Scriptural Guidance

In a talk in general conference many years ago, President Nelson taught about “living by scriptural guidance” as we travel through life. Answering the question of where we can turn for guidance, he said, “We turn to Him who knows us best—our Creator. He allowed us to come to earth with freedom to choose our own course. In His great love, He did not leave us alone. He provided a guide—a spiritual road map—to help us achieve success in our journey. We call that guide the standard works, so named because they—the Holy Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price—constitute the standard by which we should live. They serve as a standard of reference, as are standards of time, weights, and measures that are kept in national bureaus of standards.” When we need help and direction (i.e. every day) we should turn to that standard before all else. He told of how a particular passage in the Doctrine and Covenants helped guide him “in the days of [his] early scientific research in a field that was then new to medical practice.” He gained courage from the Lord’s statement that “unto every kingdom is given a law; and unto every law there are certain bounds also and conditions.” Knowing that there were laws and bounds and conditions to be discovered and mastered relative to the functioning of the human heart, he persevered in his research and eventually did discover those laws and conditions. Each of us likewise needs scriptural guidance in our unique challenges that we face on a regular basis. He summarized, “We all need guidance through life. We obtain it best from the standard works and teachings of the prophets of God. With diligent effort, we can achieve that guidance and thus qualify for all of the blessings that God has in store for His faithful children.”

                To me one of the most important passages of scripture in which we can find personal guidance is Lehi’s vision of the tree of life. As President Packer once observed, “You may think that Lehi’s dream or vision has no special meaning for you, but it does. You are in it; all of us are in it.” He encouraged us, “Read it carefully; then read it again.” Knowing that we are in it, as we study the vision of the tree of life we can ask ourselves, “Where am I? Am I at the tree partaking of the fruit, sill holding fast to the rod of iron that brought me there? Or am I wandering about lost in mists of darkness? Am I standing afar off like Laman and Lemuel knowing where to go but not willing to move? Am I feeling my way towards the great and spacious building? Or am I already there inside of it?” Thinking of these questions and our personal relationship to the dream can help us see the course corrections we need to obtain and retain our place at the tree. As I reread 1 Nephi 8 this morning I was struck in particular by this passage: “And great was the multitude that did enter into that strange building. And after they did enter into that building they did point the finger of scorn at me and those that were partaking of the fruit also; but we heeded them not. These are the words of my father: For as many as heeded them, had fallen away” (1 Nephi 8:33-34). Today the multitude is indeed great that is in that great and spacious and strange building. And never has the finger of scorn been more obvious from them as the principles and standards and truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ are mocked and rejected by most today. The message of Lehi’s dream to us, though, is that we must not heed them! Despite the numerous voices coming from that building, calling us to leave the tree and the fruit desirable above all other fruit—even though they have nothing of real substance to offer themselves in return—we must be firm in our conviction to “heed them not.” Part of the great challenge is what President Packer observed, “Largely because of television, instead of looking over into that spacious building, we are, in effect, living inside of it. That is your fate in this generation. You are living in that great and spacious building.” Because of technology—and in particular the internet and smartphones—the great and spacious building is all around us and permeates nearly everywhere. It takes great focus to heed it not, to cast our eyes and ears not towards it but towards the Savior and His gospel. To not heed the world’s call, we must do as President Nelson and the words of holy writ have taught us: “If our journey through life is to be successful, we need to follow divine direction. The Lord said, ‘Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.’ And the Psalmist wrote, ‘Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.’”