Latter-day Saint FAIR-Cast

Avoiding Confusion by Autumn Dickson Leman Copely was a convert to the church who wanted the gospel preached to his former congregants – the Shakers. The Shakers held some beliefs that were different from our’s. Here is some of what the Lord said regarding that: Doctrine and Covenants 49:1-4 1 Hearken unto my word, my servants Sidney, and Parley, and Leman; for behold, verily I say unto you, that I give unto you a commandment that you shall go and preach my gospel which ye have received, even as ye have received it, unto the Shakers. 2 Behold, I say unto you, that they desire to know the truth in part, but not all, for they are not right before me and must needs repent. 3 Wherefore, I send you, my servants Sidney and Parley, to preach the gospel unto them. 4 And my servant Leman shall be ordained unto this work, that he may reason with them, not according to that which he has received of them, but according to that which shall be taught him by you my servants; and by so doing I will bless him, otherwise he shall not prosper. The Lord calls Sidney, Parley, and Leman to go preach the gospel as they have received it. The Shakers want the truth in part, but they don’t want the whole truth. Sidney and Parley have been called, and so has Leman. However, it’s important to note that Leman has been called to teach the Shakers according to what he has received from the restored gospel and not what he has received from the Shakers. I’m not 100% sure what the Lord was saying when He told Leman to teach the Shakers from the perspective of a believer of the restored gospel, but it definitely stuck out to me. When I write these posts, sometimes I get immensely wrapped up in defending the gospel to those who have left. Those are the people that I’m thinking of, and I try to approach the gospel by looking through their lens. I think there is merit to this. It’s definitely helped me to examine my beliefs more closely, but I believe that there are some topics that simply can’t operate from that direction. Some topics have to be taught unapologetically and while it may not reach the audience that I believe needs it most, there is no other way to truly teach it. Sometimes, you have to teach the truth and people are simply going to have to choose whether they believe it. Part of the truth From my perspective this week, this is one of those topics. The Shakers only wanted part of the truth. There are two perspectives I want to cover specifically about this idea of “part of the truth.” First perspective. I once came across a post on social media. It was either posted right before General Conference or right after. The lady recommended listening to conference and taking the parts that spoke to you. If there was something that hurt you or caused problems in your mind, she recommended leaving those parts and simply holding to the parts you could connect to. As you can imagine, there were wildly different reactions to this post. Some were thanking her profusely for making them feel heard. Others were condemning her and quoting General Authorities about not cherry-picking the gospel. I found myself somewhere in the middle. I believe in the entirety of the gospel. The more I study it, the more I find myself saying, “Dang…God knew what He was doing. This is so perfect, and I’m so grateful that He continues to work with us. All of this makes so much sense.” I believe that eventually, we will have to accept the entirety of the gospel in order to receive the entirety of happiness that is available. On the same note, I rather have people accept as much of the truth (since from my perspective, this IS the truth) as possible. Perhaps they can’t bring themselves to hold to everything taught over the pulpit. Though I believe that accepting the entirety of the gospel is eventually going to be required of all of us in order to be prepared for exaltation, I also believe that it’s better to listen to conference and take as much as you can in comparison to not listening at all. So that’s my first perspective. The gospel is true. The Savior leads this church and eventually, all of His choices are going to make sense. In order for us to find our way and become the kind of people He wants us to become, we will eventually need to accept every portion of the gospel. But in the meantime, I rather you accept at least part of the truth if you’re not ready to accept all of it. Accepting all of the gospel But here’s my unapologetic part and the second perspective I want to teach today. When Christ declares that these people only wanted part of the truth, I don’t picture Him condemning them. I don’t believe the Lord was trying to tell the Saints that the Shakers were bad people. I believe that the Lord was trying to tell them that accepting only part of the truth brings only part of the blessings. When we’re operating on false beliefs, we’re going to make more mistakes, get hurt, or miss out. This is an absolutely ridiculous example, but it teaches the gist of what I’m trying to say. If you are super convinced that gravity isn’t real, then you might make some poor choices. You’re not a morally bad person for not believing in gravity, and having a good heart and righteous intent can go a long way. But you can still get hurt if you decide to try and live your life as if there is no gravity. Let’s look at it from a religious perspective. The Shakers believed in celibacy over marriage. I believe that marriage, intimacy, and having children have brought me closer to God than anything else. I have learned more about the character of God. I have learned more about joy. I have experienced small glimpses of heaven as I sit in bed with my five kids and hold an extremely chaotic Come Follow Me lesson before church on Sundays. The Shakers were missing out. In fact, I believe they were missing out on some of the most beautiful parts of life. I’m sure they were very good people, but operating as if there is no gravity can cause problems. It can prevent you from receiving blessings that might otherwise be yours. Modern-day equivalents I think there are a couple of different ways that this can manifest in our day, and I want to talk about two. This wasn’t the modern-day equivalent I was thinking of when I first began this post, but the Spirit had other ideas. The modern-day equivalent that I feel led to talk about is when we try to downplay eternal truths in the name of sensitivity. I originally shied away from using the particular belief of marriage and celibacy as an example because I know there are a lot of members who ache for what I have. I have family and friends who have yearned for happy marriages and children and so hearing that they’re missing out on these blessings can be painful. I don’t believe it’s immoral to step back for a minute and focus on other parts of the gospel when the disappointment of unfulfilled blessings feels too great. I believe there are times when the rest of us can be more sensitive; there are ways that we can make sure that we’re that everyone feels included even if they’re not married. But I also believe that we wouldn’t be doing anyone any favors by ignoring or downplaying this powerful, eternal truth. Marriage and parenthood are incredible blessings, and everyone who is righteous will receive that crowning blessing eventually. It may feel painful sometimes to hear about it too much, but it would be even more painful to reject those beliefs because you have yet to see their fulfillment. It would bring even more pain and sorrow to not teach this eternal truth: marriage and parenthood are divine. The Shakers were missing out. Embrace your God-given desires for companionship and children, and simultaneously embrace the promises of the Savior to fulfill those desires. There is so much goodness coming. The second modern-day equivalent actually seems like the opposite of what I just taught, but it’s actually just an extension of what I just taught. If you’re watching Come Follow Me videos, chances are, you believe in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. So how does this apply to you? What truths are you not accepting? What partial truths or traditions are you clinging to? This can manifest in a million different ways. Sometimes we’re taught the truth but still cling to our original interpretations of the truth. For example, I used to cling desperately to the idea that God was mad at me whenever I made a mistake. I’m not sure if this was self-sabotage or a weird motivational factor I tried to cling to, but either way, it was holding me back from some of the most incredible blessings I’ve ever experienced, namely the grace of Jesus Christ. What partial truths do you refuse to give up and what do these partial truths take away from you? I testify of a Savior who disperses truth as many places as He can. If you’re not ready to accept Him as a Savior, He is going to try and teach you about the character of God as much as possible. If you’re not ready to accept the reality of God, He is going to try and teach you Christlike principles about loving your neighbor and choosing gratitude as much as you allow Him. I testify of a Savior who is actively pushing truth in any form that we are willing to accept because He wants us to experience as much heaven as is available in our day. I also testify that clinging to and operating on partial truths, whether inside the church or out, can lead to more pain than is necessary and less happiness than is available.     Autumn Dickson was born and raised in a small town in Texas. She served a mission in the Indianapolis Indiana mission. She studied elementary education but has found a particular passion in teaching the gospel. Her desire for her content is to inspire people to feel confident, peaceful, and joyful about their relationship with Jesus Christ and to allow that relationship to touch every aspect of their lives. Autumn was the recipient of FAIR’s 2024 John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 49–50 – Autumn Dickson appeared first on FAIR.

