Brothers and sisters, Aloha!
I want to introduce my remarks today by telling you a story. When I was a junior in high school, I had a seminary teacher who changed the course of my life. He was able to look past my fashionably long hair and mildly rebellious attitude and somehow instill in me a desire to start reading the scriptures. Because of his influence, my life literally changed as I became converted and committed to the gospel of Jesus Christ. I was invited to participate on the seminary council the following year and, because I admired him so much, was looking forward to working closely with him.
Near the end of the summer, but before school began, the new seminary council gathered for our first meeting of the year. This teacher was fanatic about starting class on time and would often good naturedly embarrass any latecomers. When the entire council arrived on time and he did not, we could hardly wait to let him have it. After about a half an hour, there was still no sign of him. I called the seminary principal to see if we had misunderstood the date. The principal apologized for our inconvenience and then told us that this teacher would not be teaching again. I learned later that during the summer, he had been unfaithful to his wife and excommunicated from the Church.
You can imagine that this was very disturbing to me. I could not understand how this good man could have done such a thing.
We learn in Matthew that in the last days "the very elect" shall be "deceived." Joseph Smith clarified this further by describing them as "the very elect, who are the elect according to the covenant." (Matthew 24:24 and JS-Mathew 1:22) I interpret this to mean members of the Church.
Since that time, I have seen many good members of the church be "deceived" and make what I consider to be poor choices.
A city prosecutor in my town, who was also on the high council of my stake, was arrested for falsifying public records and removing items from the police station evidence room for his personal use.
Another man I know returned home from serving the second of two missions he had served with his wife, and shortly thereafter, removed his temple garments and announced to her that he was no longer interested in participating in the Church. After a long life of active membership, including several Church leadership positions, he was done with it. His wife and family were devastated. This sudden turn later led to divorce and the break up of their family.
A man who worked for the Church was caught viewing pornography in his office. He was strongly chastened and warned that a second infraction would mean termination. A few months later, he was caught again and was immediately fired.
You may know of similar instances and perhaps someone close to you has been affected by them. I don't relate these stories to be judgmental or to claim I understand what the motivations for this behavior could be. But I do offer them as examples of how "the elect according to the covenant" are in fact, being deceived.
When I read or hear of occurrences like these I am left to wonder: How does it happen? How does someone get so twisted in their thinking that these poor choices seem like good choices? How does one consider these actions as rational options when the consequences seem so clear and severe? Surely they know that even if they don't "get caught" God knows what they have done, and they will eventually answer for their actions. I ask myself these questions again and again each time I hear of another example like the ones I have shared.
Consider these three scriptures:
"And thus he [Satan] goeth up and down, to and fro in the earth, seeking to destroy the souls of men." (D&C 10:27)
"...Satan seeketh to turn their hearts away from the truth, that they become blinded and understand not the things which are prepared for them." (D&C 78:10)
"He [Satan] hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their hearts; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts..." (John 12:40)
If we let him, Satan has a remarkable ability to make us blind. He can make the most irrational things seem "right" to us.
I would venture that in few, if any, of the cases I mentioned earlier did any of those people think: "I know this is really stupid...but I'm going to do it anyway." Somehow, to them, their choice seemed like the most pleasing alternative at the time. But for this behavior to seem like a good alternative, something has to be wrong with the way things are being seen.
I used to home teach a brother, who, when I was first assigned to him, was totally inactive in the Church. Despite our differences, we really connected and over time became great friends. Visiting with him, I learned a lot about how people who have strayed from the teachings of the Church think. He used to say things like:
"I still have my hand on the iron rod. I may have pulled a few screws loose and bent it a little, but I still have a hold of it."
Another of my favorites was: "I keep the fence in sight."
He felt safe, but in reality, he was not.
You are probably familiar with President George Albert Smith's counsel:
"There is a line of demarcation well defined between the Lord's territory and the devil's territory. But... if you cross onto the devil's side of the line, you are in his territory... and he will work on you to get you just as far from that line as he possibly can, knowing that he can only succeed in destroying you by keeping you away from the place where there is safety" (Conference Report, Oct. 1945, 118).
