The process of learning and practicing these patterns that help us overcome the world is an individual matter.
We are each in our own private and personal battle…
A battle between the “natural man,” or our fallen state, compounded by Satan and His distracting, disorienting, and confusing tactics.
It seems hard because our “human nature” is more familiar to us than our “heavenly nature.”
Only by practicing righteous patterns of living, with the help of our Savior, do we overcome our “human nature” and make our “heavenly nature” more familiar.
Every day we get the opportunity to choose Jesus; or choose what seems more familiar.
As we become more familiar with His patterns and His presence helping us…
Choosing Jesus becomes more familiar and so does His “higher, holier ways.”
This is what I think it means to become “a people who have ALREADY CHOSEN JESUS”…
Because we practice choosing Him day after day after day.
We learn to “reconcile ourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the flesh” as Elder Neal A.Maxwell stated in “Overcome… Even As I Also Overcame”
To “reconcile” ourselves with God, means “to restore friendly relations” with Him…
Since the Lord is perfect, then we can trust that His end of the relationship is working perfectly,
Thus we need to clean up ‘our end’ of this relationship.
This requires humility.
The humility to recognize our weaknesses…(and still believe we are loved children of God)
The humility to seek His help…
The humility to do whatever is asked of us…
The humility to make those life changes more familiar than our fallen natures.
This is mental, emotional, and physical work…
It is also the “spiritual work necessary,” that Pres. Nelson so often talks about.
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As we seek heavens help to overcome the world, our lives are blessed.
This covenant relationship we are building with Christ, binds us to Him…
And in time, as we become more familiar with these heavenly patterns (higher, holier ways)…
Life becomes easier!
Says Pres. Nelson, “Please do not misunderstand me: I did not say that making covenants makes life easy. In fact, expect opposition, because the adversary does not want you to discover the power [and protection and joy] of Jesus Christ.”
Wait!!
Life becomes easier, but it’s not easy and expect opposition??? I’m confused…
Life will continue with its ups and downs…
You’ll have hard days and struggles…
But it has been my experience that even though I have hard days and struggles, and opposition to test my faith…
The more familiar I become with the patterns of Christlike living, like “the doctrine of Christ,” and practice them, the more confident I am in dealing with hard days and struggles…
And they don’t seem so hard anymore (even if they still aren’t fun).
I also claim the blessing, that as I yoke myself to Christ (in covenant relationship-constantly working on my end of that relationship), that I will have access to His strength and redeeming power.
I can become clean again. I can try again.
And each time I try, I get better at it.
This is a huge blessing!! It allows me to make mistakes, learn from them and grow, gain more experience, try again… And still have the promise of living with my Savior and Heavenly Father again someday, only this time I will have become like them.
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Let’s return to the beautiful vision of Pres. David O. McKay I shared in the first post this month…
With the beautiful white city, and people dressed in white robes smiling with “peace and eternal happiness…following the Savior”
Who are these people?
“These Are They Who Have Overcome the World –Who Have Truly Been Born Again!”
These are they, who have practiced righteous patterns of living, with the help of their Savior…
And have overcome their fallen natures, relying on the Savior’s grace and guidance along the way.
These are they, who have made their heavenly natures more familiar and thus, have been born again…
Because they have overcome their natural human tendencies.
These are they, who are “ABLE, READY, and WORTHY to receive the Lord when He comes again.” –Nelson
These are they, who have “ALREADY CHOSEN JESUS” over and over again!
These are they, who “rejoice in their agency to live the higher, holier laws of Jesus Christ…”
Because they are familiar with them.
These are they, who have confidence in accessing “His strength and redeeming power.”
These are they, who have BECOME like HIM!
I leave my hope and confidence with you, that we can “BECOME this righteous people!”
In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen!
