Latter-Day Saints too seldom talk in church about what grace is. It's terribly unfortunate too, because we do talk about doing all things we need to do to have it. We connect our willingness to work hard at trying to live the gospel with our eternal salvation, but we hardly ever really connect it with our salvation here and now and how that salvation helps us live the gospel.
I was shocked and overjoyed to realize that one of the prophets of the Book of Mormon actually made that connection explicit. Amulek taught the Zoramites saying:
"I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you." (Alma 34:31)
So how is it that the "great plan of redemption" should be brought about unto us in this life - immediately - and what does grace have to do with it?
Grace and a Vacuum Cleaner
One night when I was growing up, my parents decided they'd go out on a short date. I was getting old enough to be left with the kids, without a babysitter, so off they went, leaving us to fend for ourselves for an hour or so.
Maybe you've heard that old saying: "oh how the mice will play when the cat's away..."
No sooner had Mom and Dad left, against the house rules, we pulled the cushions off the couch and began to play "horsie", "riding" our couch cushions on-end all around the freshly vacuumed living room floor. Well, it didn't take very long for our enthusiasm to wane somewhat. We stopped, and we realized that if Mom and Dad were to come home in that moment, we'd be in trouble. We quickly stashed the cushions back on the couch, only to realize that wasn't enough. The floor no longer had the distinctive tracks of the vacuum cleaner across the now messy carpet. To make matters worse, there were tiny little bits of lint from the cushions all over the place.
We had to do something - and quick! We picked up as much of the lint as we could, which helped considerably, but didn't fix the problem of needing to "cover our tracks", so to speak. Being the ingenious children that we were, we got out the vacuum cleaner. However, not wanting to be caught dead actually doing real vacuuming without Mom's having to tell us to do it, we didn't bother to plug it in. Now, if you've ever used a self-propelled vacuum cleaner, you know they can be really difficult to push when they're not turned on. We pushed it anyway - this way and that, until the not-so-linty, not-so-vacuumed carpet had fresh tracks in it.
Let this thought carry the lesson: we weren't smart enough - or humble enough - to plug the vacuum cleaner into its rightful source of power, and turn it on. Had we done so, the tracks would have actually looked like some vacuuming had taken place, and there would have been no lint left on the carpet. As an added bonus, we would not have had to work so hard - and - we might have gotten away with our shenanigans!
The gospel of Jesus Christ is like that vacuum cleaner, our lives like a living room floor. If we're not careful, we can end up pushing the "dos" and "don'ts" of gospel living across our way of life, leaving "Mormon" (Catholic, Baptist, Evengelical, Jewish ...etc) tracks in the carpet, but still feeling like the job isn't getting done, like our lives aren't any cleaner or any happier for our trouble. What's worse, we wear ourselves to the point of losing our sanity, trying to push the heavy load all alone. The Lord never meant for living the gospel to be this way. He meant for us to plug the gospel in to its rightful Power Source, and turn it on! That's what grace is!
The Importance of Grace
The apostle Paul taught that it is by grace we are saved, and not works:
"But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Ephesians 2:4-9)
What we don't seem to fully realize is that grace saving us from sin, and grace enabling us to do the works are one and the same thing!
The apostle Paul taught that the Savior suffered and died to offer us grace, and that now is the time to use it:
"...God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain. (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)" (2 Corinthians 5:19-21, 6:1-2)
After All We Can Do
In telling us why he wrote the things he did, the ancient American prophet Nephi said:
"...for we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do. And, notwithstanding we believe in Christ, we keep the law of Moses, and look forward with steadfastness unto Christ, until the law shall be fulfilled. For, for this end was the law given; wherefore the law hath become dead unto us, and we are made alive in Christ because of our faith; yet we keep the law because of the commandments. And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." (2 Nephi 25:23-26)
While it's true that we have to be doing "all we can do" to live the commandments of God, if we will do so, we will find that through grace, we will be able to accomplish far more than what we would otherwise be capable of. What's more, we'll look back and realize that what we are able to do through grace has turned out to be the Lord's gift to give, not ours to accomplish on our own. Doing the works is more a consequence of salvation than a prerequisite to obtaining it. With the power of grace active in our lives, the "dos" and "don'ts" become "dead unto us". We live seeking to have the power of God in our lives - power that both teaches and enables a far higher standard than we could ever aspire to without it. With the Savior providing the power, we learn and overcome and grow in righteousness, in freedom, in joy, and in peace. With Him helping, there is nothing we cannot do!
