So I have had a lot on my mind lately. I had an interesting exchange that I have thought about over the last few days. Every Friday I have the opportunity to volunteer at a local hospital. I volunteer in the inpatient department answering phone calls, assisting nursing staff and doing a bunch of paper work. Anyways I usually bring a book in case I have some down time. This book in particular was about a family living during the time before the Second Coming of Christ. It told of their dealings of the signs of the times and all the turmoils on the earth before the Savior came again. Well I had one of the nurses come by and ask me what I was reading and what it was about. She told me she liked apocalyptic sorts of novels. I mentioned to her that the author was LDS. She then mentioned what had been on my mind for the last little bit. She mentioned that she had grown up in the LDS faith, but had become Catholic when she was 13. She then said that LDS, Catholic it was all the same, it only matters that you believe in God. Now it was a simple statement, but I wish I would have responded to it. I decided to respond to that comment with my blog today.
I do agree with this nurse that it is important to believe in God. I know that God exists and that He is our Father. I believe this statement is one of the most important basic principles for a person to base their foundation on. In the Book of Mormon in Mosiah 4:9 it says
"Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend."
However, I do not believe the rest of what her statement implied. For I know that that part is not true. While it is of the utmost importance to believe in God, it is not all the same, nor is it the only thing that matters. It is one of the first principles to know the true nature of God the Father and His son Jesus Christ. In fact it says in John 17:3
"And this is life eternal, that they may know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
It is life eternal to know the true nature of God. Varying religions are divided on the nature and purposed of God. It is imperative to understand God's true character and nature so that we as His children might better understand our relationship to Him and His purposes for us. The restored gospel of Jesus Christ teaches that God the Father is the father of our spirits. He has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's. He and the Son Jesus Christ are two separate personages that are one in purpose and glory. They are not a single entity as most of the Christian world teaches.
While a belief in God is essential, it is not a final conclusion to come to. A believe in God leads to a belief in His teachings and a belief that His promises are real. This means that when God repeatedly admonishes us to keep certain commandments, then if we truly believe in Him then we will keep His commandments.I guess this is how faith is developed, by hearing God's word and acting upon it. This requires struggle and sacrifice a majority of the time, but this is how we come to know God. For instance, I can say that I believe in the commandment God has given concerning tithing, which is we give back to God a tenth of our increase for the building of His kingdom. Now it is one thing to say I believe in this principle, but it is an entirely new thing to pay tithing when faced with financial hardship. Although it is easy to justify, by not keeping that commandment or any other commandment God has given us, we loose an opportunity to grow in faith and come to know God more fully. One more scripture illustrates this point. This is found in John 14:15, it states
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Now I'm not saying I have it all figured out. I'm not saying I do God's will all the time. I don't, in fact no one does. The only one is the Savior. We can be better though. I know that God loves us, we are His children and that He wants to uplift us. He does this by trying our faith and by seeing that we serve Him and keep His commandments. By doing these things one will come to know the strength and power that comes from obedience. The more I strive to follow my Heavenly Father the happier I am. I also at the same time realize how dependent I am on Him and how much I mess up. It gives me greater appreciation for the Savior's sacrifice for me. I know these things to be true and say this in the name of Jesus Christ.
