God is at the Helm

I had the opportunity to speak in Sacrament meeting today.  I've decided that when I and mine do that I would like to record our thoughts in this chronicle to share:  

Sometimes God calms the storm. Other times, he calms the sailor. And sometimes he makes us swim. Anonymous

God is at the helm.

Elder M. Russel Ballard spoke in the last General Conference about the good ship Zion.  It was a wonderful, inspiring talk that set me thinking.  Now, I’ll share with you why I Iove teaching the ll and 12 year olds.  They ask great questions.  One of them asked what the word Zion meant, at this point I realize I have to find a balance between answering all of their questions and keeping the lesson on course, so we defined the word for the purposes of our lesson which was as the city of Enoch, but the word Zion is also defined in the (D&C 97:21) as the “pure in heart” and in the Oxford Dictionary it is defined as the kingdom of God or the church.  Whichever definition we are looking at, Elder Ballard reminded us eloquently that “God is at the helm”. God is in charge of directing the building up of His kingdom. 

  I am tempted to say that it is too big a job for one person but the reality is that if he could create the earth then flood it, part the red sea, destroy Babylon, and hear all of our prayers all of the time He probably has the power to take the helm and direct it where he wants it to go.  The problem with that plan is that he would need to take our agency from us to do that and that would negate the purpose of the plan of salvation. So, if you have a really large ship full of sailors, all of them seeking the right direction and individually responsible for where they end up.  Add to this that many of them are inexperienced and impulsive,  what would you need for them to have in order to guide them safely into harbor? Watchmen.

Ezekial 63:  The Lord tells Ezekial...

2 Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their watchman:

3 If when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people;

4 Then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head.

7 So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me.

Elder Ballard said “make no mistake about it; the lord directs His Church through living prophets and apostles.”  

How grateful I am for the prophets, both ancient and present day who have dedicated their lives to the service of God and the building of His kingdom.

And what do they warn us to do? In the last conference, a few of the admonitions that inspired me were to read the scriptures, to be worthy of the temple, to serve others, to honor mothers and women, and to keep the sabbath and always, always to make Jesus Christ the center of your life.  If I choose only one of these challenges at a time to focus on how much more joyful will my life be?  

What if I do those things?  If I read the scriptures I will find the answers to questions I need, I have been promised protection from the adversary for doing that one simple thing.  If I serve others I build  friendships, bolster families, and even help  myself as I recognize my strengths through service. When I honor the mothers and women in my life and around the world I feel an amazing connection with the sisterhood we belong to.  I can’t begin to express the amount of love I’ve received from the Relief Society, the things I’ve learned and opportunities that have been realized. And when I live a Christ centered life I can count on being able to find peace even when the storms rage.

Still, the prophets and apostles are men and  they are on the good ship Zion, holding on for dear life, just as we are.  We are all here to make a few (or in my case a lot of) mistakes and to learn from those.  Our prophets and apostles are not perfect.  My grandmother’s brother was a general authority.  My father’s memory of him is that he was a “fire and brimstone” kind of guy.   As may have happened to some of you, I have sometimes disagreed with or wondered about  decisions made by our leaders (so far, not the prophets) but I hope I never criticize.  My job is to use my agency and my right to personal revelation to find understanding. Then to forgive and forget any mistakes and humbly accept direction from the Lord through his watchmen.

Remember that service as a leader in the Church of Jesus Christ even though it comes with  a powerful priesthood authority (the same authority that created the earth and parted the seas) is not about dominion. 

Moses 1:39 

39 For behold, this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

The good ship Zion is for those who are pure in heart and unified of purpose.  These gentle men who serve the Lord by lighting our way do it for the glory of god – to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

I testify that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God.  He is called to lead us in our time through the challenges as well as the joys that are unique to this dispensation.  I am grateful for him and his counselors and apostles as watchmen.  I’m grateful for their wisdom and love as they use the Lord’s will to select the leaders I will encounter directly.  I am grateful for our stake presidencies and bishoprics for their service and dedication on my behalf.

And I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen