A LIGHT INTO ETERNITY

 

My Guiding Light by Greg Collins

You enliven my spirit;

You bring me to life;

You enrich my impoverished heart.

You are the God of power and might;

You make of me what I alone could never be,

You light my way into eternity.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

ETERNAL BOND

 

In His Tender Care by Jay Bryant Ward

The most comforting of LDS doctrine is one of family eternal bond, especially when it comes to death of children. There is no greater sorrow. It’s the unknown of what could have been had they lived.

The Prophet Joseph Smith and his wife, Emma, who had six of their eleven children die, had reason to ask why. The Prophet said: “I have meditated upon the subject, and asked the question, why is that infants, innocent children, are taken away from us, especially those that seem to be the most intelligent and interesting. The strongest reasons that present themselves to my mind are these: This world is a very wicked world…..The Lord takes many away, even in infancy, that they may escape the envy of man, and the sorrows and evils of this present world; they were too pure, too lovely, to live on earth; therefore, if rightly considered, instead of mourning we have reason to rejoice as they are delivered from evil, and we shall soon have them again. (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith (2007), 177)

Emma lived almost 35 years after the martyrdom of her prophet-husband. A few days before she died she told her nurse, Elizabeth Revel, that Joseph had come to her in a vision and said: "'Emma, come with me, it is time for you to come with me'.

As Emma related it, she said, 'I put on my bonnet and my shawl and went with him; I did not think that it was anything unusual. I went with him into a mansion, and he showed me through the different apartments of that beautiful mansion'. And one room was the nursery.

In that nursery was a babe in the cradle. She said, 'I knew my babe, my Don Carlos that was taken from me'. She sprang forward, caught the child up in her arms and wept with joy over the child. When Emma recovered herself sufficiently, she turned to Joseph and said, 'Joseph, where are the rest of my children?'

He said to her, 'Emma, be patient and you shall have all of your children'. Then she saw standing by his side a personage of light, even the Lord Jesus Christ." (Gracia N. Jones, My Great-Great-Grandmother, Emma Hale Smith, Ensign Aug 1992)

And this is the most comforting doctrine of all:

“President Joseph F. Smith (1838-1918) lost many children to early deaths. He was comforted by the doctrine that little children would be resurrected as little children and raised to maturity by their righteous parents after the Resurrection. President Smith once shared the following: “Joseph Smith taught the doctrine that the infant child that was laid away in death would come up in the resurrection as a child; and, pointing to the mother of a lifeless child, he said to her: “You will have the joy, the pleasure and satisfaction of nurturing this child, after its resurrection until it reaches the full stature of its spirit.”

“There is restitution, there is growth, there is development, after the resurrection from death. I love this truth. It speaks volumes of happiness, of joy and gratitude to my soul. Thank the Lord he has revealed these principles to us.” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph F. Smith (1998), 132)

Not only will little children reach full maturity, but they will also reach full exaltation. Abinadi taught that “little children also have eternal life” (Mosiah 15:25). The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that “you shall have your children, for they shall have eternal life, for their debt is paid.” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith (1998), 177)

We owe the payment of this debt to one man: our Creator, our God, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Gethsemane was not only the place of sweat but a place of tears. The payment for the Fall and the sins of the world was paid by the sweat and blood of Him who satisfied the law of justice but His tears flowed in the Garden of sorrow for all the broken hearts of grieving parents to this day.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

LIGHT UPON HIS SHOULDERS

 

Light Upon His Shoulders by Yongsung Kim

How strong You have been to carry me so far;

Without retreat, through raging storms,

Up mountains and over treacherous seas.

You did not falter

As you carried me up Calvary’s hill;

Golgotha had no claim on Thee.

How strong Your shoulders must be

To carry me into eternity!

 

-       CATHRYNE ALLEN 

A VIEW OF ETERNITY

 

Joy Cometh In The Morning by LDS Bookstore

For years now I have tried to understand fully the necessity for suffering in mortality. From time to time different insights and portions of understanding have been given to me but recently I received what I consider an adequate and favourable theory of the same.

