FAITH

 

“There are two kinds of faith. One of them functions ordinarily in the life of every soul. It is the kind of faith born of experience; it gives us certainty that a new day will dawn, that spring will come, that growth will take place. It is the kind of faith that relates us with confidence to that which is scheduled to happen.

“There is another kind of faith, rare indeed. This is the kind of faith that CAUSES things to happen. It is the kind of faith that is worthy and prepared and unyielding, and it calls forth things that otherwise would not be. It is the kind of faith that moves people. It is the kind of faith that sometimes moves things…..It is a marvellous, even a transcendent power, a power as real and as invisible as electricity. Directed and channeled, it has great effect….” 

-          Elder Boyd K. Packer, “What Is Faith” (1983) p 42

Sometimes I wonder if we profess to have faith in Jesus Christ without ever putting His promises to the test. Often, we profess to have faith in Him yet we negate it with our fears and our words. For instance, sometimes we pay tithing and then go about our days complaining that we never have enough money or that we can never earn enough. Here is an example of faith that proves the opposite:

“Consider President George Q. Cannon’s approach to tithing when he was an impoverished young man. When his bishop commented on the large amount of tithing poor young George was paying, George said something like: “Oh Bishop, I’m not paying tithing on what I MAKE. I’m paying tithing on what I WANT to make.” And the very next year George earned exactly the amount he had paid tithing on the year before!”  (Wendy Watson Nelson, “Becoming the Person You Were Born To Be” , Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults, January 10, 2016, BYU Hawaii)

When I read Elder Packer’s quote, I immediately thought of the Brother of Jared. I have for a long time tried to comprehend what goes into developing a faith that manifests before your eyes that which you see in your mind. This is not a faith of empty words but a faith of inner power of belief. A faith without any semblance of doubt. A faith that brings great reward. And the Brother of Jared’s reward was great. There is no greater reward in this life than to see the Christ.

The manifesting power of the Saviour’s faith brought worlds into being by His word (John 1:1-3). If you want a glimpse of this power read the incident of the fig tree which withered at His word before the eyes of the disciples (Matthew 21:19-21). We have no greater example of the power of faith than that of Christ, the Son of God.

If we will be gods one day, we need to follow in the footsteps of the Master and believe that this power is within us too. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Creation by Yongsung Kim)

WORDS OF POWER

 

I am passionate about words. I believe in the beauty of words and I believe in their power. I am most  passionate about words of faith.  Consider Enoch who was called to his holy calling when he was ‘slow of speech’ (Moses 6:31). The Lord promised him that He will give him ‘utterance’  and He will ‘justify’ all his words (Moses:32-34). So because Enoch trusted this promise, his weakness turned into his greatest strength and he became  so powerful that when he spoke the people trembled and could not stand in his presence (Moses 6:47). 

 

Worthy spoken words have the power to resonate with the spirit of God and empower us to achieve things we could not ordinarily do on our own.   An  example of this is calling upon the power of the Atonement to enable us to overcome a certain weakness or to receive a healing. I have had experience to this end and can testify that the power of the Atonement, when prayed for, can heal you, as does hearing His word which ‘heals the wounded soul’ (Jacob 2:8). The vibration of words carries with it power that creates a pathway for manifestation of that which we pray for.  Admonition to pray is prolific in scriptures for exactly this reason.

 

Spoken word and faith are inter-related. The great exemplar in this is the Saviour himself, who created the world and man by the power of His word (Jacob 4:9; Mormon 9:17; Genesis 1; John 1:1). I believe when the Saviour spoke the words of creation, He spoke by the power of faith. This is obvious to me through a small incident in His mortal life when He came upon a fig tree that had no fruit to feed His hunger. He cursed the tree and the tree withered the moment He spoke  (Matthew 21:18-21). When His disciples marvelled at what they saw, Jesus told them that if they had faith and doubted not, if they said the word for mountains to move, it would be so (v21). This is supported heavily in the Lectures of Faith but more on that later.

 

Dare to create the life that God would want you to have by becoming your best self. Aim higher than you have ever aimed before. The Saviour wants you to be like Him, in every way. He would have you learn to harness the power of faith that you might rise to godhood through your power of creation.  That power is already in you……He made sure of it.

 

You are the God of power and might;

You enliven my spirit;

You bring me to life.

You make of me what I alone could never be,

You light my way into eternity.

 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: Worlds by Greg Olsen)

WORDS OF POWER

 

I am particularly passionate about words and faith. I believe in the beauty of words and I believe in their power. Consider Enoch who was called to his holy calling when he was ‘slow of speech’ (Moses 6:31). The Lord promised him that He will give him ‘utterance’  and He will ‘justify’ all his words (Moses:32-34). So Enoch trusted, his weakness turned into his greatest strength and he became  so powerful that when he spoke the people trembled and could not stand in his presence (Moses 6:47). Enoch fulfilled his calling admirably.

 

Worthy spoken words have the power to resonate with the spirit of God and empower us to achieve things we could not ordinarily do on our own.   An  example of this is calling upon the power of the Atonement to enable us to overcome a certain weakness or to receive a healing. I have had experience to this end and can testify that the power of the Atonement, when prayed for, can heal you, as does hearing His word which ‘heals the wounded soul’ (Jacob 2:8). The vibration of the words with which we plead for help attracts the power we are asking for and need.  When we pray, we create a pathway for manifestation of that which we want in our lives. Admonition to pray is prolific in scriptures for exactly this reason.

 

Spoken word and faith are inter-related. The great exemplar in this is the Saviour himself, who created the world and man by the power of His word (Jacob 4:9; Mormon 9:17; Genesis 1; John 1:1). I believe when the Saviour spoke the words of creation, He spoke by the power of faith. This is evident to me through a small incident in His mortal life when He came upon a fig tree that had no fruit to feed His hunger. He cursed the tree and the tree withered the moment He spoke  (Matthew 21:18-21). When His disciples marvelled at what they saw, Jesus told them that if they had faith and doubted not, if they said the word for mountains to move, it would be so (v21). 

 

Dare to create the life that you want, especially the life that God would want you to have. Be afflicted for nothing but in prayer with gratitude ask for everything (Philippians 4:6). Read how the Book of Mormon came to be because of faith and prayers of ancient prophets who wrote it (D&C 10:44-52). If prayer can achieve something so significant, it can procure what you need to become your best self.

 

Aim higher than you have ever aimed before. The Saviour wants you to be like Him, in every way. He would have you learn to harness the power of faith that you might rise to godhood through your power of creation.  That power is already in you……He made sure of it.

 

 

How godly You were

When You planted the heavens

And laid the foundations of the earth;

How noble and honourable

When You gave me hope

Through the water’s gate;

I bequest to You my earthly deeds

And fly to You

With my arms of faith. 

 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: Arms of Faith by Yongsung Kim)