in Mosiah chapter 4, king benjamin is giving his sermon (think the first general conference) and tells us, in verse 10, "and again, believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them." the last part is what stuck out to me, "and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them."
i thought back to everything i believe in-- everything i stand for, who i desire to become, all of those things that i have faith will happen. and i thought to myself, "what are some things i personally have a belief in?" i made a little list in my head that included, but was not limited to:
-- the importance of being Christlike
-- treating others the way you want to be treated
-- having faith and trust in our Father in Heaven and know that everything will work out the way it's supposed to work out
-- knowing that i'll be needed where the Lord needs me to be
and i realized that i don't do a very good job in the application process of my beliefs -- yes, i believe wholeheartedly that everything will work out the way it's supposed to; but does that stop me from complaining when something doesn't happen the way i wanted it to? do i really treat others the way i want to be treated? am i really as nice to others as i could be? as i should be?
"and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them." i don't think there could be a more applicable phrase during this time of year. this Christmas is my first Christmas back home from my mission. the Christmas season of my mission was by far the nicest-- people were more pleasant, more helpful, and were so willing to give. if we believe in being Christlike, why aren't we this way all year round? why do we feel it's acceptable to be rude to the lady in the mall when she takes for-evvvverrrrr ringing up our 3 articles of clothing, but during the holidays we find ourselves being more patient, forgiving, and loving?
the 13th article of faith states, "We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul-- We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things."
if i truly believed in these things, wouldn't i seek to do them?
my thoughts sometimes aren't as eloquent as i would like them to be-- but i think it comes down to this: "if you believe all these things see that ye do them." i feel like a missionary again with my little sermons and it is absolutely wonderful :)
now go out and change the world! i know that i'm trying to :)