What came to me first is the reason for our lack of understanding of this subject. It is simply this: it is easy not to understand the here and now because we cannot see beyond this life to the rewards of the splendour of eternity and our eternal place within it.

There are three things I am very convinced of and the first is this. We could see the reward in our pre-earth life and we chose which level of the splendour we wanted  to live in for all eons of time. In other words, we chose there and then where we wanted to end up.

The second is that not everyone wanted godhood. We could see it when we made the choice but we could also see the responsibility of such a state of being and the high price attached to it. Some of us were more spiritually inclined than others and as such we sought for higher spiritual levels of intelligence and power that godhood could give us.

The third is this. Since we are not here to choose our eternal destiny, we are here to prove ourselves worthy of the choice we have already made. All kingdoms are kingdoms of glory and they all have degrees of splendour of eternity.

 And here is the wonder of eternity. The telestial kingdom, being the lowest, is a kingdom of glory that passes all understanding even though it is a kingdom where murderers, rapists, liars, adulterers and all manner of wicked people will go (D&C 76:89). It is also worth noticing that the inhabitants of only this kingdom will be as innumerable as the sand of the seashore (v 109). This is the kingdom for those who sought the ease and glory of earthly life. This is the kingdom that comes with the lowest price. But a price has to be paid even for this kingdom…..the souls who will inherit it will pass through hell to earn their place therein. This is outer darkness where they suffer torments of hell until their resurrection day following the Millenium (Alma 40:11-14; D&C 76:103-106; see also Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, pp 349-50)

And now the necessity for suffering. This life offers us something valuable that helps us prove we deserve the outcome we have chosen: our moral agency. Suffering reveals to us our true nature and refines within us the attributes needed through the exercise of our agency to become worthy of the splendour of our eternal reward. If we wanted godhood, our agency has to develop within us a godly character. Water meets its own level.

For years I have felt my life has been unjust. I have had to live through some major trials and the suffering has been acute. This week I made a list of all the growth I have experienced throughout my life and the qualities I have acquired through my choices to endure, trust, overcome, forgive…..qualities like compassion, love and tolerance. I have learnt mercy and even humility as I was brought down to the dust of the earth. One day I will kneel at the throne of my God and present these gifts as the greatest treasures I have come to own.

Herein is the mercy of two Gods: God the Father who sacrificed His best child for the lowest of His children, and God the Son who willingly submitted to that sacrifice. Honour and glory be theirs forever for the joy that awaits us…..

"In my Father's house are many mansions....I go to prepare a place for you." (John 14:2)

I pledged my life into thy hands

When by example you showed me how;

I promised my trials to endure

When I was with You and do so even now.

 

You dried my tears when I barely coped

And carried me when I could walk no more;

You fed me truths I needed to know

And nurtured my flight into the unknown.

 

As I promised to obey,

You promised we’d never part;

I remember, I remember

And carry it all

In the shadow of my heart.

 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

BEING WORTHY

 

Jesus In The Garden by Pam Wenger

Did You count me amongst

Your valuable host

As we met in the councils of heaven?

Did I stand strong and ready

To defend Your godship;

To smite the enemy,

To secure Your path to my eternity?

Was I brave and willing to carry the cross

Some of the way to Calvary?

Did I weep with you in the Garden

And held You as You bore the burdens of mortality?

Did I wipe the sweat of Your brow

As I wept for You and weep even now?

Did I promise to bear Your name

Etched in my mortal heart for all to see?

Am I now worthy to carry Your sacrifice

With me into eternity?

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

AND THE ANGELS SING

Angels by Wendy Keller

I pleaded with you,

In the beginning,

To bring me home again to Thee.

I promised to heed every call,

To avoid every danger,

To abhor every sin.

 

I have laboured, Father,

to bring joy to Thee

and To be worthy

Of Your love for me.

