ‘according to MINE HEART which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding’ (Jeremiah 3:15). This has been the truth for me. I am a convert of 40 years and I can say with certainty and gratitude that the Church leaders have brought me to Christ. 

 

But there is even a more blissful promise than this. Ezekiel 34 rends my heart. It reveals the sorrowful heart of the Saviour who weeps over His flock saying: “My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them” (v6). He then proclaims a harsh judgment against Israel’s shepherds who scattered the flock anciently but then gives us a hope to surpass all sorrow: “Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep and seek them out….I will seek out my sheep….and gather them…and feed them upon the mountains of Israel….I will feed them in a good pasture….I will seek that which was lost…I will feed my flock…….ye are my flock, the flock of my pasture, and I am your God…. (v11-31)…….

 

We roam this earth

Lost, scattered, disowned,

Yet forgotten nevermore.

From the anguish of Thy heart

Thou art gathering the lost

To keep them safe in Thy keep;

Thou art the Shepherd

Who desires in His bosom

The flock of His beloved sheep.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art by Liz Lemon Swindle)

MY HOPE

 

 

My moment of being lifted to higher ground came to me this morning. Following passages of the Second Coming, a simple short verse: “For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come” (Isaiah 63:4). As I looked up the reference in the footnotes to confirm what I thought I understood about ‘the year of my redeemed’, my heart skipped a beat as I read: “And now the year of my redeemed is come; and they shall mention the loving kindness of their Lord, and all that he has bestowed upon them according to his goodness, and according to his loving kindness, forever and ever.” (D&C 133:52). Who are the redeemed? We are. We, the followers of Christ who have accepted His salvation. If you are suffering, hang on! He will come and will wipe away all our tears (Rev 7:17; 21:4) and make up for everything! In the meantime, trust in His goodness and His loving kindness that will endure forever and ever…..

 

You opened my heart

And searched for what 

You there did not see;

My feeble faith and lack of trust

Stood in contrast to your will for me.

You sorrowed at the tears I shed

With every step I was led to take

To find You in my hour of agony.

How patiently You stood waiting

With open arms hoping I would come to Thee.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: Come To Me by Yongsung Kim)

TO BE FREE

 

For years I admired and at times envied someone in my close circle who was doing all the wrong things but seemed to have it all. I felt under-privileged and even victimised by my persistent and arduous journey on the strait and narrow. At times I even wondered if doing the right things was worth it. I arrived at my 60s with pretty much nothing; no husband, no home, no financial security, no material possessions. Now that I am here, however, I realise I have something far more superior to any of these things.  And that someone who seemed to have it all? Well, she has bondage. Over the years as I have watched this person be led 'by the neck with a flaxen cord'  (2 Nephi 26:22) my feelings of admiration and envy have turned to pity and compassion. Recently I spent some time on the phone with this person as she related through tears her entrapment in an emotionally abusive and spiritually degrading situation. After years of bad choices, her faith in God has all but been destroyed and belief in the basics of the Gospel been severely diminished. How does a flaxen cord become so strong around a person's neck that the adversary has the power to bind a person with it forever? (2 Nephi 26:22). The answer is, with one bad choice at a time and with each choice, a lack of repentance. And lack of repentance means only one thing, suffering. What once seemed like freedom to choose turns out not to be freedom at all.

In his latest conference talk, President Oaks said that 'we can be cleansed by the process of repentance' (Oaks, 'Cleansed by Repentance', CR April 2019). As I contemplated this I realised that this cleansing is not only beneficial in regards to final judgment and eternal life but that it is also meant to be advantageous to us here and now. True and sincere repentance leads to forgiveness and forgiveness leads to freedom. Freedom from the effects of sin such as: shame, guilt, lack of self-respect, low self-esteem, depression, emotional pain, sorrow, anxiety, weakened personal and spiritual power and all negative emotions generated by sin. As I contemplated further about the freeing power of forgiveness I also came to understand how much more freedom we can gain as we willingly forgive others. Setting aside the fact that forgiving others is a commandment (D&C 64:9,10), I am certain this commandment was put into place for the benefit of the victim and not the oppressor or perpetrator. Some people erroneously believe that forgiving someone their offences means that our forgiveness absolves them from their actions and that means that they are forgiven. In reality, we do not possess the power to forgive anyone's sins. That power rests with God. Forgiving another their trespass against us means acknowledging their human frailties and freeing ourselves from the effects of their actions such as: resentment, hatred, bitterness, judgment, pain and all inflicted suffering. This can be a tall order however, where a very serious offence has taken place. How do you forgive physical and mental abuse by a spouse, sexual abuse by a family member, betrayal of a loved one, even murder of someone close to you?

I can testify to you that there is no pain bigger than the Atonement. When it is beyond our mortal capability to forgive another there is still hope. I have been through an experience in my life too personal to recount where forgiveness was beyond me. It was in that moment of suffering that I was given to know that through my faith in Jesus Christ and the power of His Atonement I could be gifted a forgiving heart. As I petitioned the Lord over and over, this gift was granted. I cannot adequately describe all the positive consequences that ensued as a result of this gift in my life and the lives of those around me, especially my children. The freedom it afforded me decades ago lives with me still. That gift of a forgiving heart has enabled me to forgive over and over the foibles of others;  from my friends to Church leaders to my children to strangers. It has taught me to let go and do so with compassion. This in turn has increased my capacity to love. 

As I listened to my friend agonise over her situation I wondered why we choose pain in our lives when we can have so much better through obedience to God's commandments. Sin is never as good as it appears to be. To those not vigilant enough, appearances are easily misunderstood. But gloss can dim overnight and reveal its ugliness and the devil calls for collection of debt all too soon. Compare his clutches of deceit and hatred to the loving arms of the Saviour who vigilantly watches over us waiting for the slightest act of obedience so that He might bless us. I am certain our pain is His pain and with everlasting mercy and kindness He stands with open arms to receive us and give us freedom from the wounds inflicted by our thoughtlessness, ignorance and waywardness. For has He not said, '....though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow....be faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments of God, and I will encircle thee in the arms of my love." (Isaiah 1:18; D&C 6:20)