The lesson today was Chapter 21 in the Relief Society Manual
"Loving God More than We Love the World".
In Joshua 24:15 it states "Choose you this day whom ye will serve". We have got to reach a higher plane; we have got to love God more than we love the world.
Shortly after Lorenzo Snow was baptized and confirmed in Kirtland, Ohio, a number of Latter-day Saints, including some Church leaders, turned against the Prophet Joseph Smith. According to Lorenzo Snow, this apostasy was fueled by speculation, or, in other words, unusual business risks in hopes of getting rich quickly. Blinded by desire for the temporary things of the world, people turned away from the eternal blessings of the gospel.
About 50 years later, President Snow, serving as President of the Twelve, spoke to a group of Saints in Logan. He told them about the adversity he had witnessed in Kirtland and warned them that the would soon experience similar trials. There is rapidly coming something that will try you, perhaps as you have never been tried before, he said. "all, however that is necessary for us to do now is to see where our faults and weaknesses lie, if we have any. If we have been unfaithful in the past, let us renew our covenants with God and determine, by fasting and prayer, that we will get forgiveness of our sins, that the Spirit of the Almighty may rest upon us, that we may escape those powerful temptations that are approaching. The cloud is gathering in blackness. You see what were the results in Kirtland of this spirit of speculation. Therefore, take warning."
President Snow's warning continues to apply to us today. When people allow worldliness to pervade their minds and ears, they turn their backs on eternal principles.
Whenever we are tempted, we can ask ourselves "which side of the line am I on? Are we on the Lord's side? We will be safe and happy when we stay within the Lord's boundaries. Commandments have been designed by a loving Father in Heaven who knows how to protect us and help us return to live with him forever. Our challenge during mortality is to choose the eternal kingdom or God rather than temporary earthly glory.
Below are a few quotes:
We can't be on the fence, we have to choose the right side - that's where we get blessings from.
"What good is it not to follow someone who can walk on water?"
Take a part of your day for spiritual things. Are we worldly or of the world? Do we have a good balance in our life?
If we are grateful, it keeps us where we need to be.