 

When my time comes,

I will come home to Thee

and I will wait

 at heaven’s door knocking

Until I hear the angels sing.

 

-      Cathryne Allen 

 

THE BOOK OF LIFE

 

Book of Life by Chris Brazelton

Because I am a writer, the very essence of me has been spilt on paper….in my journals, my blogs, my poetry.  My thoughts, feelings, perceptions, understanding, my lessons, my experience here on earth…is all documented. I often look at my journals and notebooks I have used as my companions over the years and I feel sorrow that I will leave them behind when I am called home.

I am convinced that I was a writer in my pre-earth life and that all my writing is waiting for me somewhere in a room that was my very own….and so I  have also hoped that there would be someone I know in heaven who has copied all my earthly writing to add to the existing stash for me to own for eternity.

There just so happens to be a book in heaven in which are recorded names of the righteous who will be immortalized in the analls of eternal history. This book is called the Book of Life:

“In one sense the Book of Life is the total of a person’s thoughts and actions – the record of his life. However, the scriptures also indicate that a heavenly record is kept of the faithful, including their names and accounts of their righteous deeds (Rev 3:5; 20:12; D&C 88:2;128:6-7; Alma 5:58) .”  (LDS Guide to the Scriptures, Book of Life)

A St George Temple worker by the name of Elder John Mickelson Lang received a revelation in 1928 regarding the Book of Life that explains the process of this record keeping:

“Every spirit that comes to earth has a guardian angel, whose duty it is to keep a record of the individual’s parentage, the conditions under which it was born, its inheritance, environment, thoughts and desires, and when the individual’s life is completed, the guardian angel’s mission ends. It returns, makes its report and hands in the record it has kept. This record is placed upon the other book, spoken of as The Book of Life. All this gave me to understand that in this other book is preserved the names and perfect dates of every spirit that ever came to earth.” (Joseph Heinerman, Temple Manifestations, (1836-1930), St George Temple)

 

I want to remember the beauty

Surrendered by the withered rose

And all the memories of my life

Near and far,

I want to take them with me

When I am called to cross the bar.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

MY GUIDING STEPS

 

When I am tempest tossed on turbulent seas

I look to find Thee walking on waves

To rescue me.

I hear Your call, I see Your light,

A beacon of hope,

Your unconquerable might.

I know You will gather me amidst

The storm that seeks to swallow me;

And take me home

When the waves no longer frighten me.

You are my guiding light, the footsteps I clearly see.

I don't stumble but follow into Your arms for eternity. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Footprints of Faith by Ivan Guaderrama)

THE BIRTH OF HOPE

 

 

Out of all my childhood memories, I cherish the ones of Easter the most. I was born and raised in Croatia. I was 13 when my family immigrated to Australia. What remains etched in my heart the most about the home of my birth is the land and its’ nature….every wheatfield I ran through, every tree I climbed, every patch of grass with blooming spring flowers……it is all so firmly locked in my memory.  

When I read the Bible, I know what harvests are and what seasonal festivals are and what shepherds are. And I understand many spiritual truths that were taught by the Saviour using the metaphors that related to agrarian way of life. I know it because I grew up with it.

Easter was a magical time in my youth. It was a time when the snow left and spring came. A time when baby chicks were born and violets emerged from the earth to herald a renewal of life. A time when my mother made me and my sisters new dresses to wear to Church Sunday morning with our Easter baskets laden with food for the priest to bless.

I cannot remember it ever raining on Easter Sunday. The sun shone always, like it wanted to remind us that it was a day of re-birth. It was a time when nature allowed me to see God’s glory.

 Easter Sundays for me overshadowed Good Friday and Christ’s death. As important as that was, Easter Sunday was what I remembered the most because the happiness and knowledge of Christ’s resurrection whispered in spring air.

Now that I am an adult and understand the hope of resurrection for myself, my heart is full of gratitude and hope for eternal life that was born at Calvary. I know that He lives and has overcome the sting of death for my sake. His suffering to make that possible is something I can never repay but the power He gained to exalt me on high is something I will be grateful for forever.

When You rose from Your grave

With healing in Your wings,

Did I live on in Your heart

As you ascended to Your throne

To seal my destiny?

Did You carry us all in Your bosom

With the crucible of the cross

Forever etched in Your memory?

 

Your gift, the beauty of this earth,

That we might always feel You near;

With every movement of the trees

And the rustle of its leaves,

I hear You whisper:

“I am here”

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Blossoms of Life by Greg Collins)

THE DESCENT

 

“Christ’s Atonement was a descent into the seemingly “bottomless pit” of human agony. He took upon himself the sins of the most wretched of all sinners; he descended beneath the cruelest tortures devised by man. His downward journey encompassed the transgressions of those who ignorantly sinned; it incorporated that quantum of suffering unrelated to spiritual error, but nonetheless viably acute in stinging proportions – the agony of loneliness, the pain of inadequacy, the suffering of infirmities and sickness. In the course of His divine descent He was assaulted with every temptation inflicted on the human race……“He descended below all things” (D&C 88:6).”  (Tad R. Callister, “The Infinite Atonement” p 104,5)

If you can find yourself somewhere in that bottomless pit of human agony herein described, don’t despair. There is someone who has met you there and taken upon himself all your suffering. I bear my witness of this truth.

My first major trial lasted 11 years and when it was over I felt shattered and hanging by a thread. This is when I learnt what the Saviour can do through the power of His Atonement. I knew only He could deliver me from the pain I was in and I sought to make the Atonement active in my life. I affirmed my faith in Jesus Christ and asked for its healing power many times during the day. The healing came in such magnitude as I had not expected. It grounded me in my faith of Him as if I was nailed with the spikes of the cross.

During my second major trial, which lasted 20 years, the Atonement of Christ remained active in my life to ensure my survival. Time and time again, He lifted me out of that pit to keep me going. When it was finished, I was given the promise of eternal life. I began to see this earthly life as insignificant in comparison and came to understand what Paul meant when he said if we have faith regarding this life only, we will be of all men most miserable (1 Cor 5:19). My focus on what is yet to come was born.

This time, in my third major trial, I have noticed the power of the Atonement active in my life again differently. I have recognised what it is making of me. Last week, in my extremity, I finally relinquished control and was able to say with heartfelt commitment and all the energy of my soul: “Thy will be done”. No pleading for relief, no pleading for a healing, no pleading for mercy, no battles, just surrender…..just, “Thy will be done”. It was a peace I have never known before.

I prayed in faith

That you would save me

From the river of my tears.

 

You took my soul and rescued me

 And promised I’ll be more than I could be

If I look toward eternity.

 

I look to You in every thought

And surrender all my fears;

Your sacred promise like a flame

Locked in my heart these many years.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Peace to Your Heart by Greg Collins)

A LIFE WITHOUT HOPE

 

“One Sunday morning our teenaged son stood with two other priests to administer the sacrament, as they had done on many prior occasions. They pulled back the white cloth, but to their dismay there was no bread. One of them slipped out to the preparation room in hopes some could be found. There was none.

“Finally, our troubled son made his way to the bishop and shared the concern with him. A wise bishop then stood, explained the situation to the congregation, and asked, “How would it be if the sacrament table were empty today because there was no atonement? I have thought of that often – what would it be like if there were no bread because there had been on crucifixion, no wager because there had been no shedding of blood?

“If there had been no Atonement, what would the consequences be to us? Of course, the question is now moot, but it does put in perspective our total dependence on the Lord. To ask and answer this question only heightens our awareness of, and appreciation for, the Saviour. What might have been, even for the “righteous”, if there had been no atoning sacrifice, stirs the very depths of human emotion.

“First, there would be no resurrection (2 Nephi 9:7); second, our spirits would become subject to the devil and we would become like him (Alma 34:35; 2 Nephi 9:9); third, we would be shut out from the presence of God forever (2 Nephi 9:9); fourth, we would “endure a never-ending torment” (Mosiah 2:39); fifth, we would be without hope, without faith and be of all men most miserable (1 Cor 15:14,19).