Spiritual gifts; corrections to Shaker beliefs (D&C sections 46, 49–50, 52–56) by Mike Parker (Mike Parker is a long-time FAIR member who has graciously allowed us to use materials he originally prepared for the Hurricane Utah Adult Religion Class. The scripture passages covered in his lessons don’t conform exactly to the Come, Follow Me reading schedule, so they will be shared here where they fit best.) Class Notes Additional Reading Jonathan A. Stapley and Kristine Wright, “Female Ritual Healing in Mormonism,” Journal of Mormon History 37, no. 1 (Winter 2011): 1–85. Stapley and Wright examine the history of anointing and laying on of hands of the sick by early Latter-day Saint women. On the sanctity of animal life: On 26 May 1834, Joseph Smith taught about the sanctity of animal life during the Zion’s Camp march: “[After] we crossed the Embarros River…in pitching my tent we found three Massasaugers or Prairie Rattle Snakes which the brethren were about to kill, but I said [‘]let them alone, don’t hurt them, how will the serpent ever lose its venom, while the servants of God possess the same disposition, and continue to make war upon them[;] men must become harmless before the brute creation, and when men lose their vicious dispositions and cease to destroy the animal race, the lion and the lamb can dwell together, and the sucking child play with the serpent with safety.[’] … I exhorted the brethren not to kill a serpent, bird, or any animal of any kind, during our journey unless it— were necessary to preserve ourselves from hunger.“ (Manuscript History, vol. A‑1, 8 [addenda].) President Joseph F. Smith, “The Destruction of Animal Life,” Juvenile Instructor 48, no. 5 (May 1913): 308–09. President Smith warned the Saints against being “athirst for the shedding of animal blood” simply for sport or pleasure. President Spencer W. Kimball repeated Joseph F. Smith’s counsel in his October 1978 General Conference address, “Fundamental Principles To Ponder And Live.” He expressed his view that “it is not only wicked to destroy [innocent birds and wildlife], it is a shame.”     Mike Parker is a business and marketing analyst with over twenty years’ experience in the financial services and cellular telephone industries. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management Information Systems from Dixie State University (now Utah Tech University) of St George, Utah. He also has eight years’ experience in corporate training and currently teaches an adult religion class in southern Utah. Mike and his wife, Denise, have three children. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 46, 49–50, 52–56 – Mike Parker appeared first on FAIR.

Avoiding Confusion by Autumn Dickson The Lord continues to clarify and restore His church. This week, He helps to clarify what their meetings should look like and who gets to come. There were some Saints who started acting strangely during these meetings because they believed they were being acted upon by the Holy Ghost. The Lord taught what it truly looks like when the Spirit is working through you. Here is part of His clarification: Doctrine and Covenants 46:7 But ye are commanded in all things to ask of God, who giveth liberally; and that which the Spirit testifies unto you even so I would that ye should do in all holiness of heart, walking uprightly before me, considering the end of your salvation, doing all things with prayer and thanksgiving, that ye may not be seduced by evil spirits, or doctrines of devils, or the commandments of men; for some are of men, and others of devils. I want to rearrange the order of this verse a little bit to clarify what I want to teach. The Lord wants us to avoid being seduced by evil spirits, doctrines of devils, and commandments of men. That is His goal when He is speaking to His people in this verse. What is His advice (or more accurately commandments) for how to avoid these unfortunate ends? He gives us a few pieces of wisdom. Follow Him in holiness of heart, walking uprightly before Him, considering the end of your salvation, and doing all things with prayer and thanksgiving. These are some of the ways that we can avoid confusion in the latter days. Confusion Before I jump into each phrase, I want to expand the idea of “confusion” that I’m talking about today. When I first think of the concept of “confusion” in regards to the gospel, I usually have a knee jerk reaction to believe that we’re referring to who has the truth surrounding God and His characteristics and gospel. This is definitely a portion of confusion, but Satan extends it far beyond that. Yes, he wants to confuse us as to who has the truth, but he also wants to confuse us in any way that he possibly can. He loves to confuse us by twisting gospel principles. For example, it is  so easy to get caught up in being right and others being wrong. Satan loves to cause discord and turn people against each other. Perhaps conflict isn’t your first thought when we’re talking about confusion, but it’s a very powerful tactic of Satan and the rest of the world. Confusing us to the extent that we see enemies all around can also be very effective for Satan. Feeling connected to one another is a powerful part of salvation. Needing each other, taking care of each other, assuming the best of each other, and melding our different experiences into powerful progress are all necessary pieces to the salvation puzzle. Satan loves to confuse us and pull us away from those specific types of salvation. He loves to make us believe that we’re correct and everyone else is wrong. He loves to make us believe that others have evil intentions, and we have to step up and be heroes. He loves making us believe that we need to fight against others when in actuality, a grand majority of us are trying to push mankind forward even if we have different ways of going about it. He wants us to see other people as the enemy. By making us believe we’re enemies, Satan is taking away opportunities for us to feel the pieces of heaven that are available to us here on earth. So that’s my expanded definition of confusion. It’s not just about who has the truth. It’s about all the ways that Satan can confuse us. What advice do we receive from the Lord about how to avoid confusion? Let’s jump into those phrases now. Holiness of heart The first phrase is “holiness of heart.” Holiness is to be set apart. If I’m going to make something holy, I take it apart from its environment that is likely corrupt or even just mundane. I do this so that it can be more readily utilized by the Lord. For example, the temple is holy. It’s made from similar materials as other buildings on the earth, but it’s not like other places on earth. It was set aside from corrupt and mundane things, and we make it holy by reserving it for the Lord’s use. Another example. The sacrament is holy. It’s just regular bread and water, but it’s not regular bread and water in the sense that we have set it apart for a higher purpose. It’s not about filling out stomachs and rehydrating. It’s more important. We separated it from other food so that it can help us to think of Christ. How do we make our hearts holy? How do we set our hearts apart from the world? I have just a few thoughts. Our hearts are physically like other hearts in the world, but our hearts cannot look like the hearts of the rest of the world. They have to be different. Our hearts have to be separated from earthly influences so that we are in a space where the Lord can more readily speak to us and utilize us. This means purposefully drowning out the noise that comes in from any other source and tuning ourselves to just speak with Him. Much of the process of making something holy occurs within our mind and focus. We don’t use a special type of bread for the sacrament. We make it special by giving it a different purpose within our minds. We consciously make a decision to set something apart for the Lord’s use, and we wait to see what the Lord wants to do with it. It is no different with our hearts. If we want our hearts to be holy, we consciously separate our love from corrupt and mundane influences and wait to see what the Lord wants to do with it. Walking uprightly before Him When I first looked at this phrase, all I could think of was keeping the commandments. I think that’s definitely part of it, and the commandments are absolutely placed