THE ONLY ANSWER

 

“I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go”.   – Abraham Lincoln

There comes a time in life when you know that God is your only answer……for comfort, for understanding, for help, for healing. I can testify of His efficacy because I have experienced it in my life. It’s a time when you know nothing and nobody of this world could come to your rescue and fix what seeks to destroy you. When a storm so big and so violent and so soul crushing comes into your life, and you cry out for help, the Saviour comes to do what He alone can do, He comes to save.

I think of a great moment in His ministry when Jesus showed His capacity to do so. Whilst preaching in Capernaum, His fame had spread so far and wide that ‘multitudes from Galilee, and from Judea, and from Jerusalem, and from Idumea, and from beyond Jordan, and they around Tyre and Sidon’ came unto Him’.  They pressed upon Him to touch Him and ‘even unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God’(Mark 2:7-11).

So great was the multitude who were by the sea on the land that the Saviour had to enter a ship to preach to them (Mark 4:1). When they had dispersed, and evening had come, the tiredness had overcome Him and He slept through a violent storm. This is the moment of His humanity that sears my heart. I cannot fathom how intense that three-year mission was for Him as He traversed the dusty roads of Galilee and Judea on foot with no doubt little rest.

And this is the moment when the Saviour showed His saving power. As the storm increased it became obvious to His disciples that it was beyond their power to control the vessel they were in. And this is something significant. They were experienced fishermen who knew how to handle a boat in the storm but they called upon Jesus, the carpenter.

They knew that He was the only answer in an unbeatable storm and there was nowhere else to go. And this is how they knew. When Jesus proclaimed Himself as the bread of life, many of His followers stopped following Him. When Jesus asked the Twelve, “Will ye also go away?”, Simon Peter answered: “Lord, to whom shall we go?.....we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.” (John 6:66-69)

 

He arose and rebuked the roaring winds

 and the raging sea.

He, who with His word

caused the earth to be,

Spoke to the Galilean tempest:

“Peace, be still”.

He who has all things

under His command,

Calmed the troubled sea of dismay

in the souls of men.

He, who holds all humanity

in the palm of His hand,

Caused the waves of the sea

to whisper His name.

 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Coming to Save You by B. Laura Wilson) 

THE DIVINE GARDENER

 

“We grow in two ways – removing negative weeds and cultivating positive flowers. The Saviour’s grace blesses both parts – if we do our part. First and repeatedly we must uproot the weeds of sin and bad choices. It isn’t enough just to mow the weeds. Yank them out by the roots, repenting fully to satisfy the conditions of mercy. But being forgiven is only part of our growth. We are not just paying a debt. Our purpose is to become celestial beings. So once we’ve cleared our heartland, we must continually plant, weed, and nourish the seeds of divine qualities. And then as our seeds and discipline stretch us to meet His gifts, ‘the flowers of grace appear’…..like hope and meekness. Even a tree of life can take root in this heart-garden, bearing fruit so sweet that it lightens all our burdens ‘through the joy of his Son (Alma 32:23)” (Elder Bruce C. Hafen, CR April 2004, 100-101; or Ensign May 2004, 97)

Often when it comes to repentance we think all we need to do is stop doing the wrong things but this is far from the truth. It is not enough to stop doing wrong things, we must also do the right things for repentance to be permanent and sincere. If we don’t replace the bad with the good, there is a big chance that we will eventually return to the bad.

Repentance entails so much more than confessing and forsaking. Repentance is the start of the road to change and becoming someone we had not previously been. Repentance is useless if it is not a process of refining and developing within us a celestial being. All the work put into it becomes useless if the end product does not yield a mighty change of heart and a new person in Christ.

Sometimes we expect the fruits of our repentance to be instantaneous. We expect a mighty change overnight and a total eradication of our desire for wrong doing. Consider the following story:

“A friend of mine recently wrote to me, confiding that he was having a difficult time keeping his testimony strong and vibrant. He asked for counsel. I wrote back to him and lovingly suggested a few specific things he could do that would align his life more closely with the teachings of the restored gospel. To my surprise, I heard back from him only a week later. The essence of his letter was this: “I tried what you suggested. It didn’t work. What else have you got?” ( President Dieter F. Uchdorf, The Way of the Disciple, Ensign May 2009, 76-77)

Nobody became celestial material overnight. It takes a journey of a lifetime to perfect obedience and endurance. For me, sin is anything that does not keep me in alignment with God and which sabotages my eternal progression. When I am aligned with God, I feel His spirit on consistent basis regardless of the circumstances of my life.

Because sin makes us weak, repentance oftentimes seems beyond our capacity. The good news is that we are not required to do this alone. Through the power of Christ’s Atonement, we can receive of His strength to assist us in rooting out the weeds of sin. This is what Christ died for, not only to forgive us, but to lift us and enable us to become celestial beings that Elder Hafen spoke of. Without the effects of Christ’s Atonement we cannot fulfil our eternal destiny. The Saviour grants us power over physical and spiritual death and brings us into God’s presence once again. We are not left alone on the path to spiritual excellence and godhood. He is the Divine Gardener without whom we cannot achieve our optimum excellence.  He is with us every step of the way…..if we will allow Him to be.

Grant me Thy power, dear Saviour

To embrace the grandeur of my eternal goal

That I might sin less and obey more.

Thou who art the deliverer of my soul

May glory be Thine forever more.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: The Divine Gardener by Greg Collins)