A Book of Mormon prophet by the name of Helaman taught his sons the importance of the power of the Redeemer:
"And remember also the words which Amulek spake unto Zeezrom, in the city of Ammonihah; for he said unto him that the Lord surely should come to redeem his people, but that he should not come to redeem them in their sins, but to redeem them from their sins. And he hath power given unto him from the Father to redeem them from their sins because of repentance; therefore he hath sent his angels to declare the tidings of the conditions of repentance, which bringeth unto the power of the Redeemer, unto the salvation of their souls." (Helaman 5:10-11)
What's in the Book of Mormon? Salvation From Sin, Not In Sin
Another Book-of-Mormon missionary by the name of Ammon also understood this need for the Savior's power - for grace - in our lives:
"Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things..." (Alma 26:8,11-16)
The apostle Paul experienced what it was to give everything in his effort to obtain grace, only to find the change that came into his life was more a result of grace - obtained "after all he could do" or "laboring more than they all" - than a result of his own effort.
"For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." (1 Corinthians 15:9-10)
Paul felt what it was to have the Savior give him salvation through grace even though, in his own mind, he did not deserve it. The Lord's favorite kind of person to help is one who is "doing all he can do" and "laboring more than they all", thinking he doesn't deserve any help from on high. Salvation from the things we're trying to overcome is something that can happen when we least expect it, when we least believe we deserve it, when we've given up on making those changes ourselves and have been busily engaged in obtaining the Lord's good grace instead.
Grace: Salvation from Sin
Why did Nephi want so badly for his children to experience the remission of sins? Sin places a spiritual burden on our souls that keeps us from being able to access the power to do the works the way we could before we committed the sin. Like a sort of spiritual Never-land, that burden keeps us from knowing or remembering the indescribable joy that is spiritual freedom. Having sin remitted restores that ability and that joyous spiritual freedom. The people of king Benjamin experienced having their joy - and their freedom - restored through the power of the remission of sins:
"And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay; he has poured out his Spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy." (Mosiah 4:20)
We often think of salvation as something that doesn't happen until judgement day, or until we die. The scriptures call this kind of salvation "being saved at the last day". But the scriptures also teach that salvation comes to us in this life, just as it did to the people of king Benjamin. Alma and Amulek from the Book of Mormon taught the Zoramites:
"Yea, I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you. For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors..." (Alma 34:31-34)
Now is the time to repent, now is the time to experience what it means to be redeemed. Coming unto Christ is not so much a matter of deciding to behave as it is a matter of deciding to turn to Him for power and love and wisdom - the things that motivate and enable us to obey His commandments. Having his power and love and wisdom - grace - flow into our lives when we diligently seek it is salvation, and change - redemption - is the consequence. It starts the moment we prayerfully acknowledge our sin and our weakness and begin to apply a genuine effort and to ask His help in overcoming them.
Grace: Help for Our Weakness
Through grace, not only does the Savior lift the burden of sin, He can also help us lift the burden of weakness.