there to help us avoid confusion. I want to take it a step further though. When you do something “uprightly,” you do it in an “honest, responsible, and moral way.” Believe it or not, you can keep the commandments in a way that is not upright and oftentimes, doing it with a wrong heart can cause more problems and more confusion. You can serve your spouse, and it can bring more resentment. You can wear your garments and be angry about it the whole time. You can pay your tithing and be annoyed. This isn’t meant to shame anyone because shame brings its own share of problems, and heaven knows I have been guilty of following the commandments with a bitter heart. I don’t bring this up so that we can harangue ourselves. Rather, I bring it up because if we can consciously change how we approach the commandments (i.e. following the commandments in an uprightly manner), we can find very specific blessings. One of those blessings is what we’ve been talking about: avoiding being seduced by evil spirits and the commandments of men. Let’s look at that first example more closely. Before I share this example, I think it’s really important to note that Conner is a good husband who works really hard to take care of our family. He’s loyal and playful and responsible, and his deepest happiness comes from being with us. And yet, despite being married to a very good man, sometimes I get resentful towards Conner. When I want him to do something I think he should be doing or when I want him to stop doing something, I can take it personally and turn it into a bigger problem. And then, when I continue to serve him in the ways that I normally do, it can make the resentment build and build. During one of my resentful moments, I came across a very Christlike piece of advice on instagram. A lady shared her experience of learning to love her husband even when she didn’t feel loved. Her example reminded me that I wasn’t serving my husband in an upright manner. I was serving him but not in the way that the Lord would have me serve, and so it wasn’t bringing any joy into my life. In fact, it was doing the opposite. I had been so caught up in my resentment (despite following the commandment to serve) that I felt justified. I was convinced that I couldn’t be vulnerable or forgive or allow myself to be happy until my perceived wrongs were made up. I had gotten confused. Unsurprisingly, I was also miserable. As I came across this advice to love more freely (and as I chose to do my best to act on that advice), I felt that confusion melt away. Satan had been lying to me. The world was wrong in its assumption that there is power in bitterness. That is just one example, but I’ve found it to be true over and over and over. When I give my heart right alongside my service (when I walk uprightly before the Lord), Satan and the commandments of men have less power over me and I find more joy. Considering the end of your salvation There are two ways I’m interpreting this phrase in my head. When we consider the “end” of our salvation, it could be referring to the means by which we receive salvation (Christ) or what the “end” of salvation looks like. Both are really great ways to help us avoid confusion and hold on, but I want to focus on the first interpretation I mentioned. If we want to avoid confusion, we should take time to consciously consider how Christ brought about that salvation. I want to bring up another form of confusion that causes a lot of problems. Perhaps this is just my personal experience, but I feel like people (myself included) have gotten so incredibly caught up in wanting to be seen and heard. We want our sacrifices to be noted. We want to be recognized and validated. We are desperate to make sure that we’ve gotten as much as the next person. But that’s not how Christ lived His life. He didn’t seek recognition and validation. He gave up everything, and He did it alone. He wasn’t angry when the disciples fell asleep during that ultimate sacrifice. He didn’t resent them. Even now, when He commands us to remember Him, it’s not about Him. He wants us to remember Him and worship Him because He knows what it will do for us, not because He has some ego that needs to be fed. Satan likes to confuse us. He loves to whisper that we deserve better, and honestly, maybe we do. But if we turn our minds towards Christ and how He lived His life, we can find a better way. When we choose to focus outward in the same way that He performed His sacrifice, we will find joy regardless of whether the world is fair or unfair. And then, when we get to the other side, it will all be as it should be. Satan would love for you to focus on what you don’t have and what you think the others are doing wrong rather than adopting the focus that Christ had. All things with prayer and thanksgiving One of my daughters is particularly stubborn. Being stubborn comes with its own gifts and trials that she’s going to have to learn how to balance. There have been many times that she has approached me, already mad and ready to pick a fight, over something she feels was mishandled. This can range anywhere from my choice of disciplining her brother to enforcing a rule that she’s unimpressed with. Picking a fight is putting it kindly. There are times when she feels quite fiercely about what she’s approaching me with. When she approaches me, opinions set in stone and frustration mounting, it can be very difficult to explain myself to her. I don’t always mind explaining my parenting choices, but it’s very hard for her to understand my explanations when she has preconceived notions and anger. That anger often arises out of her opinion that I’m shortchanging her rather than her remembrance of how I’ve centered my life around her in so many ways. It becomes nearly impossible for her to hear me, and when I don’t have the opportunity to get my point across, she stays confused about why I chose my specific route. The phrase we’re talking about right now is to do all things with prayer and thanksgiving. This may be one phrase, but prayer and thanksgiving function slightly differently in their ability to help us avoid confusion. First, there is prayer. True prayer means that we’re communing with the Lord. We are seeking to align our will with His. We are open to His responses. I don’t think I have to delve too far into this in order to highlight why this might be helpful when we’re trying to avoid confusion. Second, there is thanksgiving. Having your eyes opened to all the ways that the Lord has already shown up for you enables you to trust His answer. When you approach Him in thanksgiving for everything He has done for you, oftentimes, you will find the answer you’re looking for in the midst of what He’s already given. As my daughter grows and comes to trust my intentions more and more, it will become easier and easier for her to understand my parenting choices. She will see that I’m giving her opportunities to become her best self rather than trying to undermine her or unfairly push back against her. Having a thankful heart for all the Lord has done for us helps us approach Him in a manner where we’re ready to see the truth and shed our confusion. The Lord wants to help us understand. He wants to guide us along His path. He wants us to avoid confusion. It can be very easy to get caught up in Satan’s lies or the commandments of men when we’re trying to take the infinite decisions of God and fit them into tiny boxes where they don’t belong. Fortunately, the Lord has also given us specific ways of how to avoid this confusion. I testify of a Lord who is worth listening to. His words aren’t arbitrary or minced. His wisdom far surpasses Satan or those on the earth who are limited in their understanding. He cares, and He wants to teach us so that we can rise above what anyone else can offer.     Autumn Dickson was born and raised in a small town in Texas. She served a mission in the Indianapolis Indiana mission. She studied elementary education but has found a particular passion in teaching the gospel. Her desire for her content is to inspire people to feel confident, peaceful, and joyful about their relationship with Jesus Christ and to allow that relationship to touch every aspect of their lives. Autumn was the recipient of FAIR’s 2024 John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 46–48 – Autumn Dickson appeared first on FAIR.

