The Only Way To Draw Near To The Lord

Posted on December 12, 2010 by Jared

The doctrines of the restoration contain a clear invitation for church members to draw near to the Lord, two examples, “draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you” (D&C 88:63). In another,  especially powerful invitation, the Lord says they “shall see my face and know that I  am” (D&C 93:1).

The Book of Mormon gives example after example of those individuals who were able to draw near to the Lord. Some of them even saw the the Lord, and talked with Him, face to face. They left a record showing those in our day how they did it, kinda of a “how to do it yourself” approach. I think this is why the prophet Joseph Smith said that “the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book” (TPJS, p. 194).

Note the order of things contained in the invitation to “draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you”. Who needs to make the first move? We do! The Lord’s way is for us to “come unto Him”, not the other way around.

From one of our hymns we gain insight into the Lord’s respect for our individuality–our agency: Continue reading →

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Establishing the Church Without the Gospel

Posted on November 30, 2010 by Jared

My goal as a blogger is to write about those things that will help each of us draw nearer to the lord. The Lord said, “draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you.” With that image in mind I would like to discuss the following counsel given by Elder Dallin H. Oaks in Oct 2010 General conference.

“Our Heavenly Father has given His children two lines of communication with Him—what we may call the personal line and the priesthood line.”

“We must use both the personal line and the priesthood line in proper balance to achieve the growth that is the purpose of mortal life. If personal religious practice relies too much on the personal line, individualism erases the importance of divine authority. If personal religious practice relies too much on the priesthood line, individual growth suffers.”

In my opinion, the challenge to keep proper balance with the personal and priesthood lines is  found more often out of balance favoring the priesthood line, thus individual growth suffers. Continue reading →

Posted in Doctrine of Christ, Priesthood | Leave a comment

How Long Halt Ye Between Two Opinions?

Posted on November 21, 2010 by Jared

My goal as a blogger is to write about those things that will help each of us draw nearer to the lord. The Lord said, “draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you.” With that image in mind I would like to discuss the following scripture.

And Elijah…said, How long halt ye between two opinions?  if the LORD be God, follow him… 1 Kings 18:21

Halting between two opinions, or being double minded (James 1:8) is part of the makeup of the natural man.  To one degree or another each of us struggles with it. Laman and Lamuel, Nephite’s older brothers, provide numerous examples of this undesirable quality. They would cycle from obedience to rebellion over and over again until the Lord finally warned Nephi to depart from them.

The Book of Mormon also provides a counter example, showing those who were firm in their faith, and “would suffer even unto death rather than commit sin”. Using the descendants of the vacillating Laman and Lamuel, the Book of Mormon gives an account of the Lamanities who were converted by the four sons of Mosiah. Of those converts the record says: “once they were converted unto the Lord, they never did fall away” (Alma 23:6-7). Continue reading →

Posted in Repentance | 4 Comments

How Do I Know If I Have Experienced The Gift Of The Holy Ghost?

Posted on November 13, 2010 by Jared

And blessed are all they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost. 3 Nephi 12:6

For those who desire the companionship of the Holy Ghost this scripture is packed with meaning. The Lord draws on basic needs all of us experience on a daily basis, hungering for food and thirsting for water,to teach us what it takes to be filled with the Holy Ghost.

The idea of being filled with the Holy Ghost probably means the same thing as “always” having his Spirit to be with us as expressed in the sacrament prayer (D&C 20:77). Based on my experience with the Spirit I don’t feel I have arrived at the point of always having His Spirit to be with me.

Elder Eyring touching on this subject said:

“Getting revelation, he said, ‘is hard. It is not easy. The constant companionship of the Holy Ghost is possible, but, oh, it is so hard.’” Church News July 8, 2006 Continue reading →

Posted in Encore | 4 Comments

*Using the Book of Mormon to Commune with God

Posted on November 6, 2010 by Jared

My goal as a blogger is to write about those things that will help each of us draw nearer to the lord. The Lord said, “draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you.” With that image in mind I would like to discuss a few thoughts on the Book of Mormon.

At the end of this post is a link to an incredible experience that I hope you will take the time to read.

The Book of Mormon is a gift from God to a spiritually dead 2nd estate. It is a gift with a promise. Those who have received a testimony of the Book of Mormon by the power of the Holy Ghost know for themselves what I mean.

Continue reading →

Posted in Encore | 1 Comment

* “I Don’t Think I Believe in the Church Anymore”

Posted on October 24, 2010 by Jared

*Encore–I originally wrote this post in Nov 2008. Click here to continue.

Posted in Encore | 2 Comments

“I Know Thy Heart, and Have Heard Thy Prayers…”

Posted on October 21, 2010 by Jared

My goal as a blogger is to write about those things that will help each of us draw nearer to the lord. The Lord said, “draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you.” With that image in mind I would like to discuss the following scripture. The Lord describes Himself as “a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” D&C 33:1

“You can’t pray a lie.” Or at least that’s what Huckleberry Finn discovered, and based on this scripture I think most church members would agree with Huck.

When we call upon the Lord in prayer, our hearts need to be right if we want to be heard. In other words, we need to be sincere. I’ve learned from experience that the Lord will hear prayers from unworthy lips, if asked with a worthy, a sincere heart.

The Lord knows the thoughts and the intents of our heart. When we are sincere, having real intent, the Lord will hear and answer our prayers. Continue reading →

Posted in Prayer, Repentance | Leave a comment

What Glory Am I Being Quickened By? A Self Assessment.

Posted on October 16, 2010 by Jared

My goal as a blogger is to write about those things that will help each of us draw nearer to the lord. The Lord has said, “draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you.” With that image in mind I would like to discuss the following question: What Glory Am I Being Quickened By: a Portion of the   Terrestrial or Celestial Glory?

In my last post I wrote a few thoughts regarding the Lord’s dealings with His children as revealed in the following verses of scripture. I’ll continue in this post:

They who are of a celestial spirit shall receive the same body which was a natural body; even ye shall receive your bodies, and your glory shall be that glory by which your bodies are quickened.

Ye who are quickened by a portion of the celestial glory shall then receive of the same, even a fulness. Continue reading →

Posted in Born Again, Faith, Holy Ghost | 3 Comments

Quickened by a Portion of the Celestial, Terrestrial, or Telestial Glory

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Jared

My goal as a blogger is to write about those things that will help each of us draw nearer to the lord. The Lord has said, “draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you.” With that purpose in mind I would like to explore the following scripture.

They who are of a celestial spirit shall receive the same body which was a natural body; even ye shall receive your bodies, and your glory shall be that glory by which your bodies are quickened.

Ye who are quickened by a portion of the celestial glory shall then receive of the same, even a fulness.

And they who are quickened by a portion of the terrestrial glory shall then receive of the same, even a fulness. Continue reading →

Posted in Things of the Spirit | 1 Comment

Of the Tenets Thou Shalt not Talk

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Jared

My goal in blogging is to write about those things that will help each of us draw nearer to the lord. The Lord has said, “draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you.” With that thought in mind I would like to explore the following scripture.

And of tenets thou shalt not talk, but thou shalt declare repentance and faith on the Savior, and remission of sins by baptism, and by fire, yea, even the Holy Ghost. D&C 19:31

What is the Lord teaching Martin Harris, and the rest of us in this verse of scripture?

The way I read this verse of scripture is that the Lord is teaching His followers the importance of talking about those things that will be the most beneficial to us Spiritually. He says, of “tenets thou shalt not talk”. Continue reading →

Posted in Precepts of Men, Scripture, Spirituality | Tagged , , | 2 Comments