In telling of his own experience with weakness, the apostle Paul said:
"And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong." (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
Paul came to understand that the Lord doesn't always take away our weaknesses, and we aren't always meant to overcome them, per se. Instead, we are meant to live the gospel in spite of our weakness, through the saving graces of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Nephi understood this as well:
"Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard. Nevertheless, notwithstanding the great goodness of the Lord, in showing me his great and marvelous works, my heart exclaimeth: O wretched man that I am! Yea, my heart sorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities. I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily beset me. And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins; nevertheless, I know in whom I have trusted. My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep. He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh... Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the night-time... O then, if I have seen so great things, if the Lord in his condescension unto the children of men hath visited men in so much mercy, why should my heart weep and my soul linger in the valley of sorrow, and my flesh waste away, and my strength slacken, because of mine afflictions? And why should I yield to sin, because of my flesh? Yea, why should I give way to temptations, that the evil one have place in my heart to destroy my peace and afflict my soul? Why am I angry because of mine enemy? Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul. Do not anger again because of mine enemies. Do not slacken my strength because of mine afflictions. Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto the Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation. O Lord, wilt thou redeem my soul? Wilt thou deliver me out of the hands of mine enemies? Wilt thou make me that I may shake at the appearance of sin? May the gates of hell be shut continually before me, because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite! O Lord, wilt thou not shut the gates of thy righteousness before me, that I may walk in the path of the low valley, that I may be strict in the plain road! O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy righteousness! O Lord, wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine enemies! Wilt thou make my path straight before me! Wilt thou not place a stumbling block in my way—but that thou wouldst clear my way before me, and hedge not up my way, but the ways of mine enemy. O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm. Yea, I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh. Yea, my God will give me, if I ask not amiss; therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto thee, my God, the rock of my righteousness. Behold, my voice shall forever ascend up unto thee, my rock and mine everlasting God. Amen." (2 Nephi 4:16-35)
Nephi knew the importance of trusting in the Lord's grace, of constantly asking for His help, instead of living by the "arm of flesh". When we trust in the arm of flesh, we are left to our own devices, but when we trust in the Lord, He gives liberally to them that ask, and He provides power for dealing with temptation and adversity, and for living the gospel in spite of weakness.
The Lord taught Moroni from the Book of Mormon the key to overcoming weakness:
"...if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them. Behold, I will show unto [them] their weakness, and I will show unto them that faith, hope and charity bringeth unto me—the fountain of all righteousness. (Ether 12:27-28)
Some things we are meant to overcome and leave behind forever, never to have those things be "weak things" ever again. But some things are given to us for "thorns in the flesh". The Nephites were given the Lamanites as enemies, to "stir them up and keep them in remembrance of the Lord their God". Similarly, our "thorns in the flesh" are there to help us remember that we need the Fountain of All Righteousness, which is Christ and His grace, if we are to live righteously. When we remember that, and draw from the Fountain of all Righteousness in the moment of temptation, we can have our weak things become strong unto us in the sense that they compel us to humble ourselves and seek to have the power of God in our lives in a way we would not otherwise do. Once our weakness has pushed us to access the grace of God, that benevolent force is available to fill empty emotional holes and teach us new forms of righteousness we didn't know we needed to learn. When we let Him help us with one weakness, the Lord starts showing us and helping us with all weakness.
For those of us who have professed faith in Christ, Paul taught that the Savior supplies us the power we need to "hold fast our profession". If we learn everything else in the scriptures and not this one thing, we can call ourselves scholars of the scriptures. But if in our minds, in our hearts, and in our actions we learn this one concept from the scriptures and nothing else, we can call ourselves converts to Christ, disciples of Christ, witnesses of Christ, and examples of the believers. That's how important this message from Paul about grace is:
"Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:14-16)
Even the Son of God did not live His perfect life alone, without help:
"And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him." (John 8:29)
Note that this statement from the Lord can be read two ways: 1) the Father has not left him alone because He does always those things that please him; 2) the Father has not left Him alone, and the fact that He does always those things that please Him can be taken as evidence of that companionship. The Lord gets His power from his Father!
In order to do the things the Lord has asked of us, mortal beings need power from on high - and we need to be diligent in seeking that power. All of us need that power, without exception. Even the Savior needed power from on high as he wrought His atoning sacrifice for us:
"And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him." (Luke 22:41-43)
By way of example, the Lord gave us one of the keys to always having access to His grace: we have to be striving to "do always those things that please him".
I find that when the aid of heaven is less available than usual, it is because I have slackened in my own effort to "do always those things that please him". It can be easy to feel like the Lord has failed us or left us alone, but this is never the case. Every time I have ever come to feel God has "ditched" me, I ended up realizing it wasn't Him that did the ditching. It was me.
An explorer by the name of Ammon - not the missionary by the same name - taught the people of king Limhi who were in bondage both to the Lamanites and to weakness and sin:
"For behold, the Lord hath said: I will not succor my people in the day of their transgression; but I will hedge up their ways that they prosper not; and their doings shall be as a stumbling block before them. And again, he saith: If my people shall sow filthiness they shall reap the chaff thereof in the whirlwind; and the effect thereof is poison. And again he saith: If my people shall sow filthiness they shall reap the east wind, which bringeth immediate destruction. And now, behold, the promise of the Lord is fulfilled, and ye are smitten and afflicted. But if ye will turn to the Lord with full purpose of heart, and put your trust in him, and serve him with all diligence of mind, if ye do this, he will, according to his own will and pleasure, deliver you out of bondage." (Mosiah 7:29-33)
We've all felt it: you wake up one day to realize you've done something you shouldn't have and now there's an unacceptable rift between you and your Heavenly Father. No matter how sincerely you pray, your prayers just seem to bounce off the walls.
But the more you ask for help in the very moment when you need it, the more that power becomes available until all it takes is an upward turning of your glance toward heaven, and you can feel the Father acknowledge that turning.
All of us have some form of weakness - bondage - waiting for us to quit seeking the Lord's help and then slip up. But if we never stop seeking that help, or if, having stopped, we begin once again, the Lord and His grace will always be there to deliver us once again out of bondage.
Grace: Healing for Our Pain
The Savior suffered and died to purchase the power to be our God. To Him, being our God means taking care of us. Alma the Younger prophesied concerning His ministry among us:
"And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people. And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities." (Alma 7:11-12)
Many times, I myself have felt the Lord take my own deeply personal pain upon Himself. Through the abuses of those who ought to have been my friends, through suffering that came to me by no fault of my own - through suffering that was my fault - and even through the pain of divorce, I have felt time and again His still small voice speak healing words to my heart: "let me take it". I can't tell you how many times I've felt the Lord express a willingness - even a compelling desire - to trade places with me and take my pain for me. I don't know how it works exactly; I just know it does! Somehow, knowing that I have beside me the infinite compassion of an Almighty God gives me courage and strength to bear my trials, to shoulder my burdens, and go on to triumph in His redeeming grace!
In preparing the disciples for His departure, the Lord gave them "another Comforter":
"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." (John 14:16-18)
Another way grace heals us is through the Lord's administration of what He called "living water". To a woman at a well in Samaria, the Lord said:
"If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water... Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." (John 4:10-14)
All of us have "emotional holes" that need to be filled. The things we suffer in this world, the emotional cost incurred by trying to live the gospel leave us thirsting for something, but what? These days most people seem to fill their empty holes with drugs, alcohol, sexual misconduct, selfishness, hate, and a million other things that cause more misery than they fix.
To put it in the words of the prophet Jeremiah, speaking on behalf of the Lord:
"...my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water." (Jeremiah 2:13)
It seems we have two choices: either we diligently seek the grace of God and come to know the joy of being safe-folded by our Good Shepherd, or we end up addicted to something, and misery and emptiness are the consequences. When we have living water from the Savior, we find we don't need other things to fill our holes. Living water weakens the force of habit and even addiction because the need is being met a different way - through the grace of God!
Isaiah invited us to experience the Savior's grace, saying:
"Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live..." (Isaiah 55:1-3)
The Lord gave us this promise:
"And blessed are all they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost." (3 Nephi 12:6 compare Matthew 5:6)
For more on the critical importance of having living water in our lives, see my article about The Pride of the World vs. Living Water.
God Is the Power Source
In preparing the disciples for His death and subsequent departure, the Lord taught them, saying:
"Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples." (John 15:4-8)
Conversely, an ancient American missionary by the name of Ammon said:
"...I do not boast in my own strength, nor in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God. Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things..." (Alma 26:11-12)
Lest we think the power of God is not available for our use in everyday things, let us remember that this very same Ammon used the power of God for herding sheep, and was able to convert the whole household of king Lamoni - a former enemy - as a result. (see Alma 17:24-39, Alma 18, Alma 19)
Moroni taught that one of the reasons why the Lord sends angels is to cause men to have faith in Christ, which is what makes power available:
"And by so doing, the Lord God prepareth the way that... men may have faith in Christ, that the Holy Ghost may have place in their hearts, according to the power thereof; and after this manner bringeth to pass the Father, the covenants which he hath made unto the children of men. And Christ hath said: If ye will have faith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in me. (Moroni 7:32-33)
God is the power source. Without Him, we can do nothing. Without Him, our efforts to change and to do all the things He has asked will be severely hampered. But with Him helping, we can indeed do all things. We should be using the power of God to help us in everything.