Our Advocate by Autumn Dickson I feel like there are many ways to illustrate the atonement of Jesus Christ in order to add layers to our understanding. I don’t think one verse, one way of explaining it, one parable can do it justice. It’s so universal and so individual at the same time. Applying it and having it change us can be so nuanced. Studying layer upon layer can give us a more full picture of the Savior’s powerful sacrifice. This section holds one of my favorite verses, and it teaches us another layer about His atonement. I’ve actually shared this verse before in a different Easter message in a different year, but I taught it from a completely different angle so I’m going to use it again. A sacred learning experience I just want to note that this is the gospel according to Autumn. I don’t know that my description is how things are going to go, but I do believe there are principles here that are most definitely true. My description is merely meant to teach those principles, not to try and preach exactly what Judgment Day looks like. I want you to picture that it’s your turn to go in and be judged by your Heavenly Father and Savior. You’re nervous. You don’t really feel like reliving some of the worst decisions of your life, but there’s no turning back now. You did what you did, and now you get to watch it. As you enter the room, you’re blown away by the warmth there. You take your seat waiting for the video montage to start so that They can start weighing your good deeds against your sins, your opportunities against your disadvantages. You watch your video-montage-life, and then the Savior stands to be your advocate. You are blown away when the Savior doesn’t actually say much about what your life looked like. Instead, He says this… Doctrine and Covenants 45:4-5 4 …Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin, in whom thou wast well pleased; behold the blood of thy Son which was shed, the blood of him whom thou gavest that thyself might be glorified; 5 Wherefore, Father, spare these my brethren that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have everlasting life. The Savior was speaking to His church in this verse. He literally tells His Saints, “Listen to me, your Advocate before the Father. This is what I’m going to tell your Heavenly Father. I’m going to ask Him to look at My perfection and My sacrifice so that you can be saved.” I believe that we are all going to be judged on who we’ve become, truly I do. I also think we are going to experience something very powerful on Judgment Day. The Lord loves to teach us and because progression will still exist on the other side, I believe that Judgment Day is going to double as a learning opportunity. I believe that we’re going to feel humbled as we listen to the Savior asking the Father to spare us because of what the Savior did for us, not because we worked really hard to keep the commandments and change. In that day, we are going to learn that we truly are saved by grace. I imagine us walking out in tears, completely surprised that Judgment Day wasn’t painful. It will be beautiful and sacred and humbling to realize that our choices and personal change do matter, but that they would be rendered useless had our older Brother chosen against sacrificing Himself on our behalf. I imagine being filled with a reverent, deep-seated awe that renders us speechless. Souls not saved That is not the only thing the Savior teaches in this section though. Right before He describes His role as the advocate, He also teaches this particular principle: Doctrine and Covenants 45:2 And again I say, hearken unto my voice, lest death shall overtake you; in an hour when ye think not the summer shall be past, and the harvest ended, and your souls not saved. The Savior pleads with us to listen to His voice in case Judgment Day comes at an unexpected time, and we find our souls not saved. This begs the question, “What does it mean to be saved?” In my personal interpretation of the gospel, we are experiencing varying levels of salvation and damnation at any given time in our lives. We are inviting heaven or hell. We are feeling close to the Savior, full of love for others, free from the constraints of men, and safety in vulnerability before the Lord. Or, we are feeling far away from our loving Brother, clinging to a selfish focus and desperate need to make ourselves happy, carrying the weight of the fickleness of mankind, and fearing that the floor is going to fall out from beneath us. Being saved is gradually inviting more and more heaven into your life by taking advantage of tools given to us by the Savior. For example, being saved is not about taking the sacrament and dying before you have an opportunity to sin again. Being saved is about taking the sacrament and allowing yourself a moment of peace to remember the Savior and His great love in sacrificing Himself for you. Continually reflecting on that love and building a relationship and confidence in Him invites salvation because loving Him is salvation. It also pushes you to look outward and love others, another aspect of salvation. That’s why we’re taught that you can’t just repent right before you die. We’re taught that you’ll be the same person on the other side that you are on this side. Salvation doesn’t just come when you say sorry. Salvation is something you grow into. The Savior also reminded His people about the parable of the ten virgins in Section 45. You can’t borrow oil, and oil doesn’t magically appear when you need it. The “oil” is something you have to gather ahead of time so that you’re ready to be a part of the Celestial Kingdom when the Savior utilizes His atonement to bring you there for good. In short… In short, we gradually become more like our Savior, experiencing life as He does, experiencing “salvation” as He does. The atonement of Jesus Christ is there, all throughout our life. It is a power that helps us change and grow. The love behind the sacrifice inspires us to want to do better. It gives us the hope we need to keep trying. And then, when it’s our time to be judged, the Savior’s atonement facilitates us walking into the Celestial Kingdom where we can enjoy that salvation forever. The Savior’s atonement means that our change and effort matter. If the Savior had been unsuccessful in His sacrifice, I wonder if there would have still been some merit in following the laws of Christ. I think it’s worth reflecting on because it can help us understand what we would have faced without His triumph, and I believe that can bring a lot of gratitude. Would forgiveness still help a person to rise above pain? Would turning outwards towards others still bring happiness? Would gratitude, humility, and seeking knowledge still bring some level of worth? The Savior enjoys salvation because He follows these laws perfectly so even if the Savior had failed, I wonder if following them (to whatever extent we’re capable of) would still bring some portion of happiness. I don’t know how things would have turned out if the Savior had failed. I don’t know how much happiness would have still been available to us or if we would have all eventually given up and dissolved into dissolution and despair. We wouldn’t get our bodies back which, according to the scriptures, is described as a sort of prison. I don’t remember how it feels to be a spirit, but I believe that there was a legitimate reason we were excited to get a body and a legitimate reason that the Savior went through what He did in order to guarantee a resurrection. We wouldn’t get to return to Them. Anyone who has missed anyone can understand this to a degree. Someday, that veil won’t be over our eyes anymore. We will remember where we came from and Who sent us, and the ache of never returning to Them will stick with us. People may never heal from the mistakes we’ve made. We may never heal from the wrongs committed against us. We would be relegated to a place that’s probably a lot like earth. It’s filled with some good, but it’s also filled with people who turn against each other. There are always people who want to hurt each other and hate each other. When things on earth feel heavy, I cling to the idea that the Savior is going to make up for it all. How would I change without that hope? I don’t know exactly how the world would look without the triumph of the Savior over sin and death. I do know what the Spirit feels like, and I know that the feelings of the Spirit are meant to give us a tiny glimpse into what it feels like on the other side. I know that forgiveness has freed me. I know that one day, misunderstandings will clear, minds and hearts will heal, and we will be placed in an existence that is full of everything we could possibly ask for. I know that because of the Savior, we will have the opportunity to enjoy that existence in its fullness; I am grateful that the Savior chose to perform the atonement so that we could return to Him.     Autumn Dickson was born and raised in a small town in Texas. She served a mission in the Indianapolis Indiana mission. She studied elementary education but has found a particular passion in teaching the gospel. Her desire for her content is to inspire people to feel confident, peaceful, and joyful about their relationship with Jesus Christ and to allow that relationship to touch every aspect of their lives. Autumn was the recipient of FAIR’s 2024 John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 45 – Autumn Dickson appeared first on FAIR.

The second coming of Jesus Christ (D&C sections 29, 43, 45, 116, 133) by Mike Parker (Mike Parker is a long-time FAIR member who has graciously allowed us to use materials he originally prepared for the Hurricane Utah Adult Religion Class. The scripture passages covered in his lessons don’t conform exactly to the Come, Follow Me reading schedule, so they will be shared here where they fit best.) Class Notes Additional Reading Elder John A. Widtsoe of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles gave some important cautions on interpreting prophecies of future events; see “Evidences and Reconciliations XXXII: To What Extent May Prophecy Be Interpreted?,” Improvement Era 43, no. 12 (December 1940): 737, 765, 767. In his October 1992 General Conference address, “To Be Learned Is Good If…,” Elder Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve warned against those within the Church who preach of an impending gathering of the saints due to some catastrophe. Such people persist in the Church today, and many recent, popular books continue to teach these types of false messages. (Skip to the 13:30 mark in Elder Packer’s talk.) Elder Packer taught: “There are some among us now who have not been regularly ordained by the heads of the Church and who tell of impending political and economic chaos, the end of the world—something of the ‘sky is falling, chicken licken’ of the fables. They are misleading members to gather to colonies or cults. “Those deceivers say that the Brethren do not know what is going on in the world or that the Brethren approve of their teaching but do not wish to speak of it over the pulpit. Neither is true. The Brethren, by virtue of traveling constantly everywhere on earth, certainly know what is going on, and by virtue of prophetic insight are able to read the signs of the times. “Do not be deceived by them—those deceivers. If there is to be any gathering, it will be announced by those who have been regularly ordained and who are known to the Church to have authority.”     Mike Parker is a business and marketing analyst with over twenty years’ experience in the financial services and cellular telephone industries. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management Information Systems from Dixie State University (now Utah Tech University) of St George, Utah. He also has eight years’ experience in corporate training and currently teaches an adult religion class in southern Utah. Mike and his wife, Denise, have three children. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 29, 43, 45, 116, 133 – Mike Parker appeared first on FAIR.

The law of consecration; the office of bishop (D&C sections 41–42, 44, 48, 51, 70, 72, 79) by Mike Parker (Mike Parker is a long-time FAIR member who has graciously allowed us to use materials he originally prepared for the Hurricane Utah Adult Religion Class. The scripture passages covered in his lessons don’t conform exactly to the Come, Follow Me reading schedule, so they will be shared here where they fit best.) Class Notes Additional Reading In October 1962 General Conference, then-Elder Spencer W. Kimball spoke out against marital infidelity, using portions of section 42 to explain the importance of “total allegiance and total fidelity” that husbands and wives should have for each other. Read his remarks in Conference Report  (October 1962): 55–60.     Mike Parker is a business and marketing analyst with over twenty years’ experience in the financial services and cellular telephone industries. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management Information Systems from Dixie State University (now Utah Tech University) of St George, Utah. He also has eight years’ experience in corporate training and currently teaches an adult religion class in southern Utah. Mike and his wife, Denise, have three children. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 41–42, 44, 48, 51, 70, 72, 79 – Mike Parker appeared first on FAIR.

As Seemeth Him Good by Autumn Dickson Sidney Rigdon has become an increasingly significant character in the formation of the young church, and this week we get to read a revelation that was directed towards him. Sidney was originally trained as a tanner, but he left that profession to preach because he dearly loved the word of God. He worked with the Baptists for some time before splitting with them over disagreements. He moved to Ohio with his family and was elected preacher over a congregation there. Sidney Rigdon dearly wanted a restoration of Christ’s church; he recognized that the church he was looking for wasn’t on the earth at the time, but he faithfully tried to pattern his congregation after what he learned about in the New Testament. Oliver Cowdery, on his way to preach to the Native Americans, stopped for a short period in Ohio and preached to Sidney and his congregation. Many, including Sidney, were converted. As I read about Sidney, I can see how he really wanted to do exactly what the Lord wanted him to do. He wanted to know what the Lord would have him do spiritually. When Oliver found him, he had been trying to live with all things common between his congregation just as the New Testament Saints had done. Now that he found the restored church, he likely wanted to know how he should fully embrace it. Sidney was also facing some uncertainties as a result of his conversion to the restored gospel; he had been all set up to live in a home that was being built for him as the preacher over the congregation in Mentor, Ohio. After converting to the church, that home was no longer available to him. His baptism had quite literally left his family homeless. Both of these circumstances, a desire to follow spiritual truth and facing uncertainty, are great reasons to seek revelation. There is a verse in Section 41 directed towards Sidney that seems to suggest that Sidney sought out the will of the Lord. Perhaps he sought it out directly through Joseph, or perhaps he had been seeking it out himself and the Lord answered through Joseph because the Lord knew Sidney’s heart. Either way, this is what the Lord had to say: Doctrine and Covenants 41:8 And again, it is meet that my servant Sidney Rigdon should live as seemeth him good, inasmuch as he keepeth my commandments. I’m not sure how Sidney felt upon receiving this small tidbit, but let’s try to liken it to ourselves. Facing uncertainty I want to cover the second portion of his reasoning first. Sidney was facing homelessness and uncertainty. These are often the times that inspire a desire for revelation. When the world is scary and we’re feeling powerless, it incites a need for a higher power. Sometimes, we just need a message from the Lord that we’re going to be okay. Sometimes, we’re looking for more. Perhaps we’re asking the Lord to give us a more substantial answer about what we’re supposed to be doing. We want actionable items to follow that we know will lead us towards a better and safer situation. When Sidney came seeking revelation, his family was in a precarious situation and the Lord answered, “Live how you want as long as you follow my commandments.” I don’t know how Sidney reacted to this tidbit. Maybe he was so excited