Bishop stories

We teach the words of Ether 12:27 often, but do we truly believe them? Hear a personal experience about weakness becoming strong.

This week, I interview my 8-year-old daughter for her thoughts on her recent baptism. We hear her advice for parents and youth and her testimony.

When children in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reach the year they’ll turn 8, they get a special gift. You know the one. It’s that special ring with the green shield and three letters emblazoned across it. The famous CTR ring. Of course, CTR stands for Choose the Right. And choosing the right, AKA, choosing to keep the commandments, is a pretty important thing in this life. But on this week’s episode of Sharing the Light, I want to talk about another choice that’s far more important and one that ideally comes first in our gospel journey. (interlude) What’s your personal motive for keeping commandments? You may have many actually and they may vary with seasons of your life. The Savior gave us the ideal reason and His words are recorded in John 14:15: “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” At the heart of that verse is the principle we’ll talk about today. Because the most important choice you’ll make in this life isn’t a what or a when or a how, it’s a Who. In the famous “Choose you this day” verse recorded in Joshua 24:15, Joshua didn’t talk about how we choose to serve or when we choose or even why we serve, he talked about who we serve. “Choose you this day whom ye will serve.” As you study the scriptures this year, particularly the Book of Mormon as our Come, Follow Me focus, you’ll find this simple idea taught again and again. Here’s a sampling: 2 Nephi 2:27: “Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.” Alma 3:26 tells us that our “eternal happiness or eternal misery” is determined by the spirit which we list to obey, whether it be a good spirit (Christ) or a bad one (the adversary). And the next verse, Alma 3:27 adds: “For every man receiveth wages of him whom he listeth to obey.” Alma 40:13 teaches a similar idea. So does Helaman 3:35, which tells us that our Gospel journey of coming unto Christ and being sanctified begins with “yielding [our] hearts unto God.” (interlude) Why is this one single choice so important? Elder Neal A. Maxwell summed it up nicely: “If, in the end, you have not chosen Jesus Christ, it will not matter what you have chosen.” Those words are true. If we don’t choose Christ, we can choose anything else, good or bad, and in the end, it won’t be enough, it won’t be right, and it won’t bring lasting joy or happiness to ourselves or anyone else. If Christ isn’t in the picture, if he’s not the center of the picture, the picture is and will always be incomplete. 1 John 4:19 beautifully teaches of the Savior: “We love him, because he first loved us.” Let me tell a simple truth. As I do, I pray the Holy Ghost will witness this truth to your soul. Here it is: Jesus Christ loves you. And if you feel that love or desire to feel that love, choose to love Him. Choose to believe in Christ. Choose to believe in His sinless life, His atoning grace and His hopeful words: “I am able to make you holy” (D&C 60:7). If you choose to accept Him and to love Him who first loved you, then that important choice will make it far easier to make daily choices that show you are choosing Christ. And you’ll find yourself making those choices for the right reason: “If ye love me, keep my commandments.”

A crazy but true story about a nervous breakdown, poisoned water and one wild missionary dinner appointment.

Merry Christmas. Thank you for listening to this week’s episode of Sharing the Light. My name is Michael Christensen. Your reviews and passing this along to family and friends is greatly appreciated. I believe in Divine Design. In October 2017, Ronald A Rasband gave a General Conference talk by this title. In that message, he quoted Neal A. Maxwell as follows: “None of us ever fully utilizes the people-opportunities allocated to us within our circles of friendship. You and I may call these intersectings ‘coincidence.’ This word is understandable for mortals to use, but coincidence is not an appropriate word to describe the workings of an omniscient God. He does not do things by ‘coincidence’ but … by ‘divine design’” (Neal A. Maxwell, Brim with Joy, Brigham Young University devotional, Jan. 23, 1996). Said Elder Rasband: “Our lives are like a chessboard, and the Lord moves us from one place to another—if we are responsive to spiritual promptings. Looking back, we can see His hand in our lives.” Elder Bednar has also taught this principle. In his book One by One, he said, “I believe that in the work of the Lord there is no such thing as coincidence,” And “Tender mercies … are frequently delivered one by one through the instrumentality or another person.” Today, I want to share with you the events of one day I experienced in the mission field. One day filled with Divine Design and Tender Mercies.

We dive into 2 Nephi chapter 5 in the Book of Mormon to find a blueprint for a happy life.

