Vicky began by reading the parable of the eagle. In it, a farmer raises a baby eagle as a chicken. The eagle looks like an eagle, but it acts like a chicken. Later, a naturalist comes and is dismayed that the eagle, king of the birds, is scratching in the dirt and acting like a chicken. He wants to teach the eagle to fly. The farmer doubts that the eagle can do it. Of course, with a little encouraging, the eagle can fly according to his true nature. Like the eagle being raised as a chicken, we sometime miss our true destiny and act like something less.
Vicky showed us a map. When you're going on a trip, maps are indispensable but they can be hard to follow. Sometimes the directions we get for how to live our lives are like that too; fortunately, we also have the scriptures to help us. Where maps can be gray and give us almost too many options, the scriptures are more black and white.
The ordinances of baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost are things that we can see. However, there are inward works we need to do before we are prepared to receive those ordinances. Wendy said it's important for your heart to be prepared for the ordinances.
President Snow taught that the outward ordinances of baptism and confirmation are inseparably connected with the inward works of faith and repentance.
The world too often teaches us that we need and deserve immediate results. Anything worth having is something we should have right this second. Sometimes things don't work out so well when you rush into them. Vicky gave two examples: A friend of hers got married in Las Vegas; as she was walking down the aisle, she told Vicky she was thinking, "If this doesn't work out, I can always get a divorce." Another individual she knew got baptized, but his heart wasn't really in it. Unsurprisingly, both the marriage and the church membership didn't last long in these two cases.
John 3:5 tells us it's necessary to be baptized and confirmed a member of the Church before we can enter the kingdom of God. However, there's more to it than just the outward ordinances. The following are inward works that must accompany the outward ordinances of baptism and confirmation:
- Change of heart
- Believe (Mark 16:16)
- Listen and do (Matthew 7:24)
- Repent (Acts 2:38)
- Have faith
- Obey the commandments & be sincere (Luke 6:46)
- Pray with the intent to obey (Beverly B.)
Valorie shared a story of her sister's husband. They were married for a long time, and it appeared that he was an honest member of the Church. Then one night he was arrested by the FBI. It turned out he had a long history of espionage, and he ended up in prison. Outwardly, he'd been doing the right things, but obviously there were a few problems where his true character was concerned.
At the same time, his flaws didn't negate all the good things he'd done. For example, the temple work he had done was still valid for those individuals that it applied to. Anna commented that it's the same for someone who is baptized by someone who isn't necessarily worthy to perform the ordinance: that doesn't mean their baptism is "no good."
Carrie (visiting our ward) said that we need covenants like baptism to seal our commitment and give us strength when things get tough.
Heavenly Father wants us to come back to him. Our covenants demonstrate our commitment, and our life experiences and how we deal with them prove our hearts. Because we can't see what's going on in people's hearts, we need to be careful not to judge them harshly.
As a teenager before they were married, Vicky's husband was a member of another faith. He went to many LDS church activities for a year. After one activity, Vicky noticed he was talking with the missionaries. He took the discussions and was subsequently baptized. Later, he served a mission to Portugal, and he and Vicky were married in the Oakland Temple. He used that time at church activities, with the missionaries, and on his mission to prepare his heart for the gospel and his temple marriage. He needed that strength to support him, especially since the rest of his family never joined the LDS church.
Marquelle was once engaged to a non-member. She really loved him, but she also knew she wanted to get married in the temple. Her fiance was baptized; however, Marquelle just didn't feel at peace about it, and they broke off their engagement even though she really loved him. He later fell away from the church; it was all about outward appearances for him.
Robin joined the church when she was 37. She was raised Catholic, but she knows that God prepares you for what you need. Her life has been changed by being a member.
Vicky's husband said before he had the church, he didn't really have a cornerstone. He was really free to do pretty much what he wanted. His life could have turned out much different, much worse. He has a brother who made different choices and has been in and out of jail and lives with his girlfriend--not the life many of us would choose if we could see where our early choices were leading us.
Lynne commented that we have to be converted ourselves. Two people can be raised the same way in the same family, and one can turn out to e a convict and the other can turn out to be a patriarch.
Sue said we're all at different levels of conversion. It's so good for us to come to church, wherever we are, because it strengthens us for the week.
Pat N. said she and her husband were tracted out by the missionaries at just the right time in their lives. They were Methodists with one child and another on the way. They had lots of questions for the missionaries. Her husband spent 9 months investigating the church. He gave up smoking overnight. He also gave up alcohol, even though he was "almost an alcoholic" because he had such a strong desire to join the church. Their family was later sealed in the London Temple. At the end of his life, he was serving in the Johannesburg Temple.
We didn't have a lot of time to discuss the gift of the Holy Ghost, but of course it is so important. We must live so that we can be worthy of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is what leads us through the rest of our journey on Earth. Just as the map can be confusing when you're on a road trip, the Holy Ghost can be like a highlighter that outlines the path we should take. The Holy Ghost is to us what the naturalist in the parable was to the eagle: it can help us reach our true potential. When we keep the baptismal covenant and seek the guidance of the Holy Ghost, the promised blessings are sure to follow.