-          Tad R. Callister, “The Infinite Atonement” p 57,58)

During the strict covid restrictions when we could not go to Church, I sat at my daughter's kitchen table twice as my son-in-law reverently blessed the sacrament. Each time he did so I couldn’t control my tears. As I sat there I pictured the Saviour sitting at just such an ordinary table and blessing the emblems of His sacrifice and I understood what it was He had actually done for me.

For Him there was no chapel with cushy seats, no organ to assist the song, no fluffy white bread to pleasure the tongue. As my son-in-law passed the sacrament to me on the kitchen plate I came to know what it means to 'eat His body' as I have eaten from that kitchen plate before. Never before or since have I felt so close to the Saviour during Sacrament as I have at my daughter's kitchen table.

If you were not,

I would not be,

Silence would have wept at Calvary!

 

If you were not,

I would not be,

As death would claim me eternally.

 

If you were not,

I would not be,

Joyless would be my destiny.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Breaking Bread by B. Laura Wilson)

THREE PILLARS OF ETERNITY: THE ATONEMENT

 

“You shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God (D&C 14:7). It is a pure gift – we have no right to it: we have proved our helplessness to achieve it and our unworthiness to possess it. Jesus Christ bought it for us: He paid the ransom price, He redeemed us when we could not redeem ourselves, and He gave us eternal life as a free gift. He has taught us how to qualify for the gift, but the gift itself we could never earn by our own efforts.” (Hugh Nibley, “Approaching Zion” p 137)

The above quote is the greatest understanding that I have received regarding the Atonement of Jesus Christ, the study of which can be overwhelming.  I don’t think we will ever come to understand how it was executed, in this life or even the next. It’s an experience exclusive to one person and to fully understand someone’s experience one has to be a partaker of it to some degree.

The best we can do is understand the three principal purposes of the Atonement:

1.      To restore all that was lost by the Fall of Adam which brought about physical death (1 Corinthians 15:21-22).

2.      To overcome the first spiritual death by bringing us back into God’s presence to be judged and the second spiritual death for those who will repent (Helaman 14:16-18).

3.      To provide the power necessary to exalt us to the status of a god (D&C 76:69).

Much can be said about all three of these reasons but I would like to expound a little on the third one as I feel that exaltation is the main purpose of the Plan of Salvation. The role of the Atonement of Jesus Christ plus our own efforts of repentance is meant to produce one thing and that is not only to live with God the Father, but to become like Him. God the Father is not only a perfect, resurrected being but an exalted one, meaning He is God, therefore our goal is exaltation:

“To live with God does not assure us we will be like Him. All who live in the celestial kingdom dwell with God, but only those who are exalted become as He is. The objective of the Atonement is not just to cleanse us, but to so transform our lives and our way of thinking and acting that we become like God.” (Tad Callister, “The Infinite Atonement”, p 27)

What is the life of God the Father like? It is one of eternal joy in a marital capacity that never ends, being a co-creator of posterity and worlds without end with someone who loves you with a perfect love, a love that lasts forever and ever. This is the crowning blessing and the perfect state of a God. This is where we hail from and this is where the Atonement of our Saviour Jesus Christ can take us to.

 My heart is full of love for Thee,

As I stand in awe of Thy Godly majesty,

The magnitude of worlds

And the stars of heaven

That roll upon their wings praising Thee.

The creation of man, a crowning glory

To Thy priesthood and Thy throne,

In endless praise of Thy name

In the splendour of Thy celestial home.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Worlds Without Number by Rose Datoc Dall) 

HOPE

 

I have been actively in pursuit of perfection since I joined the Church in my youth. I thought that’s what the Church was all about and I latched onto such an endeavour because I am a perfectionist.