Do you want to be happier? We all do, right? Life is hard and our happiness can sometimes ebb and flow. But is it something we can control? In other words, is happiness something that happens to us or something we choose? In the Book of Mormon, Nephi tells us that he “lived after the manner of happiness.” How did he do that? More important, how can we? That’s the focus of the next two episodes of the podcast, beginning today. The Book of Mormon tell us that the only way to have real, lasting joy is to “be [a] truly penitent and humble seeker of happiness” (Alma 27:18). OK. Fair enough. But how do we seek happiness? For starters on your own journey, I recommend studying 2 Nephi 5 and see what Nephi and his people did to live “after the manner of happiness.” I’ve noticed a pattern in recent General Conference addresses and Ensign articles from general authorities and other church officers. They have used some common wording and themes in discussing our personal path to happiness. In her April 2019 message, Careful versus Casual, Beck Craven taught: “Deep and lasting happiness comes by intentionally and carefully living the gospel of Jesus Christ.” And Elder Ulisses Soares added, “Happiness is determined by habits, behaviors, and thought patterns that we can directly address with intentional action” (Paths to True Happiness, Ensign, April 2018). I echo the words and invitation of President Henry B. Eyring from the October 2019 General Conference: “My prayer for today is that I may help you understand that greater happiness comes from greater personal holiness so that you will act upon that belief.” How do we live “after the manner of happiness”? For starters, we turn to the Savior and use the power of his atonement to receive both clean hands and a pure heart. That’s why prophets often talk about the “joy of repentance” and why Alma 27 says you have to be “truly penitent” in order to be a seeker of happiness. The Book of Mormon makes it clear that “wickedness never was happiness” (Alma 41:10) and that “despair cometh because of iniquity” (Moroni 10:22). So repenting as needed and becoming more holy in our thoughts, words and deeds, is square one on your personal journey to more happiness. Repenting turns our thoughts, hearts and focus to Christ. As president Russell M. Nelson taught, “the joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives. “When the focus of our lives is on God’s plan of salvation … and Jesus Christ and His gospel, we can feel joy regardless of what is happening—or not happening—in our lives. Joy comes from and because of Him. He is the source of all joy” (October 2016 General Conference). Remember King Benjamin’s invitation: “And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness (Mosiah 2:41). Sister Craven: “As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we are blessed to know how and where true happiness is found. It is found in carefully living the gospel established by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and in striving to become more like Him.” Listen to the words of apostle Neal A. Maxwell about the Savior: “We should be striving, attribute by attribute, to become more and more like Him, including by developing the spiritual manners that accompany living ‘after the manner of happiness’” (Moving in His Majesty and Power, p. 51, emphasis added).

This week I share a few personal stories from my 5 years serving as a bishop in Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. From miracles like the Miracle of the Upset Stomach to my battles with anxiety and the ways my service gave me a firm testimony of priesthood keys, serving as a bishop was an eventful, uplifting and challenging experience.

If a prophet of God says, “in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without …” well, our ears should definitely perk up and we should listen carefully and do something about whatever comes after that “without”. Likewise, if that same prophet of God comes back a year later and shares a topic pressing upon his mind and then says, “This is the only way you will keep yourself and your family spiritually safe in the challenging days ahead,” we should take notice. What it is that President Russell M. Nelson has focused on so much in recent general conferences? It is this: we need to get and keep the Holy Ghost in our lives. And we need to know how to get the Holy Ghost’s companionship back quickly when we lose it. It was in the April 2018 General Conference that Russell M. Nelson said: “in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.” Today, I’d like to focus on a couple foundational practices that are absolutely necessary on at least a daily basis if we would like to have “the guiding, directing, comforting and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.” In both 2006 and 2010, Elder David A. Bednar gave talks focused on the Holy Ghost.. In his October 2010 message, “Receive the Holy Ghost,” he said: “Consider the reasons we pray and study the scriptures. Yes, we yearn to communicate in prayer with Heavenly Father in the name of His Son. And yes, we desire to obtain the light and knowledge available in the standard works. But please remember that these holy habits primarily are ways whereby we always remember Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son and are prerequisites to the ongoing companionship of the Holy Ghost” (October 2010 General Conference). So if you want to have the Holy Ghost in your life, you have to have Holy Habits in place in your life. The Holy Habits of prayer and scripture study help us keep the covenant to always remember Him, by putting Him at the forefront of our minds. And we can’t truly be in the process of coming unto Christ if he is “far from the thoughts and intents” of our hearts (see Mosiah 5:13). Holy Habits like prayer and scripture study build faith. And faith leads to repentance. In fact, the scriptures repeatedly invite us to have “faith unto repentance” (Alma 34: 15-17). Hebrews tells us faith comes by hearing (or reading) the word of God. And Helaman 15:7 makes the connection even clearer: “The holy scriptures, yea, the prophecies of the holy prophets, … leadeth them to faith on the Lord, and unto repentance, which faith and repentance bringeth a change of heart unto them.” In one of his last messages to the Church before his passing, Richard G. Scott said these powerful words: “Don’t yield to Satan’s lie that you don’t have time to study the scriptures. Choose to take time to study them. Feasting on the word of God each day is more important than sleep, school, work, television shows, video games, or social media. You may need to reorganize your priorities to provide time for the study of the word of God. If so, do it!” President Nelson recently said “I plead with you to increase your spiritual capacity to receive revelation” (April 2018 General Conference). How do we do that? Scripture study is one way. As Bruce R. McConkie taught, “One of the best-kept secrets of the kingdom is that the scriptures open the door to the receipt of revelation” (Doctrines of the Restoration). In the April 2019 priesthood session Russell M. Nelson invited us to add another daily Holy Habit to our lives. He said, “Make your focus on daily repentance so integral to your life that you can exercise the priesthood with greater power than ever before. This is the only way you will keep yourself and your family spiritually safe in the challenging days ahead.”

