Summing it up

Well, I feel I've covered the basics of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I will probably post thoughts periodically as I have spiritual learning experiences.  I hope this blog has been of help to someone.  It has been good for me, and deepened my faith and understanding.

A Guide to Lasting Happiness

Commandments, rules, laws.  Sometimes the reaction to these words are something like: Why can't I just do what I want to do?  Why should I let someone else tell me what to do?

Well...commandments from God are ALWAYS given for our benefit.  They are like a map given to us to help us be happy.  Disobedience brings sorrow.

However, God will not force us to obey.  He gives us the agency to choose.

I imagine God is pained when He watches us make poor choices that lead to misery, but He is patient with us and our weaknesses.  He waits, willing to bless us as we strive to obey His commandments.

"He that keepeth [God's] commandments receiveth truth and light, until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things."

There is  no need for you or me, in this enlightened age when the fullness of the gospel has been restored, to sail uncharted seas or to travel unmarked roads in search of truth.  A loving Heavenly Father has plotted our course and provided an unfailing guide--even obedience.  A knowledge of truth and the answers to our greatest questions come to us as we are obedient to the commandments of God. Obedience Brings Blessings, President Thomas S. Monson, April 2013.

What are the commandments of God?
Pray Often
Study the Scriptures
Keep the Sabbath Day Holy
Baptism and Confirmation
Follow the Prophet
Keep the Ten Commandments
Live the Law of Chastity
Obey the Word of Wisdom
Keep the Law of Tithing
Observe the Law of the Fast 

Obedience
D&C 130:20-21
John 14:15, 21
Ecclesiastes 12:13

Enduring to the End

I feel not yet worthy to write on this subject, seeing as I am probably not even halfway to the end of my life; but here is a portion of a talk given by Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "Have We Not Reason to Rejoice" given Oct. 2007.  It struck me that I need the companionship of the Holy Ghost to be able to endure to the end.  I had never really connected those two subjects; but we most definitely can not fully endure to the end and receive a fullness of the blessings God has in store for us without the Holy Ghost.

The gift of the Holy Ghost, given to us by our Heavenly Father and administered by one having authority, includes the merciful promise: “If ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do” (2 Nephi 32:5). Through the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost, every member of the Church can receive “the words of Christ” directly (2 Nephi 32:3), at any time or place. This personal divine guidance helps us to remain valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ and endure to the end of our days. Isn’t this wonderful!

Have we not reason to rejoice?

What Does It Mean to Endure to the End?

The scriptures teach us that once we have received the ordinances of baptism and confirmation, our task then is to “endure to the end” (2 Nephi 31:20).

When I was a young boy, “endure to the end” meant to me mainly that I had to try harder to stay awake until the end of our Church meetings. Later as a teenager I progressed only slightly in my understanding of this scriptural phrase. I linked it with youthful empathy to the efforts of our dear elderly members to hang in there until the end of their lives.

Enduring to the end, or remaining faithful to the laws and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout our life, is a fundamental requirement for salvation in the kingdom of God. This belief distinguishes Latter-day Saints from many other Christian denominations that teach that salvation is given to all who simply believe and confess that Jesus is the Christ. The Lord clearly declared, “If you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God” (D&C 14:7).

Therefore, enduring to the end is not just a matter of passively tolerating life’s difficult circumstances or “hanging in there.” Ours is an active religion, helping God’s children along the strait and narrow path to develop their full potential during this life and return to Him one day. Viewed from this perspective, enduring to the end is exalting and glorious, not grim and gloomy. This is a joyful religion, one of hope, strength, and deliverance. “Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy” (2 Nephi 2:25).

Enduring to the end is a process filling every minute of our life, every hour, every day, from sunrise to sunrise. It is accomplished through personal discipline following the commandments of God.

The restored gospel of Jesus Christ is a way of life. It is not for Sunday only. It is not something we can do only as a habit or a tradition if we expect to harvest all of its promised blessings. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Galatians 6:7).

Enduring to the end implies “patient continuance in well doing” (Romans 2:7), striving to keep the commandments (see 2 Nephi 31:10), and doing the works of righteousness (see D&C 59:23). It requires sacrifice and hard work. To endure to the end, we need to trust our Father in Heaven and make wise choices, including paying our tithes and offerings, honoring our temple covenants, and serving the Lord and one another willingly and faithfully in our Church callings and responsibilities. It means strength of character, selflessness, and humility; it means integrity and honesty to the Lord and our fellowmen. It means making our homes strong places of defense and a refuge against worldly evils; it means loving and honoring our spouses and children.

By doing our best to endure to the end, a beautiful refinement will come into our lives. We will learn to “do good to them that hate [us], and pray for them which despitefully use [us]” (Matthew 5:44). The blessings that come to us from enduring to the end in this life are real and very significant, and for the life to come they are beyond our comprehension.