to simply be in a church that was receiving revelation through a prophet. Maybe he was excited to be trusted by the Lord. Maybe he was excited to get started building the kind of life he wanted rather than being given a specific path. I’m not totally sure. However, I do know that many of us (or at least those who are vocal at church on Sundays) often want the Lord to give us a clear path. We just want to be told what to do. I’ve learned that the Lord likes us to move forward and make decisions of our own accord and build the kind of life we really want, and He will open the right doors and course-correct as necessary. And yet, if I had received that answer, I think I would have been bummed. I would have reacted differently at different time periods in my life. At one point, I would have wondered if He was mad at me or if I was too sinful to receive a real answer. At other points, I might have been like, “Hey! I followed You and now I’m going to be homeless and this is all You have for me?!” Even now, I know that the Lord purposefully chooses to have me build my own life BECAUSE He loves me and trusts me and believes in me. And yet, I still get a bit disappointed that He doesn’t want to give me more than that. I get disappointed because it means that there is work to do on my part; it would be tremendously easier if He would just tell us what to do. But (I guess) thank goodness He’s not willing to do that. We’re looking at a specific home on the east coast right now, and it’s so scary and we don’t know if it’s right. However, I get to look back on this multi-year process and remember the lessons He’s taught me. I get to decide right now whether I trust Him to lead me along, to bail us out when we’re trying to follow Him and things don’t pan out how we thought, and to manipulate the opening and closing of doors. It’s easy to say that I trust Him to do this. I say that all the time in these posts, and I believe it too. And yet, when we’re in a big decision like this, I get to find out whether I really do trust Him. I get to make continuous, tiny decisions to trust when I feel anxiety or discouragement. It can be an agitating process, but it’s given me opportunities to strengthen those spiritual muscles. I really am grateful for it even if I tease. It changes me to have these experiences where I stand on the edge of obscurity and find out whether I’m willing to step into trusting the Lord. I don’t necessarily like it, but I love the result. It feels good to trust the Lord. And I suppose that’s one of my main points here. Every Christlike attribute has to be balanced. It would have been easy for Sidney to want more, but we need to trust what the Lord chooses to give. I believe the way to balance a desire for revelation is to trust the Lord and whatever He chooses to give at any specific time. We do what we can to prepare ourselves to receive. We keep our hearts open. Then we are grateful that He chooses to follow His own will in regards to what He chooses to share. We trust that He is doing so in wisdom, and we trust that He won’t let us truly fail. A desire to follow the path The first portion of Sidney’s reasoning to seek revelation was because he wanted to be spiritually led. A desire to be spiritually led is obviously a trait we should be seeking to develop, but it also has to be balanced and the answer is the same for when we’re seeking revelation about our temporal circumstances. Seeking revelation is balanced with trust. For a long time, I struggled at the temple. I remember a quote (that for some reason I can’t currently find) given by a General Authority who said that they learn something new every time they go to the temple. I struggled because I didn’t feel that way. I was trying really, really hard to be prepared and open myself up to learn something. I did my best to stay awake and focus. I tried staying in the Celestial Room longer. I tried pondering. I did everything I mentally could to try and learn something new, and I simply wasn’t getting anything. I often left the temple feeling discouraged and wondering what I had done wrong that I hadn’t learned anything new. When this General Authority gave this quote, I don’t believe they were necessarily trying to tell us that we should learn something new every time we go. They were simply bearing testimony that going to the temple helped them learn. However, I took it to the extreme, and it left me discouraged. Christlike attributes have to be balanced, and luckily, I have a wise sister who told me to relax. She said she didn’t usually go to the temple to receive revelation; she simply went to serve. As I looked at my own life, I realized how I had turned my own bedroom into a bit of a temple as I sought out very reverent time to seek revelation on a daily basis. The Lord is given plenty of opportunities to talk to me, and He often does. Going to the temple became a relief. I was able to think about the person I was serving instead, and I now feel excitement for them and gratitude that I can go without all of the pressure. I could go to the temple and trust the Lord to speak to me as needed. Don’t get me wrong; I believe the temple is a great place to learn especially when the rest of the world is chaotic and ugly. Stepping into a beautiful and reverent place can help us mentally go into a place where we can receive revelation. There is a reason the Lord gives us temples to seek Him out. What I am trying to teach is that we don’t need to put any added pressure on ourselves to try and hear Him when He’s not talking. Balance your desire for revelation with a trust that He will speak and be heard when He’s good and ready. Do we need to try and hear Him? Absolutely. We just need to be doing it without the pressure. Seeking revelation can be balanced with trusting the Lord and what He chooses to give us at any given time and where He chooses to give it. The Lord did not give Sidney much to go off of, but it’s not because He had more important things to do. It’s not because Sidney had earned His cold shoulder or because Sidney necessarily needed to work harder in that given moment (though that is sometimes the case). The Lord chose to give Sidney what He gave because the Lord loved Sidney and knew what was best for Sidney. I testify that every decision the Lord makes in our lives is in our favor. I testify that we can joyfully seek after the Christlike attributes and spiritual skills because the Lord stands ready to help us in the right amount at the right times. We can seek revelation and be grateful for His voice, and we can be grateful for when He’s silent. They can both be signs of His love.     Autumn Dickson was born and raised in a small town in Texas. She served a mission in the Indianapolis Indiana mission. She studied elementary education but has found a particular passion in teaching the gospel. Her desire for her content is to inspire people to feel confident, peaceful, and joyful about their relationship with Jesus Christ and to allow that relationship to touch every aspect of their lives. Autumn was the recipient of FAIR’s 2024 John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 41–44 – Autumn Dickson appeared first on FAIR.