The most insidious part about being blinded by Satan, is that we do not realize that we are being blinded. Because our thinking seems so rational to us, we don't even realize we are slowly losing spiritual vision.
We all know from Nephi's teachings that we learn the things of God "line upon line and precept upon precept; here a little and there a little." (2 Nephi 28:30)
Dennis Largey, Associate Professor of Ancient Scripture in Provo observed:
"This same truth can also work in reverse. People lose light line upon line or sin upon sin--here a little and there a little. Although each ray of lost light can be almost imperceptible to a person at the time, the aggregate or cumulative loss that has taken place over time puts one in grave danger." ("The Armour of Light" BYU Devotional 12 February 2002)
"...and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell." (2 Nephi 28:21)
How do we keep from becoming spiritually blinded?
The good news is that Satan has no power over us UNLESS we allow it. Consider this thought from Elder Richard G. Scott:
"Satan has absolutely no power to force a determined, righteous individual because the Lord protects that person from him. He can tempt, he can threaten, he can attempt to appear to have such power, but he does not possess it." (Church News, August 25, p. 5)
So our task is to figure out how to keep Satan from gaining any power over us. May I suggest a few ideas?
1) Recognize that you cannot figure this out on your own
We need to recognize that we all have the same fatal flaw as those who have been deceived before: we are natural men. Natural men are an enemy to God.
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 55:8)
What this means, is that left to our own thinking, we are likely to be wrong. We must function under the influence of the Holy Spirit or even our best thinking may not be enough to keep us safe.
Let me give you an example where rational, logical thinking might get us confused:
We are commanded to follow Jesus. Does that make sense? Look where it got Him. He was a social outcast; his friends betrayed and abandoned him; he was homeless; he had no wealth; his church leaders hated him; the political leaders spoke out against him; he was eventually beaten, spit upon, mocked and ridiculed publicly; He died a cruel and humiliating death. Why would I want to emulate that?
I hope that did not come across as irreverent. But, you see how our own thinking, though defensible and maybe even supported by evidence, can be totally wrong?
I have found that most of God's commandments are counterintuitive. Does it make sense to go without food and water for 24 hours when it makes us weak, irritable, uncomfortable, and sometimes gives us a headache? Does it make sense to read the scriptures over and over again when there is a lot of great literature out there that we haven't read yet? Does it make sense to give of our time and talents to others for free when we can make money doing the same activities? The answer, or course, is "yes" but only if we see things as they truly are.
"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Corinthians 2:14)
If our natural inclination is away from God, how do we remain in a position of seeing things how God sees them or how they should be seen? We will need the gift of the Holy Ghost to help us keep our thinking straight. We cannot rely solely on our own wisdom.
2) Trust God
God has given us a plan for happiness. It includes commandments. We have to remember that if there were a better way, an all-knowing God and loving Father would have already figured it out and told us about it. There is no better way. He has already given us the "better way." It requires faith on our part to trust our Father and to follow His commandments, sometimes even before we fully understand why.
We give power to Satan to blind us only through our own disobedience. Sometimes we have a tendency to want to modify the commandments to suit our own tastes -- sort of an attempt to "create God in our own image" instead of how it really is. When my youngest son Tanner was about six or seven, we were teaching him about fasting. He listened carefully and then said:
"If Mom makes something that I like, then I'm not going to fast, but if she makes something I don't like, then I will."
"And that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience, from the children of men." (D&C 93:39)
The consequence of ignoring or modifying the commandments is a loss of light. Less light means more darkness. More darkness means it's harder to see. That is spiritual blindness. The more we live like God has instructed us to live, the more light and truth we will have.
3) Recapture Your Testimony Every Day
President Harold B. Lee taught: "Testimony isn't something you have today, and you are going to have always. It is something you have to recapture every day of your life." (Church News, 15 July 1972, p. 4.)