We have to make a point of taking the "i" out of "Savior", for truly, He is the Savor, if we are the salt. What good is salt that has lost its Savor, or what good is a disciple that has lost his Jesus? We would never use a vacuum cleaner for even one second without first plugging it in and and turning it on. So why in the world would we allow ourselves to live out so much as the first waking moment of any new day without first purposefully and prayerfully plugging into our Power Source? (see Matthew 5:13, 3 Nephi 12:13, Alma 37:36-37, Proverbs 3:5-6) Just as its savor is an integral attribute of salt, even so, our constant seeking to have the Lord be involved in our lives should be an integral part of who we are - so much so, that people can feel it when they are around us.
Plugging In the Vacuum Cleaner and Turning It On
Every devout Christian in the world is, no doubt, familiar with these words from the Lord:
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)
The way we come unto Christ, the way we access His help in living the gospel is through humility and prayer. Humility is what plugs the vacuum cleaner in. Without humility, we won't ever recognize the need for power above and beyond our own - especially not at the hour-by-hour level we really need. But with this kind of humility, we can experience the power that only our "high priest which is passed into the heavens" can provide. For more about what humility is and why it's so important, see my article on The Depths of Humility.
Prayer is what turns the vacuum cleaner on. The Lord said: "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:" (Matthew 7:7)
In my own experience, I've noticed that the Lord is very sensitive to the scope of our prayers. If we ask for help in a very general way, we'll get help in very general way. The more specific our need, the more faith it takes to ask, and the more specific will be the help the Lord provides. If we ask Him, "Please help me remember to do what is right today", if we're paying attention we'll notice gentle reminders from heaven throughout the day. If we've lost our keys and ask for help retracing our steps, the Lord won't tell you outright where your keys are, but he'll guide your thought process or help you think of places you've been or things you've done that might have led to their loss until you find your keys.
Why is this important? One of the things I pray for help with quite frequently is anger. But I find He prefers to help me with something specific that's frustrating me - a piece of computer code I can't get to run right, a set of lost keys that are nowhere to be found, or a defiant child who really just needs to know she's loved. I've found out the neat way that My Heavenly Father takes as much joy in helping me solve problems working on my motorcycle as my earthly Dad does. Without the Lord's help, anger can feel like my only option. But with His help, anger seems not only irrelevant, but counterproductive. I can forget to ask for the help I need and deal with my anger getting in the way, or I can choose to ask and have His love and power and wisdom to guide and to help me instead. When we are faced with temptation, we tend to think our choice is either give in to the temptation or don't. But this is not true. Our choice is either give in to the temptation and push the Lord away, or turn to the Lord, draw Him nearer, and feel his love and power and wisdom flowing once again through our minds and hearts. Fighting our battles with the Lord's help brings victory and joy!
The devil may impose temptation on us, but the Lord makes available His infinite grace - to those who seek it. As the hymn says, "what but thy grace can foil the tempter's power?" The key is being committed enough to living the gospel, that we realize our need and then ask.
To put it in the Lord's words, spoken to the Nephites in ancient America:
"...blessed are the poor in spirit who come unto me, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (3 Nephi 12:3, compare Matthew 5:3)
The poor in spirit are those who have committed to live the gospel, but realize their own spiritual resources fall short of giving them the power to actually do it. That's why we need a Savior in the first place; that's what a Savior is: the source of the power we need to reach the kingdom of heaven!
Come Unto Christ
Moroni closed his contribution to the Book of Mormon with these words:
"Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God. And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot." (Moroni 10:32)
You have got to experience borrowing the power of God for handling life's daily trials for yourself! I know from personal experience that when you feel the impact of grace giving you the power to really, truly live the gospel, it is impossible to deny the power of God. No matter what changes you need to make, when you feel grace flowing into your life, it is impossible not to change for the better. When you are built on this sure foundation, you cannot fail! Such is our need for the power of God - for grace.
Learn more about Building on the Rock of the Redeemer - a sure foundation!