I have always maintained that by the time you reach the last leg of your journey, you should pretty much be extremely close to perfection. I thought by the time I get to the age I am now, I would have myself all together. Imagine my surprise when I arrived here to discover that is not the case.

On a positive note, I have noticed greater strides in improvement from where I was 20 years ago. The lessons have been amazing; my patience has improved and my expectations are getting more realistic as my kindness toward myself grows.

Over the years I have come to understand that opposition in all things, the impact of others on our lives, and life circumstances make us fall short of excellence over and over and so our awareness that perfection is an unattainable ideal in this life becomes our reality. At this point some of us start to battle with yet another challenge called discouragement.

We are constantly living in the gap between the ideal and the real in just about every stage of our lives. Consider raising a young family. Before you marry you have visions of the ideal but after children are littering your home, you realise how very naïve you were.

Elder Hafen painted a good picture of this: “Somehow it has not been altogether natural for our children to glide reverently into their places all at once and all on time, prepared to ponder thoughtfully the wonders of eternity. More than likely, especially when they were young, they seemed to come swinging into the family room on the chandeliers like Tarzan on the vines, then would stand on their heads or flip themselves over the back of the couch during most of the lesson” (Bruce C. Hafen, “The Broken Heart” p 178).

Then you think, my life will be perfect when the children are grown and have lives of their own and I have myself back. To my surprise, that hasn’t worked out for me either.  It would seem the motivation levels in retirement take a nose dive. It keeps getting harder and harder to keep up with the pace that my idealistic level of achievement requires.

The truth is, this life is far too messy to be perfect. Perfection is an eternal incremental process and the path has to be laced with hope to make it lasting. That hope becomes viable when it is coupled with realism of the expected perfection. President Spencer W. Kimball has said that being perfect means to triumph over sin. Perfection in that respect is an achievable goal (see Miracle of Forgiveness, p 208). Perhaps our focus should be righteousness. Perhaps this is what the Saviour meant after all when He commanded us to be perfect (Matthew 5:48; 3 Nephi 12:48) because this is the greatest realism there is:

The only way we can reach perfection is through the atoning grace of Christ, after all we can do on our own (2 Nephi 25:23). This will happen long after we leave this mortal existence, become resurrected and made complete in Him who has the power of perfection.

Until then He is our hope: “For I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up.” (D&C 84:88)

You enliven my spirit;

You bring me to life;

You enrich my impoverished heart.

You are the God of power and might;

You make of me what I alone could never be,

You light my way into eternity.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: The Light by Land of Dreams)

TO RETURN WITH HONOUR

 

I have often wondered how Heavenly Father felt sending us into mortality knowing that some of us will never return. Did He mourn for our impending loss of innocence? Did He mourn for the suffering of His Beloved Son? I would imagine it was much like us when our children have matured into adulthood and we are faced with surrendering our control and influence. Often times we do so with trepidation.

One thing I am sure of. The Father’s faith and trust in His Beloved Son to fulfil His duty as the Saviour of His children would have been iron clad. I am always deeply touched when I come across scriptural proofs of the strong bond between them.

One year when I was studying the Book of Mormon I noticed that during His visit to the Americas Jesus talked incessantly about the Father. I counted 163 references He made to Him and 15 references of His obedience to Him (see 3 Nephi 15:14-16,18,19; 16:3,10,16; 17:2; 18:14,27; 20:10,14,46)

The bond is unbreakable because the Saviour is and has always been the most dutiful Son. This is evident in His statements such as: “I do nothing but what I have seen my Father do (John 8:26,28,38) and “I do always those things that please Him” (John 8:29).

And surely there is no greater act of obedience and love than to be sent to the crucible of the cross: “My Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross” (3 Nephi 27:14) and; “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life….no man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself….” (John 10:17,18). This is the Father’s sacrifice, this is the Father’s  love.

The Father watches over us with assurance that the path has been paved by His Beloved Son so that we might return to Him. None of us should allow ourselves to be the cause of His sorrow.  I often hope that those of His obedient children will in some small measure make up for the ones that are lost.