An Act of Faith by Autumn Dickson This week, we run into a big announcement for the Saints. Doctrine and Covenants 37:3-4 3 And again, a commandment I give unto the church, that it is expedient in me that they should assemble together at the Ohio, against the time that my servant Oliver Cowdery shall return unto them. 4 Behold, here is wisdom, and let every man choose for himself until I come. Even so. Amen. The Lord asks His Saints, many of whom are gathered in New York, to pack up and move to Ohio. I think it’s hard to fathom what a big deal this is. Joseph is a very young man, and he’s imperfect. Even if you believe he’s the prophet, it can be difficult to wonder whether this is truly a commandment from the Lord. In fact, John Whitmer recorded that some people believed Joseph had made it up in order to take advantage of them. Imagine packing up as much as you can, potentially not being able to sell your home, and moving to a place where you’re going to have to build a house and hopefully be able to grow food for your family (because there certainly wasn’t any welfare yet). This was a really big deal. It was an immense test of faith. These people were being asked to dive headfirst into a body of water that they hadn’t been given many opportunities to test out. The church was so new that there had been relatively few opportunities to exercise your faith up to this point, and going to Ohio was going to take a herculean amount of faith. Faith experiences There are different kinds of experiences associated with faith in mortality. I want to look at the experiences of David from the Old Testament in order to differentiate between two specific directions through which we experience faith. By exploring the different ways we can choose to exercise faith, I believe that we can more consciously grow our faith. In the Old Testament, the Israelites are facing a very scary army. Goliath steps forward as an individual on behalf of this very scary army, and he wants to battle an Israelite. Unfortunately, none of the Israelites want to challenge him. David, a teenage shepherd who came to bring lunch to his brothers, has come forward to King Saul, and he wants to go against Goliath. Saul responds to David with, “You’re really young, and this guy has been a soldier for a really long time.” This is how David responds. 1 Samuel 17:34-35 34 And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father’s sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock: 35 And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. In lay terms, David tells Saul that he’s a shepherd who protected his father’s sheep against a lion and a bear. David has fought great battles and been protected by the Lord, and he believes it would be no different in this situation. In reality, facing the bear and facing Goliath require different approaches to faith. A low-risk faith In verse 34, we learn that the lion and bear came to David, and he fought them. I think it’s really key to understand that in this situation, the trouble came to David. He didn’t go out asking for it. He fell into a situation and pleaded with the Lord to save him. Has difficulty ever come upon you and your need for the Lord was made very apparent and you pleaded for deliverance? Have you ever found yourself in a situation where all of a sudden you were paying really close attention to your prayers and the Lord? The foremost modern day equivalent that I can think of is getting some sickness like cancer. When I describe this as a “low-risk” faith, I’m not trying to say that bears, lions, and cancers aren’t serious. What I’m trying to say is that in situations like this, it never hurts to try and reach out to a higher power. Having a deep, steady faith can bring you an immense amount of peace in a situation like this. However, there’s not a lot on the line if whatever higher power you believe in doesn’t answer. You’re not going to be any worse off than you were before. I call this a low-risk faith. Surely you’re showing faith by turning to the Lord, but it’s not requiring much of you because you have nothing to lose in turning to Him. David didn’t ask for the lion and bear to come, but he pleaded with the Lord when they did show up. A high-risk faith The situation with Goliath was totally different. David could have gone home and some other Israelite would have been sent in his place to fight Goliath. Stepping up to fight a seasoned soldier of your own accord is different from being forced into a scary situation with wild animals. If Goliath had shown up at David’s doorstep spoiling for a fight with David (and David only) then showing faith and pleading for help would have been low-risk. It wouldn’t have left David worse off to look to a higher power. The level of faith it required to step forward of his own accord was far more immense. People can go their whole lives, pleading with the Lord when it’s low-risk, but never actually stepping forward in an act of higher faith that brings higher rewards. When David stepped forward to fight Goliath, without anything compelling him to do so, his faith was speaking volumes. His faith was saying, “I know that it was the Lord who delivered me from the lion and bear and not just dumb luck or my immense skill with a slingshot. I know that the Israelites are the Lord’s people and that the Lord wants to protect them. I know that the Lord wants me to step forward to fight him, or at the very least, I know that the Lord will protect me if I choose to do so when no one else will.” Joseph Smith taught that true faith requires a knowledge of God’s character, and I believe that teaching is so evident here. It would have been easy for David to wonder if the Lord really wanted to protect His people or whether David was going to end up as collateral damage in a war that the Israelites were meant to lose. It would have been easy to wonder if the Lord was busy doing something else. It would have been easy to wonder if the Lord truly wanted David to do this thing or if David was doing something stupid by stepping up. But David knew the character of the Lord, and he stepped forward in faith of his own accord. Let’s pull it back into the situation of the Saints. The difference would be equivalent to one of the Saints losing their home and trusting the Lord to help them find something new in comparison to voluntarily leaving behind a good thing for the unknown because the prophet told you to. The potential for doubts is staggering. Is Joseph really a prophet? Did Joseph get the revelation wrong and only Joseph is supposed to go to Ohio or do they really all need to go? Does God really care about them and will He truly take care of them? There are going to be situations in your life where darkness comes upon you and you reach out to the Lord for help. These kinds of faith-situations are really important. These kinds of situations help you build your faith as you choose to see the Lord’s hand stepping in to help. These kinds of situations also call upon you to believe that the Lord still loves you and is going to make things okay, even if it’s not in the direction that you want it to be. On the flip side, there will be situations where the Lord is going to ask you to step into the dark. Maybe others have had different experiences, but for me, these can feel scarier. Even when I truly believe that the Lord loves me, I wonder whether I’m hearing Him correctly or whether I’m just putting myself into a bad situation for funsies. When I chose to get married, I wasn’t sure the path was going to bring me happiness and I felt like the Lord was rather quiet on the subject when I wanted undeniable confirmation that I was making a choice that would bring me joy. When we moved to Virginia, it was easy to wonder whether we had left something really good behind in favor of living in a hotel for three months with three kids. Had the Lord asked us to do it or was it all made up in my mind? When I chose to do this blog because I thought He was asking me to, it was easy to wonder whether this is really what He wanted or whether I was simply investing immense amounts of time into something that the Lord hadn’t actually asked for. We have different lessons to learn here on earth that call for different kinds of faith. Sometimes the Lord quietly presents us with opportunities to step forward into the dark, trusting that He will be there, and when we choose to jump, the rewards are immense. David defeated a mighty soldier, saved the Israelites, and set himself up to become king. That’s no small thing. They say that higher risks can reap greater rewards. There have been plenty of times in my life where I felt like I was taking great risks in trusting the Lord, but I have learned that with the Lord, it’s not really a high risk. I’ve learned that even when I’m mistaken in my understanding of what He wants me to do, He’s not going to respond with, “Whoops. That sucks for you. That wasn’t what I was asking.” He loves me. I may find myself in greater difficulty, but I will never truly lose if I’m actively trying to follow Him. He knows my heart. He knows I want to do what He wants me to do, and that’s enough for Him.     Autumn Dickson was born and raised in a small town in Texas. She served a mission in the Indianapolis Indiana mission. She studied elementary education but has found a particular passion in teaching the gospel. Her desire for her content is to inspire people to feel confident, peaceful, and joyful about their relationship with Jesus Christ and to allow that relationship to touch every aspect of their lives. Autumn was the recipient of FAIR’s 2024 John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 37–40 – Autumn Dickson appeared first on FAIR.