Response to Temptation: "Grace Reflex"
Following His resurrection, the Lord ministered among the people of the Nephites. One of the most important things he taught the was this:
"Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, ye must watch and pray always lest ye enter into temptation..." (3 Nephi 18:18)
We all deal with temptation - that's just part of being mortal. But the Savior counsels us to respond to temptation with prayer - immediately - lest we "enter into" that temptation. You see, I've learned that the Savior is not only our Good Shepherd - he's the Good Fireman too. This Good Fireman will, when asked, help you prevent fire, so He doesn't have to save you from it.
For my parable of the Good Fireman, see my article about being saved from sin.
The Lord's responsiveness to our pleas is often directly proportional to our responsiveness in the moment of temptation. This concept is so important, I would go so far as to say that every sin is one part violating a commandment and nine parts forgetting to get the Lord involved when we should have. Will we let the temptation mess with our minds or take over our actions before it pushes us to do something we'll regret? Or will we get on our knees or pray silently in our minds in time to have the Lord's grace foil that temptation and meet the need for us?
I call that praying-in-the-moment response to temptation my "grace reflex". I check the speed of my "grace reflex" after each temptation. Did my response match the speed of the temptation? Was I quick enough in asking for help? I find my being able to answer "yes" directly affects how accessible that grace is the next time temptation strikes.
Grace: Use It Or Lose It
I find that my connection to the Savior's grace is only available on a use-it-or-lose-it basis. If we stop plugging in and turning the power on, we may find that power becomes difficult to access. We can even forget it's there to be had - or maybe live our whole lives not knowing it's available in the first place.
Conversely, no matter how bad our spiritual situation, if we'll start asking for the Lord's help in overcoming, gradually, He'll start responding with more and more of His living water and power unto righteousness until, once again, we're getting the help we need. When we turn to the Lord and ask for help, He pours out grace.
Alma the Younger taught Zeezrom and the people of the city of Ammonihah about having and losing what he called "the mysteries of God":
"And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full. And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this is what is meant by the chains of hell." (Alma 12:11)
While this concept of "receiving the word" obviously applies across any and all knowledge of God or His word or any level of obedience to His commandments, in my experience, it most perfectly applies to our willingness to plead for grace in our lives. We can either seek grace for saving us from sin, for healing our pain, and for living God's commandments in spite of weakness, or we can find ourselves captive to sin, asking God why he lets painful things happen, and unable to know the joy of succeeding at living His gospel with His help. This is what is meant by the chains of hell.
The Lord commanded the early Saints of the restored church, saying:
"Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you..." (D & C 88:63)
Isaiah testified:
"Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. " (Isaiah 55:6-12)
If we will seek the Lord diligently in every thought, in every desire, in every act, we will have His word - his grace - growing inside us. True change and peace and joy will be the result!
Real Gospel Living: Steadfastness in Christ
Too many members of the Church think of "living the gospel" as "keeping the commandments" - If you're not at least trying to keep the commandments, you're not living the gospel. While this is certainly true, it is far from the whole truth, the truth we need in order to really live the gospel. God's many commands are not so much His ultimatum as they are his way of inviting us to live out the pain and weakness and suffering and darkness of mortality by the healing, strengthening, enabling light of His infinite grace! He gave us commandments so that by them, we could discover our need for His help. Once we have His help with the commandments, we have his Help with everything else in our lives, and that is cause for unimaginable joy!
Real gospel living has more to do with seeking to have the Lord and his enabling grace in our lives than with trying to live all the "dos" and "don'ts". The "thou-shalts" and "thou-shalt-nots" are the "what". Grace is the "how". "Come unto me" is the "why", and right now is the "when". So if you've never experienced living the gospel through the power of grace, there's no time to start using it like right now!
Nephi said it like this:
"And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save. Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life." (2 Nephi 31:19-20)
The apostle Paul taught:
"Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." (1 Corintians 2:9, see also Isaiah 64:4)
I know from experience that if we will choose to love our God, and seek to experience the many manifestations of His grace, we'll find He does things with us and for us that we never imagined He could - or would - do. We'll find Him doing things in our hearts that solve problems nothing but His matchless grace could touch.
Real gospel living - coming unto Christ - is about loving Him, and having His love for us flow into our lives and change us forever into new creatures in Him. If we'll remember that and live like it, we stand to experience what it feels like to gradually learn to bear all our trials, and gradually succeed at doing all of the things He has asked us to do, with the help of our Almighty, living, loving God right by our side, every step of the way.
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