There are so many things I love about the gospel of Jesus Christ. One of these is how so many principles overlap, complement and enhance each other; and how things that we might have heard many times before can suddenly take on new meanings, or sometimes just become so much more important than they once were.
I was struck a few months ago by something someone said. I don’t remember where I came across it – it might have been a blog post, or a Youtube video, or a General Conference talk or something else entirely – so I apologise of the lack of attribution. I don’t even remember the actual quote, but I remember the reference and the impact.
This continues the series discussing the LDS ordinance of the sacrament. To see the previous posts in the series, see here
As we continue our pondering of the Sacrament prayer wording, it’s important to pause and consider in some detail the Name of Christ. In the prayers, the Priest asks, ‘God the Eternal Father … in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ…’ to bless and sanctify the sacramental emblems. It’s easy to overlook this, because in the LDS Church we close every prayer, every testimony, every talk/sermon, every lesson, ‘in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen’. It’s become a custom, one could almost say a habit.
That’s unfortunate, because there is great power in the Lord’s Name, and we miss out on that when we’re not deliberate and reverent. Indeed, we may well be breaking the third of the great commandments given at Sinai, ‘Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain…’ (Exodus 20:7). It’s this commandment I’d like to focus on in this post.
Those who are of the LDS faith will know what I mean when I say that yesterday was our Fast and Testimony meeting at church. For those who are not of our faith, Testimony meeting takes place once a month and is an opportunity for any member of the congregation to go to the pulpit and declare their faith – their testimony – about Jesus Christ.
I don’t usually take that opportunity to stand and speak, but yesterday I felt that I should do in order to speak about an experience I hadn’t previously shared with anyone. I’m going to repeat that here, with perhaps one or two added details I had left out yesterday.
Earlier this year I had the amazing opportunity to go ‘home’ to Australia and spend a little over two weeks with my brother and his family. I hadn’t seen Tony in over 40 years and I’d never met any of this children, so it was really special to be able to do so. Tony and I are practically polar opposites in almost every way, but spending that time with him and his family allowed me to really get to know him and it was so very hard saying goodbye when it was time to leave. He and his family are now well and truly embedded in my heart and I hope and pray I have another opportunity to visit some time.
Towards the end of my stay in Australia, I had a short dream which had a significant impact on me then, and continues to do so now.
In my dream, I found myself standing above the earth and looking down upon it. God had completed the earth’s creation, but man wasn’t yet upon it.
As I looked at the earth, I found that I could truly comprehend it in a way I had never been able to previously. The word ‘comprehend’ isn’t the right word, but I’m not sure there’s a better one. I saw the mountains and hills; valleys, rivers, streams and oceans; I saw the animals finding joy in their creation; beautiful flowers, trees and much more. But I didn’t just ‘see’ them with my eyes. I somehow could see into their being and truly understand them. It was marvellous. It came to my understanding that the work of creating this beautiful sphere had been long and arduous – and that God had invested a huge amount of Himself into it. The sheer breadth and depth of creation was awe-inspiring.
At that point, I realised that the Lord was standing next to me and also looking down upon His creation. It was then that He spoke these words to me, ‘I created all of this for you.’
At that moment a wave of love washed over me, overwhelming my senses to the extent that I began to cry. I then woke up. That same sense of love endured with me for some time, and even now I feel a portion of it when I think back on the experience.
Those who know me know that I have suffered from depression for much of my life, and since that experience there have still been ups and downs. But since the visit to my brother I have never forgotten that feeling.
For most of my life, I’ve had quite high self-confidence, while simultaneously having very low self-esteem. I’ve always know that God loves His children, but usually struggled to feel that for myself – perhaps you know how that feels. To a great degree, that changed with this dream.
Of course, God’s greatest act of love for us was in the sending of His Only Begotten in the flesh, Jesus Christ, to atone for our sins, pains, and suffering of every kind, and to overcome death. But next time you see a rainbow; or feel the beauty in a clear, crisp day; or marvel at the autumnal colours decorating the trees in many parts of the world at this time of the year, please remember: He created that for you.
P.S. I’ve been absent on this blog for several years as I’ve struggled with illness of one form or another, not to mention ‘life’ in general. God willing, I hope to be a little more active again now.
I have twin daughters. They are a delight, and I am constantly astonished at how different their personalities are despite their identical genetic starting point. I have learned many things from my children, and recently I had reason to stop to consider a wonderful life lesson taught to me by one of my twin daughters.
It relates to their recent baptism, but for those who read this and may not be LDS, there are three things that are important to know about baptism in our Church.
Firstly, children do not get baptised before the age of 8, which we believe is when children begin to become accountable for their actions. We believe that prior to this age, Christ’s atonement covers all mistakes no matter how sorry or otherwise a child may be.
Secondly, baptism in our Church is by immersion – the whole body under the water at the same time, symbolising the death of the old self, and cleansing resurrection to a new life as a disciple of Christ. If your hair floats on the top of the water it has to be done again – 100% simultaneous immersion is essential.
Thirdly, all males in good standing in the Church are able to hold the Priesthood, meaning that they are able to directly perform ordinances like baptism for their families. A real highlight in my life has been being able to baptise each of my children.
With the above points in mind, and as the time drew closer to my twin daughters’ 8th birthday, we began to prepare for their baptism. They were both very excited as the months and then weeks drew closer. We had some practice sessions at home, “bend your knees like this”, “now close your eyes and hold your nose”, “try and keep your feet on the ground so a toe doesn’t pop out of the water”, etc. They invited school friends to come and see their baptism, told their teachers, and generally just couldn’t wait.
But, as the day drew nearer we recognised a potential problem – neither of my girls were able to put their heads under water. We’ve often gone swimming as a family, and they attend swimming lessons at school. But they never put their heads under water – they don’t even like water on their faces. That’s fine for a family swimming trip; not quite so fine when they want to get baptised, and the baptism must be by immersion. Continue reading →
Well, there’s less than a week until Valentine’s Day. It will be my 22nd Valentine’s Day with my wife. Without any doubt she is the better half of our marriage; more patient, more selfless, more giving. Continue reading →
All Things Witness 