They Fell Back by Autumn Dickson This week is all about Christ and His atonement. The Come Follow Me manual recommends studying Luke 22 to reflect on the sacrifice that the Savior made in the Garden of Gethsemane. Instead, I want to read the same experience except I want to share it from the book of John. The soldiers approach the Christ and His group following the experience in the Garden of Gethsemane. John 18:4-6 4 Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon him, went forth, and said unto them, Whom seek ye? 5 They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with them. 6 As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground. I could have this wrong because it doesn’t explicitly state the reasoning, but here is what I’m picturing. These soldiers come forward looking for Christ and spoiling for a fight. They’ve got their weapons and torches since it’s late, and they come upon the group of disciples and ask for Jesus of Nazareth. Christ steps into the light of the torches and replies, “I am He.” The soldiers fall back. I know there are different interpretations of how this scene played out, but this is how I’ve always imagined it: I picture the soldiers falling back because of what they saw when Christ stepped into the light. Christ had just spent a portion of time bleeding from every pore as He suffered the sins and pains of the world. In all honesty, it’s likely a ghastly sight, and it catches them off guard. Even if I’m wrong about how I imagine it, I believe there are some parallels that can teach us something significant here. Regardless of how the details went down, the principles I want to talk about are absolutely true. Spoiling for a fight I can remember a time in my life where I overheard someone talking quite negatively about my husband in my home. I was upstairs folding laundry when I realized I needed something from downstairs. I started walking down the hallway and paused when I heard them talking. One person was complaining about Conner, and the other one was trying to placate them and simultaneously shush them since the situation could prove to be awkward were I to come around the corner. Needless to say, I didn’t quite make it around the corner, but I did overhear. I was seeing red for a couple of reasons. This person had consistently been critical of Conner, and this person had also put Conner into the situation that they were currently complaining about. I’m not normally a confrontational person (mostly because I’m a wuss if we’re being honest), but I had already had plenty of scathing mental conversations with this person over the way Conner had been treated. I was so over it. I was about to let them have it, along with all the other baggage I had accumulated regarding the relationship we had with this person. But I took a step back, breathed deeply, and furiously (but quietly) stomped back to my room. I angrily paced back and forth for a while. I debated whether I was going to go down and call them out on it. I tried going back to work in my room but found myself pacing again. How dare they? I had kept my mouth shut for a long time, and I felt that they needed to hear just how toxic they were being. Don’t get me wrong; I 100% believe there are appropriate times to call someone out and correct them. Sometimes correction is one of the highest forms of love. However, I wasn’t being particularly Christlike in how I wanted to approach that correction. If you’re going to correct someone, I believe it needs to come from a place of concern for their well-being rather than your own. I wanted this person to feel bad, and not because I wanted them to repent and live life in a more happy manner. Luckily, I dropped to my knees and said a prayer. To this day, I don’t know what pushed me to pray at this moment, but I’m glad it happened. I told the Lord how angry I was, at the current situation as well as all the previous situations where I felt Conner had been treated and perceived unfairly. I asked the Lord to help me see reality and to feel the truth of the situation I was looking at. Boy, did He deliver. The Lord responded with two things. I got a mini-montage before my mind’s eye of all the ways I had acted precisely like this person who had so offended me, and I got a whopping spiritual smackdown as I realized how similar I was to this person I was so mad at. More importantly, I also saw how the Lord had taken care of it. The Lord loved this person. They were generally a good person; there was just a lot of bad blood built up. The Lord paid for it all, and when we get to the other side, we would all be able to see each other clearly. We would all clearly be able to see how the Lord had sent us down here to learn (sometimes the hard way) and then paid with a check signed in His blood. Needless to say, the wind got drop-kicked out of my sails. There are lots of details there, but let’s focus on three very important details. I had approached spoiling for a fight. I had seen the results of the atonement of Jesus Christ. I was forcefully taken aback by the reality of Christ’s sacrifice. The soldiers had approached spoiling for a fight. They saw the physical manifestation of Christ’s ultimate sacrifice in the Garden of Gethsemane. They were quite literally taken aback by what they saw. How can the atonement of Christ change you? I read a book (Price of Privilege by Jessica Dota) that was an allegory for the Savior. In the book, the main character finds herself in a terrifying, deadly marriage in the Regency Era. This was partially because of her own foolish choices, but it was also because she was a powerless victim in a world where women had no power. One of the main characters, Isaac, fights to free her from the marriage, and when it fails, he offers a poisonous drink to her murderous husband. Unfortunately, the only way to make him confident enough to drink the poison was if Isaac drinks with him. The poison kills her husband, but it also kills Isaac. In one of the key moments at the end, we find her being kind to her cruel and cold father, not because he deserves it but because she loves Isaac for freeing her and Isaac had always encouraged her to be kind to her father. Isaac had quite literally saved her life; he gave her an opportunity to be happy in her life. How could she say no to his small requests in return? Like the soldiers at the end of the account of the Garden of Gethsemane, I have a feeling that seeing (or even simply experiencing) the atonement of Jesus Christ would change how we feel about the betrayals we’ve experienced. Hyperfocusing on the damage you have received often disables your ability to recognize the goodness that is still available to you, perpetuating the consequences you have suffered innocently. Looking to the Savior, seeing what He is offering and experiencing what He sacrificed (at least to an extent) is enough to take the fight right out of you. Forgiveness is a process. I fully realize that healing from some betrayals takes immense amounts of time. This isn’t meant to rush that process or summon guilt for the innocent party. It’s meant to point you in the direction of ultimate healing, the Savior. If you keep your focus on the Savior and if you allow yourself to experience His grace, you’ll be taken aback at how your need for revenge or even personal justice dissipates. When you know the Savior, you trust Him and you feel safe enough to pass the circumstances to Him. I testify that the Savior is mighty to save. I testify that He can offer everything that is owed to you. I testify that if you could remember Him and the experiences you’ve shared, you would naturally feel safe enough to let Him free you, bless you, and handle the justice of the perpetrator. That is the effect of experiencing His atonement.     Autumn Dickson was born and raised in a small town in Texas. She served a mission in the Indianapolis Indiana mission. She studied elementary education but has found a particular passion in teaching the gospel. Her desire for her content is to inspire people to feel confident, peaceful, and joyful about their relationship with Jesus Christ and to allow that relationship to touch every aspect of their lives. Autumn was the recipient of FAIR’s 2024 John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Easter – Autumn Dickson appeared first on FAIR.

Sidney Rigdon; the gathering; the office of Church Historian (D&C sections 35–40, 47) by Mike Parker (Mike Parker is a long-time FAIR member who has graciously allowed us to use materials he originally prepared for the Hurricane Utah Adult Religion Class. The scripture passages covered in his lessons don’t conform exactly to the Come, Follow Me reading schedule, so they will be shared here where they fit best.) Class Notes Additional Reading David W. Grua, “Joseph Smith and the 1834 D. P. Hurlbut Case,” BYU Studies 44, no. 1 (2005): 33–54. Grua examines the notorious ex-Mormon apostate Doctor Philastus Hurlbut, his attempt to destroy the early Church, and the legal case brought against him for threatening to kill Joseph Smith. Matthew Roper, “The Mythical ‘Manuscript Found’,” FARMS Review 17, no. 2 (2005): 7–140. Roper reviews (and decimates) modern attempts to tie the origins of the Book of Mormon to Sidney Rigdon. Church leaders and scholars are so confident that there is no connection between Solomon Spaulding’s “Manuscript Found” and the Book of Mormon that they’ve reprinted the Spaulding manuscript numerous times. In the 1990s, Brigham Young University printed Spaulding’s book in its entirety: Kent P. Jackson, ed., Manuscript Found: The Complete Original “Spaulding Manuscript” (Provo, Utah: Religious Studies Center at Brigham Young University, 1996).     Mike Parker is a business and marketing analyst with over twenty years’ experience in the financial services and cellular telephone industries. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management Information Systems from Dixie State University (now Utah Tech University) of St George, Utah. He also has eight years’ experience in corporate training and currently teaches an adult religion class in southern Utah. Mike and his wife, Denise, have three children. The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 35–40, 47 – Mike Parker appeared first on FAIR.