Imagine the joy when one of us returns with honour. Think of President Nelson returning home….May we be a delight to the Father forever. And may our hearts be overflowing with gratitude for the Son who has made the path to this joy possible.

I will come to Thee Father

In whose arms I belong,

Whose arms I left so long ago.

No earth’s breath between us

To mar the union of our souls,

No desires of heart to match

Our eternal joy.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Forever by David Bowman)

THE NATURE OF HAPPINESS

 

When we think of the nature of God we usually reflect on the godly attributes such as love, compassion, mercy, righteousness, perfection. God has other characteristics though that we don’t remember from our time with Him. Consider the profound insight of President Heber C. Kimball :

“I am perfectly satisfied that my Father and my God is a cheerful, pleasant, lively and good-natured Being. Why? Because I am cheerful, pleasant, lively, and good-natured when I have His Spirit. That is one reason why I know, and another is – the Lord said, through Joseph Smith, “I delight in a glad heart and a cheerful countenance.” That arises from the perfection of His attributes. He is a jovial, lively person, and a beautiful man. (In Journal of Discourses 4:222)

“The plan of happiness, which is spoken about so often in the Church today, comes from a “Man of Happiness” as well as a “Man of Holiness”. Our developing faith comes as we understand better the purpose of the scriptures, and that is to teach us the nature of a saved being, he who beckons us to become like Him.”  (Jerry A. Wilson, “The Great Plan of Happiness-Insights From the Lectures on Faith” p 37)

I once posted a picture of Jesus laughing that enraged one sister who thought that was very disrespectful. She said she could imagine Jesus smiling but not laughing. Yes, He was a Man of Sorrows but I am hoping that His life was not all misery. He had a family who loved Him. He had friends and followers who adored Him. He must have had moments of laughter and joy.

It is amazing to me that some of us do not believe that God the Father and His Son have the full spectrum of emotions. I love to laugh and I am hoping that there will be lots of laughter in eternity.

I am pretty convinced we lived in a state of happiness with our heavenly parents before this life. This is what the Father wants us to come back to. We hail from a happy place and from happy parents. We are in their likeness and have the potential to become as they are in their immortal perfection. That should be the focus of our entire existence.

 

I wish to reside in the shadow of your heart,

To never know sadness

Or the wretched heat of my tears.

I know I would be happy there,

Cradled in the perfect centre of Your being.

I want to feel the miracle of Your love

And worship the wonder of You.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: My Heart Flutters by Greg Collins)

A MEANINGFUL LIFE

 

“Adam and Eve must at times felt like lost sheep. They were originally in God’s presence, then left him through an act we sometimes call a sin, but which might also be called an ‘act of independence’. They were cast out of their garden of innocence into the lone and dreary world. They began to suffer pain as a consequence of their independent action.

“In humility and childlike faith they called upon God for help. They offered sacrifices as instructed by an angel….through the symbol of sacrifice they were taught about the Saviour and were shown how they could return to God’s presence through His Atonement.

“What did Adam and Eve know after they returned to God’s presence that they hadn’t known when they were originally with Him in the Garden? What can WE know after our own return to God that we didn’t know in our premortal life?

“The scriptures explain that God expected and desired that Adam and Eve’s children would have the same kind of mortal experiences as their first parents had, which suggests that the redemption of Adam and Eve was not just a convenient way to erase the effect of an unfortunate error.

“Rather, it was an intentional element in a course of instruction designed by God himself for the preparation, if they freely chose to accept it. Without that course of instruction, they could not have developed the capacity to live a ‘meaningful’ celestial life.

“So it is with our experience as their children. Mortality is not mere estrangement from God – it is the crucible through which the possibility of truly meaningful life becomes real.”

-          Bruce C. Hafen, “The Broken Heart” p 38-9

 

You tell me I must stay and conquer

Like You conquered Your turbulent sea;

I understand, but oh how I long to see

The shore of eternity!

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Deep Calls to Deep by Aeron Brown)