In the last days of his mortal life, the prophet Lehi gathered his children one-by-one to offer his final words of counsel and teaching. In the midst of his counsel to Jacob, nearly hidden in the middle of a verse, is a powerful truth that has become one of my favorite teachings in the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Lehi tells his son in 2 Nephi 2:3: “I know that thou art redeemed.” How did Lehi know this? How did he have such certainty and assurance regarding his son’s future exaltation? Ponder the full statement from Lehi to his son: “I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer” (2 Nephi 2:3). Lehi’s statement had little to do with Jacob’s personal righteousness and everything to do with the righteousness of Jesus Christ. And the same is true for our salvation. In Alma chapter 24, the king of the Anti-Nephi-Lehis holds a council with his people. These converted Lamanites are threatened by war and refuse to take up arms due to their past sins. It is here that the king offers a beautiful and correct interpretation of Nephi’s “all we can do.” One day while reading the Book of Mormon one word at a time, his words jumped off the page and the spirit touched my heart, connecting the dots of Alma 24 and 2 Nephi 25. Notice what the king says and how he says it, including the repeated wording. “And now behold, my brethren, since it has been all that we could do (as we were the most lost of all mankind) to repent of all our sins and the many murders which we have committed, and to get God to take them away from our hearts, for it was all we could do to repent sufficiently before God that he would take away our stain” (Alma 24:11, emphasis added). Coincidental wording? I don’t believe the Lord inspires his prophet’s words haphazardly, and this particular wording provided a tender mercy of understanding in my own life. Mighty to Save The Savior is called the Savior because he saves us. Completely and wholly. Jesus is truly “the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2). His only limitation is he can’t save us in our sins (see Alma 11:34-37). We have to repent to unlock His redeeming power in our lives, but once we do, we experience “the immediate goodness of God” (Mosiah 25:10). Listen carefully to these words of scripture regarding the Savior and our exaltation. While our personal efforts are a way for us to show our love for our Heavenly Father and Savior (John 14:15) and a key part of our eternal development, you’ll see that in the grand scheme it is not our personal righteousness but “the righteousness of (our) Redeemer” that saves and exalts us. “Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25, emphasis added). “Yea, come unto Christ and be perfected in Him” (Moroni 10:32, emphasis added). “Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him – Saying: Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin, in whom thou wast well pleased; behold the blood of thy Son which was shed, the blood of him whom thou gavest that thyself might be glorified; Wherefore, Father, spare these my brethren that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have everlasting life” (D&C 45:3-5, emphasis added). In speaking of those who will inherit the Celestial Kingdom, section 76 says they are “just men [and women] made perfect through Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the shedding of his own blood” (Doctrine and Covenants 76:69). It is any wonder Alma invites us to “cry unto (the Savior) for mercy; for he is mighty to save” (Alma 34:18, emphasis added). The gospel invites us to look to the Lord Jesus Christ, who truthfully tells each of us “I am able to make you holy” (Doctrine and Covenants 60:7).