Category: Jesus Christ

#Goals

I don’t think we’re using hashtags or saying “#Goals” anymore, but this verse is pretty aspirational for me.

Notice that Nephi says his father Lehi was obedient unto the word of the Lord. End of statement. This is a character trait of Lehi, a long-established pattern in his life. Nephi continues, “Wherefore (meaning because of this, or for this reason), [Lehi] did as the Lord commanded.”

Nephi also says he was born of goodly parents. To Nephi, GOODNESS and OBEDIENCE were defining characteristics of his parents, so (of course) they would do what the Lord asked of them.

I have parents like this, and they have been missing from our lives for a year because they have been serving a mission. This is their second mission together. They served as mission leaders for three years when they were in their fifties, and now they are in their seventies. They have been serving in Puerto Rico where my dad served as a young missionary in the early 1970’s.

I can say of my parents, “They are obedient, so they answered the call for more senior missionaries to serve.”

They come home this week. I have their car in my driveway, a nice bedroom waiting for them because they fly in so late, and flags to wave at the airport. Hooray!

Or, as my dad would say, Hurrah for Israel!

I will miss him.

In honor of President Jeffrey R. Holland who passed away last week, Mark and I spent a lot of time sharing with one another our favorite talks by this beloved Apostle. After our call ended, I took a minute to appreciate the privilege of having such a conversation with a 19-year-old.

There are so many talks that we shared and there are many that I love. If I had to choose just one, it would be The Grandeur of God from 2003. I keep it folded in my scriptures for ready reference. Here are some of my favorite words,

God, in His ultimate effort to have us know Him, sent to earth His Only Begotten and perfect Son, created in His very likeness and image, to live and serve among mortals in the everyday rigors of life.

To come to earth with such a responsibility, to stand in place of Elohim—speaking as He would speak, judging and serving, loving and warning, forbearing and forgiving as He would do—this is a duty of such staggering proportions that you and I cannot comprehend such a thing. But in the loyalty and determination that would be characteristic of a divine child, Jesus could comprehend it, and He did it. Then, when the praise and honor began to come, He humbly directed all adulation to the Father.

“The Father … doeth the works,” He said in earnest. “The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever [the Father] doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.” On another occasion He said: “I speak that which I have seen with my Father.” “I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me.” “I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.”

He came to improve man’s view of God and to plead with them to love their Heavenly Father as He has always and will always love them. The plan of God, the power of God, the holiness of God, yes, even the anger and the judgment of God they had occasion to understand. But the love of God, the profound depth of His devotion to His children, they still did not fully know—until Christ came.

So feeding the hungry, healing the sick, rebuking hypocrisy, pleading for faith—this was Christ showing us the way of the Father, He who is “merciful and gracious, slow to anger, long-suffering and full of goodness.” In His life and especially in His death, Christ was declaring, “This is God’s compassion I am showing you, as well as that of my own.”

I am so blessed to have had Elder Holland’s witness of Christ through my years of important decisions, marriage, and all the years of raising children. Apparently, he spoke at my middle school because his youngest son was in my class, but I don’t have a memory of it. Foggy middle school years aside, he was very influential in my life and I will miss him.

Thought journey about love and faith on an early morning

When I want to understand my relationship with God, forged by covenant, my go-to article is by President Nelson. A key point revolves around the Hebrew word, hesed. This week, this paragraph stood out to me,

Hesed is a special kind of love and mercy that God feels for and extends to those who have made a covenant with Him. And we reciprocate with hesed for Him.

The Everlasting Covenant by President Russell M. Nelson, Liahona, October 2022.

Wait, I can reciprocate hesed (loving kindness) to God?

In other words, hesed isn’t just Heavenly Father’s role in the covenant relationship? He truly wants my love?

How, then, can I show that love?

in gratitude for God’s merciful love (hesed), we show our loyal love (emunah) by keeping His commandments.

Faith: A Bond of Trust and Loyalty by Elder Sandino Roman

So, keeping commandments is the way I show loving kindness/devotion to God. That seems obvious, now that I write it.

Elder Roman used a different Hebrew word, emunah, rather than hesed, to describe our role in the covenant relationship. What does the word, emunah mean?

The short answer is faith, but like all Hebrew words, it is rich in meaning.

From website Chabad.org

So, I am to practice, hone, and create a lifestyle of action to show my love for God.

By doing, I come to know God. This is how I build a loving relationship with Him.

The process isn’t, “know then do.” The process is “do in order to know.” This is faith. This is love.

And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient.

Exodus 24:7

15 ¶ If ye love me, keep my commandments.

John 14:15

So, I can show love for God through obedience, crafting a life of faithful action.

If all of this is true, a key question is, What is the most important faithful/loving/obedient act that I can do right now?

Maybe it is to apologize to someone.

Or, it could be to share my faith with others.

Perhaps it is to praise God more and whine less.

It’s often going to be temple work.

Always, it is to acknowledge that the Savior makes a relationship with God possible.

Whatever the Spirit inspires us to do to show love for Heavenly Father today, may we do it and find rest in Him.

A few lists to end the year

I love the quiet days between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Although the silence was painful after our family left, I have begun to order my thoughts about the past year, journaling, reading notes, reviewing my planner, and organizing myself for the new year.

I love reflecting on questions like these during the quiet hours. I will include a few of my answers, too.

What are the lessons from 2025?

  • God can fix things so quickly, so completely, and so elegantly.
  • I have true friends on whom I can call when I need help.
  • I can trust God’s wisdom when my trials don’t go away.

What books and people did I keep close to me?

  • Book List Here, with my favorites in bold. I read the Doctrine and Covenants the most because I was teaching it.
  • People: my family, a few close friends.

What do I want to remember?

  • How Tim and Queenie looked in the sealing room at the temple on their wedding day.
  • Playing with our grandson in the backyard and at the beach.

How have I grown?

  • I trust God a bit more.

What were some triumphs?

  • Wedding luncheon for Tim.
  • A few special moments during lessons I taught in church.

How did the Savior show up in my life?

  • In word: the scriptures, words of prophets, impressions during prayer and in the House of the Lord.
  • In power: to endure challenges.
  • In music: during my most challenging moments, good music came to my mind. (Shalom by Dan Forrest; Slow Down, sung by Sissel; Seek the Lord by my mom, in her voice; I Want to Be Strong, a song we sang at Girls Camp 30+ years ago.)
  • Through people who listened to me and loved me.
  • In fresh ideas
  • In chastening: He helped me change my thinking. Often.

20-83 extra hours

This is a figure I saw this weekend of the number of extra hours of labor that women take on during Christmas time. This seems accurate to me.

I have never wanted to cultivate resentment about the effort it takes to create some extra Christmas magic. When the kids were younger, this meant I tried not to hurry them as we created simple traditions. When they were teens, the magic came from devoting our lives to support their dance and musical performances. When our adult children can’t be with us, I adjust my expectations and send packages.

Whatever is required of us this Christmas, I know that we can take inspiration from the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. He showed us how to love and serve.

Our charge

The article by President Russell M. Nelson from 2020, The Future of the Church: Preparing the World for the Savior’s Second Coming is amazing. It was listed in the Come Follow Me study guide for Doctrine and Covenants 133. Here are a few passages that I marked.

I have been thinking about building physical, emotional, and spiritual reserves that can buffer me against stress.

The thing about building a reserve, whether it is financial, spiritual, or physical, is that it is done with consistent, small acts over a sustained period of time.

We can do that. We must do it. There are things during these challenging times that, with God’s help, “only members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can accomplish.”