From Brad Wilcox, his book ‘Changed Through His Grace’, Concern, Motivation, Sacrifice
I know a woman who no longer considers herself LDS. She said, “I went to seminary, read my scriptures, kept the Word of Wisdom, and did everything else good little Mormon girls are supposed to do. When it was time for me to get married, no returned missionary showed up to whisk me off to the temple. I did everything right and where did it get me?”
I felt sorry for her loneliness, but also concerned about her motivation. Were her sacrifices just about getting a husband? Did she assume she was putting money into some big bank account in the sky so that she could make a withdrawal when it was time to get married? When God didn’t “pay up,” was she justified in “showing Him” by refusing to sacrifice anymore?
I share this woman’s story because it is actually all of our stories—not the details, but the theme. We all have been disappointed when our sacrifices did not bring forth the blessings of heaven—at least not the ones we desired. Because our expectations were not met, we felt overlooked, mistreated, and tempted to pull away from God.
In such moments we must instead draw closer to God through continued obedience and sacrifice. As we do grace helps us learn humility, purify our motives, and expand our expectations. My friend Brent Fillmore encourages his institute students to change their thinking by changing their words. I’ve tried to follow his advice. Instead of saying, “If I obey, God will bless me,” I’ve begun to say, “As I obey, He will bless me.” Instead of saying, “When I sacrifice, He will bless me,” I’ve begun to say, “While I sacrifice, He will bless me.” This is one simple way we can invite God to broaden our vision to include His will as well as ours, to focus on a process as well as a product, and to consider the journey as well as the destination. As we covenant to obey and sacrifice we invite more of God’s power into our lives. ~Brad Wilcox, Changed Through His Grace (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2017), 87-89 Dwarsligger edition
Continuing from ‘Changed Through Grace’, a previous post from the teachings of Brad Wilcox, * ‘Concern, Motivation, Sacrifice II’
Gospel
Along with living the law of obedience and sacrifice, we are also expected to live the gospel. We show we value the gospel of Jesus Christ taught as we are willing to engage with Him in living it.
The word gospel comes from the Old English word godspell—god meaning good and spell meaning story or news. The gospel means good news! Jesus Christ came and lived a perfect life, completed the atonement, and lives again. These realities and blessings are good news indeed, but surely the good news also includes the Restoration, the first principles and ordinances, priesthood keys, temples and—though few of us like this—rules! God’s laws and standards are part of the good news and some of our greatest evidences of God’s love.
One single mother was struggling to rear her children in the gospel after her husband left the Church and divorced her. She told me tearfully how difficult it was to be the “bad guy” who enforced bedtimes, stressed nutrition, and required church attendance while her ex-husband did the opposite. On the weekends the children were with him, he let them stay up late and eat whatever they wanted, and he took them to amusement parks instead of church.
I assured her she was doing the right thing even though it was difficult. Just two weeks later this mother shared with me a note her oldest daughter had written: “Dear Mom, Thanks for being our mom. Dad is just trying to be our buddy. He is trying to win us over by spending money on us, but I am old enough to see what is going on, and I appreciate you for expecting us to make something of our lives. Maybe the little kids don’t get it yet, but I do.The parent with the rules is the one that really cares.”
Heavenly Father expects us to make something out of our lives. His rules show He really cares and doesn’t want us to waste time and opportunities to grow. To ask God to revise or suspend commandments would be asking Him to stop loving us, and He cannot do that. Instead, He sends His grace to help us see the bigger picture. ~Brad Wilcox, Changed Through His Grace (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2017), 89-92 Dwarsligger edition