I worry that too many of us go through times in our lives when we are living on what some have called "the memory of a testimony" instead of a real, living, vibrant testimony. If most of the stories and examples you use while speaking or teaching a lesson begin with "when I was on my mission..." you might want to examine whether you are doing enough to create new spiritual experiences in your life.
How do we recapture our testimony every day? The answer is easy: What did you do to capture your testimony the first time? If you are a convert to the Church, you probably searched the scriptures, prayed for guidance, attended church meetings with the intent to learn, and did your best to follow the teachings you were being taught. For all of you returned missionaries, what did you try to get your investigators to do while you were teaching them?
We may tire of hearing it over and over, but there is a reason we are constantly told to study our scriptures, pray, attend church, and give meaningful service. In a way, it is a little like Mark Twain once observed:
"We talk a lot about the weather, but we don't seem to do anything about it."
If this is the formula that brings light and truth and testimony the first time, it must also be the formula that brings light and truth and testimony each time we apply it. We are not trying to re-prove to ourselves that the Church is true. We are trying to prove to God that we are true--that we are honest seekers of truth--so He can bless us with further light and spiritual knowledge.
Why do we have to make this effort every day?
Imagine going throughout the week without having any contact with soap and water. Let's say you can only shower once a week and the rest of the week you do nothing to clean up at all. Everything you touch, spill, sweat, drool, secrete, bleed, fall in, or rub up against, remains on you until the end of the week when you can finally take a shower and clean it off. As disgusting as it may sound, eventually we would become accustomed to being dirty--because that would eventually feel more "normal" to us than being clean.
We come into contact with evil every day. There is wickedness in advertisements, TV shows, music, and movies; we hear profanity, we get exposed to "the philosophies of men." We simply cannot avoid all of the darkness and twisted thinking the world has to offer. If we do not come into the light on a regular basis, eventually this darkness begins to feel "normal." We can slowly slip into the darkness and become spiritually blind.
We need to make sure that we "dial in" to the way Heavenly Father thinks on a regular basis so that we can feel that light and truth and testimony feel "normal." I know of no better way to do this than to read and study the messages He has given us in the scriptures and through the living prophets. This is the way we can get insight into how He thinks and what is important to Him.
4) Follow the Counsel of the Brethren
My oldest daughter Erin has taught me much about how to listen to the brethren. Before General Conference, she makes a list of questions she hopes God will answer for her. She prays for the brethren to be inspired. And then she listens intently to the talks, and to the Spirit. She has yet to be disappointed. This daughter, (who parenthetically is in the MTC right now preparing to serve in the Florida Ft. Lauderdale Mission) was on the mainland last April and through some unusual circumstances was able to secure tickets to almost all of the sessions of General Conference. During one of the sessions, she was seated on the main floor not too far from the podium. She told me later: "Dad, when I see the brethren sitting on the stand, I feel so safe and secure. They are my watchmen on the tower."
These "watchmen on the tower" are only useful to us if we listen to their counsel. Remember the old Mark Twain saying that "a man who does not read good books has no advantage over a man who cannot read them?" Couldn't we also say that "a person who does not listen to and apply the counsel of prophets, seers, and revelators, has no advantage over a person who cannot not hear them?"
I took a tour of the Conference Center in Salt Lake City recently. On the roof is a garden. In the garden is a beautiful square fountain. According to my tour guide, this fountain is positioned exactly over the podium several hundred feet below. I love the symbolism: Living water springing forth from the podium below that pours out to the four corners of the earth.
I might also comment here about the talk Sister Julie Beck gave in the most recent General Conference (October 2007). Sister Beck spoke about "Mothers Who Know." She essentially painted a picture of what the Church would describe as the ideal mother and the role of motherhood in the kingdom. I don't know how you responded to her message, but did you know she has come under some very heavy criticism in the media? There have been nasty letters to the editor published and some members of the media in Salt Lake City have vilified her publicly for her remarks. Considering that most of those who heard this talk are probably members of the Church, this is disheartening.
We should be most grateful for the counsel of our Church leaders when we disagree with them. That is when they are protecting us from our own erroneous thinking.
If you want to keep in the light and align your thinking with that of Heaven, listen to, study, and follow the counsel of the brethren. If your thinking does not align with that which is being taught, you may be headed for the spiritual shadows.
5) Do things that bring light into your life
My son Matthew recently left the MTC to serve in the Kentucky Louisville Mission. He loved to work in the MTC's Referral Center and to talk on the phone to people who have expressed interest in the Church. Apparently, the number of the Referral Center is very similar to that of a cable television company. Matt was on the phone when he overheard one of the other missionaries say: "No ma'am, what we have is a lot better than cable!"
I am sure we all agree with this elder, but do our actions support this belief? How much time do we devote to "what we have" versus what cable TV has to offer?
President Hinckley recently stated that "As moral and ethical values weaken and decline in societies worldwide, the gap between the world and this Church will widen." (BYU Magazine, Summer 2007, p.3)
This means that if we are content with simply keeping our current distance from the world, we will slowly slip farther and farther into darkness. Eventually, we will be thinking just like the world thinks. We cannot afford to excuse our behavior with thoughts like: "Well, at least I'm better than so and so" or "I may be doing this, but I'm not doing that!" The Lord's standard is clear.
I will never forget a devotional I attended in Provo over ten years ago. The former Presiding Bishop of the Church H. Burke Peterson was the speaker and he said something that made a huge impact on me:
"...there is in each one of us a measure of light and a measure of darkness... Every time we kneel and pray, the light increases and the darkness decreases. Every time we read from the Book of Mormon, likewise, the light increases and the darkness decreases. Light and darkness cannot occupy the same place at the same time. There are other things that we do that increase the light inside of us. Whenever we're thoughtful and kind and honest, the light inside of us increases. Whenever we observe the Sabbath, the light increases and the darkness decreases.
"And then, conversely, there are those things, ...that cause the darkness to increase and the light to decrease. There is no way that you and I can involve ourselves in anything of vulgarity or pornography without the darkness inside of us increasing. There is no way you and I can look at a scene on television or video, or listen to explicit sexual encounters, or nudity, without the darkness inside of us increasing and the light decreasing. There is no way we can use uncouth language without the darkness increasing inside of us. There is no way that [darkness and light]can occupy the same place." (H. Burke Peterson, "Coming Unto Christ Through Your Trials" BYU Devotional, February 6, 1996)
Simply put, we must avoid things that increase darkness in our lives and seek after things that increase light.
We need to get used to the idea that as members of the Kingdom of God on the earth, there are some things we simply cannot do. There are parties we can't attend, music we can't listen to, beverages we can't consume, movies we can't see, pictures we can't look at, magazines and books we can't read and thoughts we can't entertain. As the world continues its decline toward darkness, this list will get longer.
There is significance in Moroni's exhortation to "deny yourselves of all ungodliness." (Moroni 10:32) The word "deny" implies that there will be at least some appeal to whatever it is we should be abstaining from. We will naturally want to partake of things even if they can destroy us.
My wife's family grew up with a tradition on Christmas Eve where they had a holiday smorgasbord in which everyone was supposed to bring something exotic -- preferably something no one had ever eaten before. While this was great fun, I did not usually get very full. It was not hard for me to deny myself of all cow tongue or pickled pigs feet. But if they had been serving chocolate cake and ice cream, or fresh peaches and cream -- that would require some serious denial!
I think Moroni is telling us that it will take conscious effort to not partake of those things that are ungodly. Those are the very things that bring darkness into our lives and create spiritual blindness. At the same time, we need to increase the things in our lives that increase light.
We are taught in the 88th Section of the Doctrine and Covenants that:
"...if your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things." (D&C 88:67)
Certainly if we can "comprehend all things" we will not be easily deceived. If bringing to pass "the immortality and eternal life of man" is God's work, and it is his glory, then keeping our eyes, (and our hearts and our hands for that matter) focused on His work will surely bring light into our lives. (Moses 1:39)
In that context, anything we do to bring another soul to Christ will help keep our eye single to God's glory and help keep our bodies "filled with light."
The brother I told you about earlier who joked about "keeping the fence in sight" was assigned to me to be home taught. He was a self-described "hippy hermit." His ceiling was painted with psychedelic colors and patterns. He burned incense, smoked, drank, dabbled in drugs, swore, and seemed totally disinterested in the Church. But I liked him. I confess that I was not entirely comfortable at first because this was not a world I was very accustomed to, but at the same time, I sensed a real goodness deep inside of him. He was honest and genuine. I home taught him for over three years when he began to say things like "someday I am going to surprise you and show up at church." And eventually, he did surprise me.
He started listening to some audio tapes that were made of his grandfather talking about growing up in the Church settlements of Mexico. When he told me about it, I was able to find some historical information about that time and place that I then shared with him. The spirit of Elijah began to work on him and his "heart turned to his fathers." Many months later, he asked me to ordain him an Elder in the Melchizedek Priesthood. Later still, he asked if I would travel to St. George Utah and go with him through the temple -- because that is the temple where his ancestors had traveled to receive their temple blessings. He loved the temple and would later go through five or six sessions each time he attended.
These experiences are among the spiritual highlights of my life. I felt God's love not only for him, but for me as we shared these sacred experiences together. When I reflect on how I felt during these experiences, I remember no darkness at all -- only light.
In short, ANYTHING we do to preach the gospel, redeem the dead, or perfect the saints -- in other words "God's work" -- if we do it the best we can and for the right reason, will begin to fill our bodies with light. And this kind of light is the perfect antidote for spiritual blindness.
Woody Allen was once quoted that "the best speeches have a great beginning, a great ending, and as little as possible in between." I have certainly violated that principle today. But I would like to conclude by telling you why I chose this topic to share with you this morning.
I joined the university family about a year and a half ago. One of the first devotionals I attended, I had the thought come to me that I may someday have the opportunity to speak in this setting. I dismissed it quickly, but there soon followed some of the thoughts I have shared with you today. This theme has been percolating inside my head and heart ever since that time. When I prayed about what I should talk about today the answer came almost as a question: "Do you really have to ask?"
The other reason is more cerebral. You have heard many speakers in this setting tell you how important the decisions you make at this time of your life are to you. It may not be as obvious to you now as to those of us who are a few years removed from our college days, but truly you are at a critical time of your life. Whom you choose to marry will have more influence on what you become than you can fathom at this point in your young lives. There is simply no way for you to knit your heart together with another and not become greatly influenced by them -- for good or ill.
Your major and career choice will influence where you live, how you live, and the future opportunities you will have. These all affect you and your family as well as generations yet unborn. I emphasize again what many before me have already told you: these are some of the most important decisions you will make in your life.
Does it not make sense then, that you should be seeking as much light and guidance and wisdom from above that you can possibly obtain? Shouldn't you be making the most energetic effort possible to be as good as you can be so that you can merit the greatest amount of light and see the most clearly? You are foolish to make these important decisions with any degree of spiritual blindness. You cannot watch inappropriate movies, dress immodestly, use vulgar language, or make out on the beach and expect to have a clear and illuminated view of God's will for you. God is eager to guide and bless us all, but we have to do our part to stay in the light.
Satan is just as eager to destroy us all. He will do all he can to frustrate your success and minimize your happiness. The First Presidency put it pretty plainly several years ago:
"There is no crime he would not commit, no debauchery he would not set up, no plague he would not send, no heart he would not break, no life he would not take, no soul he would not destroy." (James R. Clark, comp., Messages of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 6 vols. (1965-75), 6:179 quoted by President James E. Faust in Ensign, January 2007, p.7)
Each of us has a measure of light and a measure of darkness. It is up to us to choose how clearly we want to see.
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.